Coconut Cream Cake – White cake with a hint of coconut, layered with homemade coconut cream on the inside, and finished with a coconut cream cheese frosting on the outside.
Today’s recipe comes from a reader request. I love hearing from you all and was thrilled to see a note in my inbox from one of you requesting a cake recipe. I had recently posted this Chocolate Raspberry Cake Roll but this particular reader was interested in a layer cake recipe.
Ask and you shall receive!
I have had this Coconut Cream Cake recipe in my back pocket for a while but never could pull the trigger. Layer cake recipes take time and I always found myself too lazy to develop it into the perfect recipe.
However, with this special request, I suddenly was inspired to finally put this recipe on paper and share it with you all.
Without further ado, let’s talk about this Coconut Cream Cake!
What is coconut cream cake?
Coconut cream cake can only be described as a combination of coconut cream pie and coconut cake. I had a version of it once and LOVED it. Coconut cake on it’s own can be too sweet so I love the layers of pastry cream between the cake that brings a richer flavor without being overly sweet.
How this cake is made
This cake has three main parts:
- Making the cake
- Making the pastry cream filling
- Making the cream cheese frosting
The cake and the pastry cream both need time to cool so you’re going to need to incorporate extra time for this cake. It’s not something you can whip up a couple hours before serving – definitely make this cake the day before you need it.
Making the cake
The cake recipe is a classic white cake made with cake flour and egg whites to make it perfectly fluffy. It’s made with coconut shreds, coconut milk, and coconut extract but don’t worry – the coconut flavor is not overpowering in the slightest. It’s subtle enough to win over even those who shy away from coconut treats. I should know – I used to be one of them!
Once the batter is made, you simply distribute evenly among the cake pans and bake until golden perfection. Remove from the pans and let them cool completely.
Make the filling
The cake is layered with pastry cream aka coconut cream pie filling. It’s the same process as any other pastry cream but it’s made with coconut milk instead of whole milk.
To do this, you just heat the milk over the stove before it boils. Then you whisk the hot milk gently into egg yolks and cornstarch and cook that mixture until it’s nice and thick. Once it’s cooked, coconut shreds are added, along with coconut extract to give a slightly enhanced coconut flavor.
The mixture needs to cool before adding it to the cake. The cooling process allows the pastry cream to thicken up perfectly so it doesn’t slide out of the cake.
Making the cream cheese frosting
Once the cake it layered with the pastry cream, you need to let it all come together by chilling the cake for at least an hour. While it chills, you can make the frosting. It’s a cream cheese frosting with a hint of coconut flavor from the coconut milk and coconut extract.
When it’s time for frosting the cake, you’ll frost it just like any other layer cake:
- Make a crumb layer and let it set. This prevents crumbs from making it to the outside of the cake.
- Finish it off with the rest of the frosting
- Cover with shredded coconut and let the cake set
Tips & Tricks
- This recipe takes time. It’s important to be patient to ensure the cake turns out exactly as intended. So when I tell you to let the cake rest, make sure you do it!
- This recipe calls for coconut milk. You can find this in the grocery section near evaporated milk or near the Thai food ingredients.
- This cake requires cake flour to keep it perfectly fluffy. If you don’t have cake flour and can’t find it at the grocery store, you cake make your own.
- It’s important to grease your cake pans super well so the cake slides out easily. I’ve had cake stick to the pan before and it’s a DISASTER. In fact, when making the cake for these photos, a piece of cake stuck to the pan even though I greased it super well. Luckily, I could hide it because it was a small piece. If you look closely in the cake photo above, you’ll see the broken piece
- When dividing the cake between the three cake pans, use a kitchen scale to make sure they’re precisely even. This will ensure the cake looks good but also cooks evenly in the oven.
- The cake might be super delicate when it comes out of the cake pan so place a sheet of parchment paper on the cooling racks before adding the cakes on top so they don’t get imprints from the rack.
