This Easy Coconut Cake Recipe with Coconut Frosting is ridiculously moist, packed with real coconut flavor throughout, and bakes up with a perfectly soft, bakery-style crumb every single time.
This recipe starts with my favorite scratch-made vanilla cake recipe. It combines rich canned coconut milk, shredded coconut, and extra sour cream to make sure the cake stays incredibly tender.
Paired with my classic American buttercream frosting, infused with pure coconut flavor, it is the ultimate classic coconut layer cake. Simple to make from scratch with simple ingredients.
Table of contents
Key Ingredients & Substitutions
- Canned Coconut Milk: Be sure to use unsweetened, full-fat canned coconut milk (stirred well), not the liquid coconut milk sold in cartons. Canned coconut milk provides the essential fats and rich flavor that give these cake layers their soft, bakery-quality crumb.
- Sour Cream: After testing this recipe, I increased the sour cream to ½ cup (up from ¼ cup in my classic vanilla cake). Because shredded coconut naturally absorbs moisture as the cake bakes, boosting the sour cream guarantees the cake stays incredibly moist without becoming heavy. Full-fat Greek yogurt is a great substitution if needed!
- Sweetened Shredded Coconut: Using sweetened shredded coconut was an absolute game changer during testing. Unsweetened coconut dried out the crumb, whereas sweetened coconut held onto moisture much better, resulting in a far superior texture and balanced sweetness.
- Buttermilk: Paired with the coconut milk, buttermilk adds a subtle flavor and activates the baking soda for a light, tender rise.
- Room Temperature Ingredients: Make sure your eggs, softened butter, buttermilk, canned coconut milk, and sour cream are all at room temperature before mixing. Having everything at the same temperature ensures your batter emulsifies smoothly.
- Coconut Extract: A splash of quality coconut extract in both the cake batter and the buttercream lifts the flavor so it shines through without tasting artificial.
See the recipe card below for the full list of ingredients and measurements.
How To Make Coconut Cake
Making this scratch-made coconut cake is straightforward when you break it down into a few simple steps. Here is a visual step-by-step look at how this delicious layer cake comes together from start to finish!
- Beat the softened butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, then mix in the eggs, egg white, vanilla, and coconut extract.
- Sift and whisk the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together in a separate bowl.
- Alternate mixing the dry ingredients and the liquid mixture into the butter mixture, then fold in the pulsed shredded coconut.
- Divide the batter evenly into your prepared cake pans and bake until golden and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Place the first cooled cake layer down and pipe a smooth, generous layer of coconut buttercream before stacking the top layer.
- Decorate & Serve: Frost the outside of the cake, press shredded coconut all over the exterior, slice, and enjoy!
See the recipe card below for the full recipe.
👉 Sky's Tips for The Best Coconut Cake
- Pulse Your Shredded Coconut: Before adding the sweetened shredded coconut to your batter, give it a quick pulse in a food processor or blender. Breaking down those long shreds ensures pure coconut flavor in every single bite without tearing through the delicate cake crumb when you slice it!
- Use Full-Fat Canned Coconut Milk: Stick strictly to canned, full-fat coconut milk (stirred well) rather than coconut milk from a carton. The natural fat content is essential for creating that ultra-rich, melt-in-your-mouth texture.
- Using Room-temp ingredients: Make sure your butter, eggs, buttermilk, sour cream, and canned coconut milk are all sitting at room temperature before you start mixing. This ensures they mix together smoothly.
- Measure Flour Correctly: Spoon your flour into the measuring cup and level it off with a knife (or use a kitchen scale). Scooping directly with the cup packs in too much flour, which makes the layers dense instead of soft.
- If you love baking with coconut, you can also try this easy coconut bundt cake!
Storage Tips
To Store: Keep the frosted cake in an airtight cake keeper or covered at room temperature for up to 3 days, or in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Bring chilled slices to room temperature before serving for the best texture!
I hope you love this delicious Coconut Cake as much as we do!
-Sky🩷
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If you tried this Coconut Cake recipe or any other recipe on my blog, I'd love to hear from you! Leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the comment section below!
📖 Recipe
Easy Coconut Cake with Coconut Frosting
This scratch-made coconut layer cake is ridiculously moist, packed with real coconut flavor, and bakes up with a perfectly soft crumb. Made with canned coconut milk, sour cream, and sweet shredded coconut, then frosted with a creamy coconut buttercream!
Equipment
- 2 8-inch round pans
Ingredients
Coconut Cake Batter
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 4 large eggs 3 whole eggs plus 1 egg white
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons coconut extract
- ½ cup buttermilk room temperature
- ½ cup coconut milk stirred
- ½ cup sour cream room temperature
- 2 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
Coconut Buttercream Frosting
- 1 pound unsalted butter softened
- 6 cups powdered sugar sifted
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon coconut extract
- ¼ cup coconut milk stirred
- 2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
I always use Kosher salt in my kitchen! If using table salt, start with half the amount and adjust to taste, as it is much "saltier" by volume.
Instructions
- For the coconut cake batter: Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line the bottoms of two 8-inch or 9-inch round cake pans with parchment paper circles.
- Add the one cup of shredded coconut to a food processor and pulse a few times.
- In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a liquid measuring cup, whisk together the canned coconut milk, buttermilk, and sour cream until smooth. Set aside.
- In a large bowl or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the softened butter and granulated sugar together on medium-high speed for 3-4 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time, followed by the egg white, vanilla extract, and coconut extract, beating well after each addition.
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly alternate adding your sifted dry ingredients and the buttermilk mixture to the batter. Start and end with the dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. Do not overmix!
- Gently fold in the pulsed sweetened shredded coconut with a rubber spatula until evenly distributed.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans. Bake for 30-35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
- Cool the layers in the pans for 10 minutes, then invert them onto wire racks to cool completely before frosting.
- For the coconut buttercream frosting: Beat the softened butter on medium-high speed for 2 minutes until smooth and pale. Gradually add the powdered sugar, coconut extract, pinch of salt, and canned coconut milk. Beat on high speed for 2-3 full minutes until light and fluffy.
- Assemble: Place the first cake layer on a plate or cake board. Spread or pipe a generous layer of buttercream over the top. Stack the second layer, then frost the top and sides of the cake. Press extra shredded coconut all over the outside of the cake to cover. Enjoy!
Nutrition
Calories: 1064kcalCarbohydrates: 126gProtein: 7gFat: 61gSaturated Fat: 41gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 2gCholesterol: 191mgSodium: 417mgPotassium: 206mgFiber: 2gSugar: 99gVitamin A: 1584IUVitamin C: 0.4mgCalcium: 95mgIron: 3mg
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