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Coconut Cake

You will fall in love with this moist and fluffy Coconut Cake recipe. It's light, tender, and bursting with coconut flavors.

Prep Time
1 hr
Cook Time
mins
Total Time
1 hr 30 mins
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 927 kcal
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American

Ingredients

For the Cake:
  • 3 cups cake flour (360g)
  • 2 cups granulated sugar (400g)
  • 2 ¼ teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup unsalted butter room temperature and cubed (227g)
  • 4 egg whites lightly beaten
  • 1 cup milk room temperature, (240ml)
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut (100g)
For the Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting:
  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened (227g)
  • 8 ounces cream cheese room temperature (227g)
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ to ½ teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 5 cups confectioners’ sugar (600g)
  • 2 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut (250g)

Instructions

For the Cake:
    Cup of Yum
  1. Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour 3 (9-inch) round cake pans or spray with baking spray. Line the bottom of each pan with a circle of parchment paper.
  2. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, sift together the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Add the butter. Starting at the lowest speed, mix for 1 minute or until the mixture is crumbly.
  3. Add the egg whites, milk, vanilla, and coconut extract. Mix at low speed until the mixture is well combined. Then, increase the speed to medium and beat until fluffy, about 1 minute. Stop and scrape down the bowl at least once during mixing. Fold in the shredded coconut. Divide the batter among the cake pans and smooth out to the sides with a spatula (the batter will be thick).
  4. Bake for 30 minutes, rotating the pans after 15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a few moist crumbs. Let the cakes cool in the pan for 20 minutes. Carefully invert and continue cooling on a wire rack. Remove the parchment paper.
For the Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting:
  1. In a large mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the butter until creamy and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the cream cheese, vanilla extract, coconut extract, and salt. Beat until well combined and fluffy, about 2 minutes, stopping to scrape down the bowl occasionally.
  2. With the mixer on low, add the sugar 1 cup at a time. Once combined, scrape down the bowl, then mix on medium speed until fluffy, about 1 minute.
For the Assembly:
  1. Place one cake layer on a cake stand. Spread about 1 cup of frosting evenly over the top. Top with another cake layer and repeat with more frosting. Top with the remaining cake layer. Spread the remaining frosting all over the outside of the cake. Press the coconut to the frosting all over the top and sides of the cake. Chill for 30 minutes for easy slicing, or keep refrigerated for up to 3 days or until ready to serve.

Notes

  • For the milk in this recipe, you actually have a few options. You can use regular milk, canned coconut milk, or buttermilk. The buttermilk will give a lighter crumb, and the coconut milk will give a little extra coconut flavor, but regular milk will still result in a very delicious cake, so use what you have or wish!
  • If your extract is particularly strong, use less. Or, if you don’t like the flavor of coconut extract, you can leave it out altogether!
  • Give the cake pans a few gentle taps on the counter to burst any air bubbles in the batter.
  • It’s best to bring refrigerated ingredients, such as the eggs, milk, and butter, to room temperature before using them to prevent overmixing the batter. Overmixing the batter will lead to a tough cake.
  • Make sure you measure the flour correctly. Using a scale is the most accurate method of measuring flour and will prevent you from ending up with dense cake layers. If you don’t have a scale, fluff your flour with a spoon and spoon it into your cups before leveling it off with a knife. This method prevents you from overpacking the measuring cup.
  • If the tops of the layers are domed, use a serrated knife to cut off the top of the domes, so they don’t topple over. For perfectly even layers, you can use cake strips. Cake strips work by keeping the outside edge of the pan cooler to ensure that the entire cake rises at the same rate, preventing a dome from forming in the middle. If you don’t want to purchase cake strips, see my guide on how to DIY cake strips.

Nutrition Information

Calories 927kcal (46%) Carbohydrates 121g (40%) Protein 8g (16%) Fat 48g (74%) Saturated Fat 32g (160%) Polyunsaturated Fat 2g Monounsaturated Fat 10g Trans Fat 1g Cholesterol 103mg (34%) Sodium 526mg (22%) Potassium 205mg (6%) Fiber 2g (8%) Sugar 96g (192%) Vitamin A 1233IU (25%) Vitamin C 0.2mg (0%) Calcium 107mg (11%) Iron 1mg (6%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 12servings

Amount Per Serving

Calories 927

% Daily Value*

Calories 927kcal 46%
Carbohydrates 121g 40%
Protein 8g 16%
Fat 48g 74%
Saturated Fat 32g 160%
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g 12%
Monounsaturated Fat 10g 50%
Trans Fat 1g 50%
Cholesterol 103mg 34%
Sodium 526mg 22%
Potassium 205mg 4%
Fiber 2g 8%
Sugar 96g 192%
Vitamin A 1233IU 25%
Vitamin C 0.2mg 0%
Calcium 107mg 11%
Iron 1mg 6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.