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This Coconut Cream Cake is ultra-moist, packed with coconut flavor, and topped with a decadent coconut cream cheese frosting. A must-try for coconut lovers!
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A Cake for Every Celebration
This Coconut Cream Cake is one of the best layer cakes I have ever had. The texture of the cake is so rich and moist, and the frosting is just to die for! Whether you’re making it for a birthday, a wedding, a shower, or just because—you’ll want to keep this recipe on hand for any special occasion. I’ve even made it for Easter (decorated like a bunny!) and for Hawaiian-themed parties. No matter the occasion, this cake is a showstopper!
Ingredients in Coconut Cream Cake
For the Cake:
- Unsalted Butter – Adds richness and keeps the cake tender.
- Sugar – For sweetness.
- Cream of Coconut – This is key! It’s not the same as coconut milk. Find it in the drink mixers aisle.
- Eggs – Provides structure and moisture.
- All-Purpose Flour – Gives the cake its texture.
- Baking Soda – Helps the cake rise.
- Salt – Enhances all the flavors.
- Buttermilk – Adds moisture to the cake.
- Coconut Extract – Coconut extract is best, but vanilla extract will work in a pinch.
For the Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting:
A lot of coconut cakes use a buttercream frosting, but this coconut cream cheese frosting really takes this cake to the next level!
- Butter – Softened to mix smoothly.
- Cream Cheese – Adds a smooth texture and a tangy, rich flavor.
- Coconut Extract – Enhances the coconut flavor.
- Powdered Sugar – Sweetens and thickens the frosting.
- Milk – Helps achieve the proper consistency.
- Toasted Coconut Flakes – For the perfect finishing touch!
Supplies You’ll Need for Layer Cake
- 9-inch round cake pans – To split the cake batter into layers.
- Stand mixer or electric mixer – With a paddle attachment.
- Large mixing bowl – To combine the ingredients.
- Wire rack – Helps the cake cool to room temperature before frosting.
Tips for Making the Best Coconut Cream Cake
This is one of our more advanced cake recipes, but trust me—it’s SO worth it! Just follow these tips to get the best results:
Make it a day ahead! This cake needs to freeze overnight before frosting. It helps lock in moisture and prevents the cake from crumbling. This step is key if you want to keep your cake looking pretty.
Grease & Flour Properly. Some readers have had trouble with sticking, so I recommend greasing the pan, lining it with parchment paper, greasing again, and then lightly flouring it.
Avoid Overflowing. If your batter fills the pans more than ¾ full, consider using a third pan or reserving some of the batter to make coconut cupcakes.
Alternative Baking Options. Some readers have made this in a 9×13 pan instead of layers, and others have turned it into cupcakes with great success. Just be sure to adjust baking times accordingly and do the toothpick test to check for doneness.
Questions About Coconut Cream Cake
Coconut cream adds a rich, creamy texture and enhances the coconut flavor in the cake.
Yes. Store leftover cake in the fridge in an airtight container or wrapped in plastic wrap.
No, coconut milk won’t give the same creamy texture and richness as coconut cream.
Read Next: 33+ Easy Dessert Ideas (with Pictures + Simple Recipes)
More Recipes for Coconut Lovers
If you can’t get enough coconut, check out these other delicious treats:
- Coconut Syrup – Smooth and sweet – serve over pancakes, ice cream, or in drinks.
- Tasty Coconut Cupcakes – Light and fluffy cupcakes with the most amazing coconut frosting!
- Coconut Cream Pie from Scratch – No pudding mix in this delicious coconut cream pie filling.
- Coconut Pecan Cookie Bars – A graham cracker crust topped with coconut, milk chocolate chips, pecans.
- Caribbean Coconut Fudge Bars – A soft oatmeal cookie crust topped with chocolate fudge and a gooey coconut topping.
- Coconut Almond Bread – This is a moist coconut bread with a hint of almond.
How to Make Coconut Cream Cake
Coconut Cream Cake
Video
Equipment
- Electric Mixer
- Mixing Bowls
- 2 9 inch Round Pans
Ingredients
COCONUT CAKE
Wet Ingredients
- 1 cup butter softened
- 1 3/4 cups white sugar
- 1/2 cup cream of coconut Coco Lopez is the one I used, it can be found by the drink mixers at your grocery store- reserve another ½ cup to drizzle on the cake after baking
- 4 large eggs
Dry Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
Additional ingredients
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract
COCONUT CREAM CHEESE FROSTING
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 8 ounces cream cheese softened
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract
- 2 pounds powdered sugar more if needed
- milk as needed
- toasted coconut for topping, see below for recipe
Instructions
For the Cake
- Separate eggs, set whites aside.
- Beat wet ingredients together including egg yolks until fluffy.
- Sift dry ingredients together and stir well. In a separate bowl, combine buttermilk and coconut extract. Set aside.
- Add dry ingredients to wet using mixer on low speed alternating with buttermilk/extract mixture.
- In a clean bowl, beat egg whites with a pinch of salt until stiff. Fold egg whites into batter.
