Description
Bobby Flay’s coconut cake offers a sublime tropical dessert with layers of moist white cake infused with coconut flavor. Creamy frosting and toasted coconut flakes complete this irresistible sweet treat you’ll savor to the last delightful bite.
Ingredients
Scale
- 5 eggs (extra-large, at room temperature)
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup milk
- 1 lb (454 g) cream cheese (at room temperature)
- 1 lb (454 g) confectioners’ sugar (sifted)
- ¾ lb (340 g) (3 sticks) unsalted butter (at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pans)
- ½ lb (227 g) (2 sticks) unsalted butter (at room temperature)
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 ½ tsp pure almond extract
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ¼ tsp pure almond extract
- ¾ tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 4 oz (113 g) sweetened shredded coconut
- 6 oz (170 g) sweetened shredded coconut
Instructions
- Preparation: Warm the oven to 350°F and prepare two 9-inch cake pans with parchment, light grease, and flour dusting.
- Creaming: Whip butter and sugar in an electric mixer until pale and voluminous, then gently integrate eggs one at a time, ensuring smooth incorporation. Blend in vanilla and almond extracts, understanding the mixture might appear slightly uneven.
- Mixing Dry Components: Sift flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Alternately fold dry ingredients and milk into the batter in three stages, starting and concluding with dry mixture. Gently integrate shredded coconut using a silicone spatula.
- Baking: Distribute batter evenly across prepared pans, smoothing surfaces for uniform baking. Position in oven center and bake for 45-55 minutes until golden and a cake tester emerges clean.
- Cooling: Rest cakes in pans for 30 minutes, then transfer to wire rack for complete cooling.
- Frosting Preparation: Blend cream cheese, butter, vanilla, and almond extract on low speed. Gradually incorporate confectioners’ sugar until smooth and consistent.
- Assembly and Decoration: Position first cake layer on serving plate with bottom facing upward. Spread frosting generously. Place second layer with rounded side up. Coat entire cake with frosting, then liberally press shredded coconut onto top and sides for elegant presentation.
Notes
- Precision in Mixing: Cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy to create a lighter, more tender cake texture, which takes 3-5 minutes at medium-high speed.
- Egg Incorporation Technique: Add eggs one at a time and mix thoroughly to prevent batter separation, ensuring a smooth and consistent cake base.
- Gentle Folding Method: Fold shredded coconut gently with a silicone spatula to maintain air bubbles and prevent dense cake texture.
- Cooling Critical: Allow cakes to cool in pans for 30 minutes before transferring to a wire rack, preventing potential structural damage and ensuring even cooling.
- Prep Time: 35 minutes
- Cook Time: 50 minutes
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 11
- Calories: 540
- Sugar: 69 g
- Sodium: 320 mg
- Fat: 30 g
- Saturated Fat: 18 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 12 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 63 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 6 g
- Cholesterol: 160 mg