This simple Coconut Cake recipe has a fresh and delicious pineapple filling inside layers of coconut cake and frosted with a creamy coconut cream cheese frosting. It's one of my absolute favorite cakes!
Trust me, you'll fall hard for this Coconut Cake.
Trust me, you'll fall hard for this Coconut Cake.Everyone does! We can't make this for an event without everyone asking for the recipe. The secret to greatness is how we cut each cake layer in half, to create four thin layers of cake, add some pineapple filling between each, and coconut cream cheese frosting to frost the cake. It's to die for; on the same level as my Mom's incredible German Chocolate Cake!
The original recipe was from Utah State Fair Winner, Lisa Blodget (and was shared by Si from A Bountiful Kitchen). I adapted Lisa's version to add my cream cheese buttercream frosting with a splash of coconut milk for extra creaminess and the perfect hint of coconut flavor. This is the best coconut cake recipe, perfect for Easter, birthdays, or any occasion.
How to make Coconut Cake:
Make Cake Batter: Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a bowl. In a separate bowl, beat butter on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add sugar and mix well. Add coconut extract and 1 ¼ cups of coconut milk. Add flour mixture. Whip egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff peaks form then fold into batter.
Bake: Line 8″ cake pans with parchment and spray with cooking spray. Divide cake batter between pans and bake at 350°F (180°C) for 25-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. After they have cooled use a sharp serrated knife to cut each cake round in half horizontally, so you have 4 thin cake rounds.
Assemble and Frost: Place one cake layer on a serving plate and spread with half of the pineapple filling. Top with second cake layer and then some frosting. Add third cake layer and the rest of the pineapple filling. Finally, add the last cake layer and frost the sides and top of the cake. Sprinkle with shredded coconut flakes, if desired. Refrigerate for a few hours before serving.
Make Ahead and Freezing Instructions:
To Make Ahead: Follow the instructions to make and frost the cake and refrigerate for 1-2 days. The pineapple filling and coconut frosting can be made up to a week in advance, stored separately in the fridge. Allow frosting to come to room temperature before using.
To Freeze: Slice cake rounds in half horizontally as indicated in recipe, then wrap each layer in plastic wrap, place in a freezer bag and freeze for up to 3 months. The pineapple filling and coconut frosting can also be frozen in separate freezer safe containers.
More Cake Recipes:
- Meringue Roulade
- Carrot Cake
- Lemon Tiramisu
- Biscoff Cake
- Hershey's Chocolate Cake
- Mini Pavlova
- Cinnamon Roll Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting
- Orange Olive Oil Cake
- Berry Cake
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Recipe
Coconut Cake
Equipment
Ingredients
Coconut Cake:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (250g)
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder (12g)
- 1 teaspoon salt (6g)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter (113g), room temperature
- 2 cups granulated sugar (400g)
- 13.5 ounces canned unsweetened coconut milk , divided (400 ml)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons coconut extract (7.5 ml)
- 5 large egg whites
Pineapple Filling:
- 20 ounce can crushed pineapple (567 g)
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar (134g)
- 2 Tablespoons cornstarch (16 g)
For the Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 1/2 cup butter (113g), room temperature
- 8 ounces cream cheese , room temperature (226g)
- 4-5 cups powdered sugar (480g-600g)
- 1 – 2 Tablespoons leftover coconut milk , regular milk (15-30 ml)
- 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut (85g)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line the bottom of two 8 inch cake pans with parchment paper and spray the bottom and sides of the pan lightly with cooking spray.
- Mix dry ingredients In a mixing bowl; flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.2 cups all-purpose flour, 1 Tablespoon baking powder, 1 teaspoon salt
- In a separate mixing bowl beat the butter on medium speed with an electric hand mixer or stand mixer for 1 minute, until light and fluffy. Add sugar and mix until well creamed together. Add 1 ¼ cups canned coconut milk and coconut extract and mix.½ cup unsalted butter, 2 cups granulated sugar, 13.5 ounces canned unsweetened coconut milk, 1 ½ teaspoons coconut extract
- Gradually add flour mixture and mix on medium speed for 2 minutes.
- Beat egg whites in a separate bowl until stiff peaks form. Fold the egg whites into the batter until incorporated.5 large egg whites
- Bake: Divide cake batter evenly between prepared cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean, or with few moist crumbs. Remove the pans from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes before inverting them onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Torte Cakes: Once cakes have cooled, use a sharp serrated knife to torte/cut each cake round in half horizontally, so that you end up with four thin cake rounds.
- Pineapple Filling: Add all ingredients to medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir well to combine. Cook, stirring frequently, until mixture thickens and looks "glossy", about 5-8 minutes. Pour filling into a container and place a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface of the filling. Once cooled, cover container and refrigerate until ready to use, up to one week.20 ounce can crushed pineapple, 2/3 cup granulated sugar, 2 Tablespoons cornstarch
- Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting: Beat butter and cream cheese together until smooth. Add powdered sugar and a splash of remaining coconut milk and mix until smooth and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add a little more milk, to thin, or powdered sugar to stiffen, if needed, until you reach your desired frosting consistency. Stir in coconut flakes, saving some for sprinkling on the sides and top of the cake, if desired.½ cup butter, 8 ounces cream cheese, 4-5 cups powdered sugar, 1 – 2 Tablespoons leftover coconut milk, 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut
- Assemble: Place one cake layer on serving plate. Spread half of the pineapple filling over it. Top with another cake layer, and smooth a layer of cream cheese frosting over it. Top with third cake layer. Spread remaining half of the pineapple filling over it. Top with last (4th) cake layer. Frost the sides and top of the cake with coconut cream cheese frosting. Sprinkle outsides of cake with shredded coconut, if desired.
- Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, before serving. (Tastes even better the next day!)
Notes
Nutrition
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I originally shared this recipe February 2018. Updated March 2021, April 2023, and April 2025.
Some process photos by Nikole from The Travel Palate
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OMG, LET ME TELL YOU, this recipe is amazing!! Im a new hobby/cake baker, and i made this cake exactly as is (i did only put 3 cups powdered sugar in the icing) and everyone who ate this almost died. and then came back for a second piece. Melts in your mouth and wonderful flavor. Thank you so much for sharing this wonderful recipe.
2 Lauren I’m a beginning Baker and I don’t know what I did wrong. I’m trying to bake this cake for Easter Sunday and it’s 3:30 Friday night. LOL the cake bake the appropriate time looks fantastic but it was much taller when I open the oven to check on it and when it was done baking it seemed to drop or something like that. Help me I’m lost at Sea and I’m Drowning.
Steve
The Coconut Cake recipe states that the cake pan bottoms should be lined with wax or parchment paper. But do you also grease around the pan side and bottom, along with the top of the parchment paper? Thanks for your help- the cake looks delish!!!
Sue Ann
Hi Sue Ann, yes, I recommend lining the bottom of the pan, and I also spray the sides of the pan and lightly spray the bottom that is already lined with paper (which isn’t probably necessary, but can never hurt). Hope you enjoy the cake!
Can’t wait to try this recipe. Can’t make it until just before Easter. I gave up cakes, cookies and soda for Easter and I am getting desperate. Thanks for sharing. Hoping I do it justice.
Thanks Teresa! I’d love to hear how it turns out! Hopefully it will be the most amazing break to your sweets “fast” 🙂
This cake is AMAZING! I made it over the weekend and everyone loved it, especially my husband who really loves coconut. It was even easier to make then I expected. Thanks.
Can I make this in a 9×13 pan?
Hi Diane,
You could make the cake it a 9×13 pan but you will need to adjust the bake time. Also, torting the cake in half may not be possible. You can just layer the pineapple topping and then the frosting on top.
I’d love to know if you tried it!
I am going to make it in a 9×13 I am going to cut it in half then split the layers and place it back in the
pan, fill and frost
Can I use egg whites from a carton instead of waisting the egg yollks?
Hi Mary, that could work, but from what I’ve heard, egg whites in the carton don’t whip as stiffly, so you may need to add a stabilizer (like cream of tarter) in order to get the to the stiff peaks stage.
don’t waste the yolks, use them for some lemon pudding to just add to scrambled eggs for extra richness
I’ll be making this yummy and beautiful looking cake this week. Can you use coconut milk found in the dairy section instead of the canned coconut milk?
Hi Sandy, so happy you’ll get to try this recipe! You will definitely want to use the canned, shelf-stable coconut milk. The refrigerated kind has been greatly watered down to make it better for drinking. I’d love to hear how it turns out!
I wish there was a video for this! ?
Hi Glen,
I’m hoping to have one made really soon! Thanks for the feedback!
Your welcome! What did you use for the docoration part? Did you use the same frosting?
Yes, I used the same frosting for the swirls–piped them with a wilton 2D tip.
There’s a video now!
Do you know how long the pineapple filling would keep in the fridge? I was about to assemble the cake for a birthday diner when my daughter came down with a fever 🙁 We rescheduled for next weekend and I’d like to use the filling I already made. I stuck the frosting in the freezer-hoping it will be ok! Thanks
Hi Sarah,
I’m so glad you decided to make this cake. It’s delicious! The filling will be good in the fridge for up to the week. Or (although I haven’t tried this) I would bet you could freeze the filling and it would turn out fine! Also, the frosting would be fine to leave in the fridge for up to two weeks! Hope you love the cake and I would love to hear how it turns out!
Which ingredient can we substitute for coconut extract. I am not able to find it at place.
I would suggest buying it online. Otherwise you can leave it out, but you’ll sacrifice that depth of coconut flavor.
I do not like cream cheese but I love coconut cake and pinapples too is there something I can use to make the icing instead of cream cheese if you have a suggestion would you email me the recipe
Thanks
kayeclark719@gmail.com
Hi Karen, you could just leave out the cream cheese, add a little more butter and powdered sugar to make a regular buttercream frosting 🙂 Enjoy!
https://foodfolksandfun.net/how-to-make-cannoli-cream/
how about the filling used for cannoli?
Mascarpone cheese.
“WHOLE FOODS MAY HAVE IT” THE CAKE LOOKS YUMMY!!
Walmart has coconut extract.
Sweetened or Unsweetened coconut milk?!
Vanilla extract …. second best.