Get your Almond Joy cake fix with this luscious coconut cake with dark chocolate buttercream. Crushed almonds and toasted coconut top it off. It's super-moist, with a mild coconut flavor, and a rich dark chocolate finish. It's a 'joy' of a cake!
- 3 cups sifted cake flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup coconut milk (not coconut beverage) room temperature
- 1/2 cup buttermilk room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups butter room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 5 large eggs room temperature
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups sweetened flaked coconut loosely packed
- 2 3/4 cup confectioner's sugar
- 2/3 cup unsweetened dark cocoa powder like Hershey's Dark
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4-6 tablespoons half-and-half or milk
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
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Preheat the oven to 350 degree Fahrenheit. Lightly butter three 9-inch cake pans (if you do not have 3 cake pans, prepare a cupcake pan with 6 liners for the extra batter)
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Whisk together the cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Set aside.
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In a measuring cup, combine the 1/2 cup coconut milk with the 1/2 cup buttermilk. Set aside.
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Using a stand mixer, beat the 1 1/2 cups of butter (that's 3 sticks) on high for about a minute, scraping down the sides as needed. The butter will be light and fluffy.
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Add the sugar and brown sugar, and beat on high for 3-4 minutes, until fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides as necessary.
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Turn the mixer to low speed, and add the eggs, one at a time, and then the vanilla. Beat on medium/high speed for 2-3 minutes.
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Switch the mixer to low speed, and alternate back and forth 3 or 4 times adding the dry ingredients (flour mixture) and wet ingredients (milk mixture). Once these are all added, beat for one more minute on low, scraping down sides as needed. Next, turn off the mixer. Fold the 2 cups of coconut into the batter just until combined.
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Put about 2 heaping cups of batter into each pan. Bake for 20-22 minutes in the 350F oven. Test the center of the cake with a toothpick. They are done when the pick comes out clean.
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Cool completely in the pan before removing. Frost each layer with dark chocolate buttercream (recipe below). Top with crushed almonds (about 1/4 cup) and toasted coconut (see recipe notes).
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In the stand mixer, beat the butter on medium/high until light and creamy, about 2 minutes. Add the vanilla and beat on low again for a few more seconds.
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Add about 1/3 of the confectioner's sugar to the bowl and beat on low until combined. Next, add 1/3 of the half-and-half, and beat on low again. Continue alternating until the sugar and milk have been added, and the frosting has a creamy, smooth texture.
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Add the salt and blend one final time on low. Frost the cooled layers of the cake, or store the frosting in the refrigerator until later use. Just allow the frosting to warm to room temperature again for easy spreading.
The coconut cake recipe is adapted just slightly from Sally's Baking Addiction. Hers is a coconut lemon cake. I made minor changes to the recipe (ie., I used salted butter, instead of unsalted, and omitted coconut extract). All images and written instructions are my own.
Sally recommends, and I agree, that cake flour is an important ingredient here. You don't want your cake to be heavy and dense, which will likely be the case with all-purpose flour. Take the extra time to sift the cake flour as instructed, and then to measure it, spoon the flour lightly into the measuring cup. Do not 'pack it in' or tap the cup to settle it. You truly want 3 cups of sifted, unpacked flour, nothing more!
To toast coconut, simply spread the flaked coconut on a baking sheet and roast in oven for 4-5 minutes. You will want to pull the coconut from the oven as soon as the first pieces turn slightly golden. It browns very quickly from there, and can easily over-brown!
To make DIY buttermilk, simply add 2 teaspoons of white vinegar to a measuring cup, then add regular cow's milk up to the amount you need for the recipe (in this case, pour milk up to 1/2 cup). Allow it to sit for several minutes so the milk can 'sour' adequately. After that, use in the recipe as indicated.
This batter makes enough for 3 layers. If you only have 2 cake pans (like I did), you can make the rest of the batter into cupcakes. I did not try simply dividing the batter in half to make 2 bigger layers - I feared they would not cook thoroughly due to the extra volume. I made 6 cupcakes instead, with the leftover batter, and cooked them for about 17 minutes at 350F.
I chose to frost just the tops of this cake, knowing it was quite rich between the cake and the frosting. The frosting recipe does make enough to frost the entire cake, however, if that is your preference. My preference is knowing there is leftover dark chocolate buttercream in the fridge for those unexpected cravings :)