Chocolate Coconut Cake
This chocolate coconut cake is out of this world tasty! Imagine soft and moist chocolate cake layers frosted with super creamy coconut frosting. This cake is perfect for any occasion and 100% made from scratch. Tastes just like Bounty candy!
Prep Time40 minutes mins
Cook Time22 minutes mins
Chill Time4 hours hrs
Total Time5 hours hrs 2 minutes mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Servings: 16 servings
Calories: 455kcal
coconut frosting
- ½ cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 cups cold full-fat mascarpone
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
- ½ cup coconut milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Chocolate Cake
Preheat oven to 350°F / 175°C. Line the bottom and the sides of two 8" (20cm) baking pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
In a medium bowl combine flour, cocoa, sugar, baking powder, salt, and espresso powder and stir to combine. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl with a stand or handheld mixer fitted with a whisk or paddle attachment, beat oil, eggs, coconut milk, vinegar, and vanilla just until combined. Stir in dry ingredients to combine. The batter will be very thick. Slowly mix in hot water until combined. The batter will be very thin.
Divide batter into the two prepared baking pans equally. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Don't overbake. I baked mine for 22 minutes. Let cool in the pan for about 15-20 minutes. Then remove from pan and transfer to a cooling rack. Let cool to room temperature.
Coconut Frosting
In a large mixing bowl with a stand or handheld mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat butter until creamy, about 1-2 minutes. Add mascarpone and stir on medium-high speed until creamy and combined, about 1-2 minutes.
Sift in powdered sugar and mix until smooth and sugar is dissolved. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Then add coconut milk and vanilla and stir to combine.
Assemble the Cake
Cut a thin layer off the tops of your cakes to create a flat surface. Then cut each cake in half horizontally. Place one cake layer on a cake stand, turner or serving plate. Spread ¼ of the frosting over the cake. Repeat two more times.
Place last cake layer on top and lightly frost the outside and the sides of the cake with the remaining frosting. Chill at least 4 hours in the fridge or overnight.
Decorate the cake to your preference and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 4 days.
Notes
- If using canned coconut milk, hold the can under hot running tap water for about 20 seconds. Then shake vigorously to combine the coconut water and solid coconut fat into a smooth and creamy milk. However, the milk should not be hot!
- Mascarpone may curdle and looks like cottage cheese within a couple of seconds after starting mixing. It can be very quickly overmixed because of its high-fat content. To avoid this, I recommend using a large mixing bowl for mixing the mascarpone frosting. This makes it less likely to overmix the mascarpone. Also, mix the cream on medium speed and just long enough until smooth and combined.
- Please make sure that you use full-fat mascarpone and no low-light or substitute product. Also, don't interchange it with ricotta. Mascarpone should not be room temperature when using it but cold and straight out of the fridge.
Calories: 455kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 30g | Saturated Fat: 20g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 67mg | Sodium: 175mg | Potassium: 199mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 605IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 88mg | Iron: 2mg