- Line two 9-inch pans with baking spray and flour (or what works BEST is lining the bottom and sides of the pan with parchment paper- cut a circle for the bottom of the pan and a strip for the sides and still spray above and below the paper)
- Bake at 275 degrees for about 90 minutes (this cake comes out much nicer when cooked at a lower temperature). After about 60 minutes, do the "toothpick test", repeating every 5-10 min or so until the toothpick comes out clean.
- After the cake is out of the oven and transferred to parchment paper or a cooling rack, poke each cake with a few holes (making sure not to poke all the way through) and drizzle another ½ cup of coconut cream over the top. This keeps the cake extra moist.
- After the cake completely cools, gently cover it with some plastic wrap and transfer to the freezer to freeze overnight.
- The next day, frost immediately after removing from the freezer (see frosting recipe below). This keeps the cake from crumbling while it is being frosted. Put a layer of frosting in-between the two cakes and then continue to frost the remainder of the cake.
- After frosting, sprinkle the cake with toasted coconut (instructions for toasting are below). Allow the cake to thaw for about an hour before serving.
For the Frosting
- Beat butter, cream cheese, and coconut extract together, adding powdered sugar little by little until reaching desired consistency.
- If it seems to get too stiff, add about 1 tsp of milk at a time until you get the consistency you want (add milk to thin it out, add powdered sugar to thicken it up).
Toasted Coconut
- Place contents of about ½ bag of sweetened, shredded coconut on a cookie sheet. Spread it out so it makes just a single layer. Bake at 325 degrees for approximately 8-10 minutes. Some pieces will still be white and soft, some browned slightly with a little crunch.
- Press toasted coconut into the frosting all over the top and sides of the cake.
Notes
- This is one of our more advanced recipes on our site but well worth the work! We have made this countless times and it will turn out great as long as you carefully follow the instructions and don’t skip steps.
- This cake requires freezing OVERNIGHT so be sure to make it a DAY AHEAD of when you plan to serve it! This is a very moist cake and the freezing of the cake makes it so it will not crumble when it is frosted then next day. This step is very important if you want to keep your cake looking pretty.
- I have had a few comments with people saying they had issues with sticking, so make sure to grease and flour! I always grease my pan, then line the bottom and sides with parchment paper (so it doesn’t slip) cut a round piece of parchment paper for the bottom and a long strip for the side of the pan. Then grease again over the parchment paper and lightly flour.
- Some people have had issues with the cake overflowing in 2 pans, I’m not sure if this is an elevation issue or an over-beating issue with the batter, but if the batter seems to be filling your pans more than ¾ full, consider using a 3rd pan or reserving some of the batter for some cupcakes.
- One reader mentioned that she just made it in a traditional 9×13 inch pan without doing the layers and it turned out great. Another reader just did cupcakes and said that they turned out really good too! With either of these options you will need to adjust your baking times accordingly and really watch it close by doing toothpick tests. The cupcakes should cook much faster so start checking those sooner.
This has become everyone’s favorite cake 🎂 in my family. I’ve made it 5 times over the last 12 months. It gets easier and easier each time too. 60 minutes is always enough time in the oven for me.
I also make my own “cream of coconut”:
1 cup coconut milk
1 3/4 cup sugar
Pinch of salt
Bring to a boil on the stove then let cool.
Thank you so much for this gem!
I love this one too! So glad it has become a favorite for your family!
Thank you for the lovely recipe, I am currently baking it. However there is a small detail that needs clearer instruction and that is the when to put in butter milk. It is a little confusing.
Thanks for pointing that out! I have edited the recipe for clarity. Hope you enjoyed the cake!
The flavor of this cake was delicious (I could have eaten the whole bowl of batter) however I thought the cake was a bit dense and it was moist, but no more so than any other cake I make. The biggest reason I took off one star was the frosting. 2 lbs of powdered sugar is ludicrous and would make it cloyingly sweet especially as it is already coated in sweetened coconut flakes. I used 1 1/2 lbs and an extra 4 oz of cream cheese and it was yummy and kept together perfectly. In fact I think if I made it again, would only use 1 lb (and add in at least 4 oz more cream cheese than the recipe called for). Basically it was delicious but for my personal taste needs some minor tweaks.
I have used this recipe to make this cake several times and it is delicious and perfect every time, it is my favorite cake to bake among many that I’ve tried!
Loved this cake so much! My husband and family really enjoyed it, but it was too sweet. Is there anyway to adjust the sweetness?
You can reduce the sugar in this cake by up to 25% without a change in texture.
Absolutely the best cake I’ve ever made! I followed the recipe to a T! My husband agrees!
do you really need 2 pounds of powdered sugar for the frosting? Or is it 2 cups?
It is two pounds! I know it is a lot, but you need it to form a stiff enough texture to frost the cake without it slipping off.
This was such an amazing cake! I had never baked a coconut crème cake but had wanted to try it. So I decided to try it for Easter and it turned out amazing!!! I followed each step carefully and the cake and icing turned out delicious and became a family favorite for Easter now. ❤️
It definitely is an advanced recipe but it is worth it and if you follow each step carefully it turned out great.