Coconut Cream Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 ½ cups cake flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ sticks butter unsalted, softened
- 1⅔ cup sugar
- 5 large egg whites
- ½ cup sour cream
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract
- 1 cup coconut milk
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
For the cream filling:
- 14 ounces coconut milk (full fat)
- 1 cup half and half
- ⅔ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 4 large egg yolks
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
- 2 tablespoons butter unsalted
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon coconut extract
For the cream cheese frosting:
- 1 stick butter unsalted, softened
- 4 ounces cream cheese softened
- 2½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 tablespoon coconut milk
- ¼ teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ¼ teaspoon coconut extract
- 2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease three 9-inch round cake pans. Then add parchment paper to the bottom of the pans and grease again. Set aside. In a medium bowl, whisk cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together until combined. Set aside.
- In a bowl of a stand mixer, beat sugar and butter together until creamy, about 3 minutes. Add half of the egg whites and mix together until combined. Add remaining egg whites and beat until combined. Add sour cream, vanilla, and coconut extracts until combined. Add ⅓ of the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix just until combined. Add ½ of the milk and mix just until combined. Repeat with the next ⅓ of the dry ingredients, the rest of the milk, and the last ⅓ of the dry ingredients.
- Pour batter evenly into prepared baking pans and smooth the top with a rubber spatula. Pro tip: you can use a kitchen scale to make sure you have the same amount of batter in each pan. Bake in preheated oven for 24 minutes or until the top gets light golden brown and the center is no longer jiggly. Remove from the oven and let it cool for 20 minutes. Then, remove from the cake pans and let them cool on racks for 2 hours. In the meantime, make the filling.
For the cream filling:
- Place milk, half and half, sugar, and salt in a large saucepan and heat over medium heat. While it's heating, whisk the egg yolks and cornstarch together for 1 minute. Once the milk is hot but not boiling, remove from heat and add about ¼ cup to whisked yolks to slowly warm them up. Slowly add the rest of the warm milk to the yolks while whisking. Pour the mixture back into the saucepan.
- Place the saucepan over medium heat and continue to whisk as the mixture heats up. Don't stop whisking or the milk will burn at the bottom of the pan. Continue cooking until the mixture thickens, about 5-7 minutes. Once it started to get thick, turn down the heat to medium low and continue whisking until the mixture gets to the consistency of pudding, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and continue whisking to remove the steam.
- Add the coconut, butter, and extracts and whisk together until the butter melts completely. Place plastic wrap directly on the pastry cream and refrigerate until completely cooled, about 6 hours.
- Once the cream is cooled, it's time to assemble the cake. Cut the tops off the cake if it is domed. You want them to be completely flat or else the layers will slide when assembled. Add half of the pastry cream to the bottom cake layer. Spread evenly, leaving about ½ inch clear from the sides. Add the next layer of cake on top and repeat with remaining pastry cream. Top with last layer of cake. Refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Remove from the refrigerator and clear off any pastry cream that has dripped down the cake and discard it. Now it's time to frost the cake.
For the cream cheese frosting:
- Add butter and cream cheese to a stand mixer bowl and beat together on medium-high with a paddle attachment for 2 minutes. Add sugar, coconut milk, and extracts and slowly beat to incorporate the powdered sugar and then increase speed. Beat for another 2 minutes.
- Gently frost the cake with a thin layer of frosting to create the crumb layer. Place in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to let the frosting set. Next, finish off the cake by adding the rest of the frosting all over in one, even layer. Sprinkle with the shredded coconut, gently pressing it into the cake so it sticks. Let it chill for another hour before serving.
Notes
Pin for later:
More recipes you’ll love:
Coconut Tres Leches
Easy Banana Cake
Rum Cake
This looks amazing! Can’t wait to try it!
Oh myyyy does this look good. I love coconut, especially on cake!
I have a great weakness for coconut desserts, and this cake looks so awesome with the coconut filling. This will be an impressive birthday cake too. 🙂
Such a decadent dessert-perfect for Easter brunch! Looking forward to baking this over the weekend and again for the holiday; looks delish!
I totally know what you are talking about. I am always so lazy to make a layer cake. But for this one I might make an exception!!
Coconut lovers dream. And a perfect Easter dessert.
Yum, this is one of my fave desserts! I haven’t had it in a while, so I’ll have to make it. Yours looks incredible.
Oh wow, it looks unreal, I love coconut, I need to make them