Coconut Cake
Soft and fluffy homemade Coconut Cake made in a bundt pan and topped with coconut cream cheese frosting.
Servings 12
Calories 559kcal
Ingredients
Cake:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 2 ¼ cups granulated sugar
- 2 large eggs
- 2 large egg yolks
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
- 1 ⅓ cups canned light coconut milk well shaken
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
Frosting:
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter softened
- 1 cup powdered sugar plus more, if needed
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon almond extract
- 2 tablespoons coconut milk plus more, if needed
- 2 tablespoons toasted coconut for garnish, optional
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350°F. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the the paddle attachment, beat butter and sugar on medium speed for 3 minutes, until light and fluffy. Add eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, beating after each addition. Beat in vanilla and almond extracts. Scrape down the bowl and beater as needed.
- Add the flour in three additions, alternating with the coconut milk (beginning and ending with flour), beating well between each addition, and scraping the bowl as needed. Stir in the shredded coconut.
- Thoroughly grease a 12-cup bundt pan (I have found that non-stick baking spray with flour tends to work best for this). Pour the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it into an even layer. Bake for 45-55 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool cake in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then carefully invert it onto a serving plate and allow it to finish cooling (before frosting).
Frosting:
- Using a hand mixer or stand mixer, beat cream cheese and butter until smooth. Add powdered sugar and beat to combine. Add extracts and beat to combine. Slowly add the coconut milk until you reach your desired consistency (I used a generous 2 tablespoons). You want the frosting to be thin enough to slowly run down the sides of the cake, but not so thin that it slides off the top. Adjust using the powdered sugar (to thicken) and coconut milk (to thin), as needed.
- Spoon the frosting over the top of the cake, allowing it to drip down the sides. Garnish with toasted coconut, if desired.
Notes
- See above for tips on preventing the cake from sticking to the pan.
- This cake is best served at room temperature (it is extra fluffy and moist). You can store it in the fridge, but I recommend bringing it to room temp before serving. It can be eaten chilled (and it actually cuts much neater that way), but it will be more dense, like a pound cake, when it's cold.
Nutrition
Calories: 559kcal | Carbohydrates: 76g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 113mg | Sodium: 181mg | Potassium: 162mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 51g | Vitamin A: 710IU | Calcium: 56mg | Iron: 2mg