This coconut loaf cake is an airy, tender, moist springtime cake topped with a sweet coconut glaze! It's an easy-to-make one-bowl loaf cake recipe that's completely holiday-worthy! Enjoy it for brunch, Easter Sunday, or any other day when you are craving some tropical flavors!
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Best Coconut Cake Recipe
Something about the warmer weather makes me want to indulge in light tropical flavors, and this coconut cake definitely fits the bill! It is unbelievably soft and tender and full of sweet coconut flavor!
I would even go as far as to say that this delicious cake should really be added to your holiday dessert tables (yes, it is that good)! In fact, I'm planning to serve it this Easter in my home and I know your family would love it, too!
🥘 Ingredients
In addition to staple household baking ingredients, you'll need some shredded coconut and coconut milk for this yummy cake! Both can be found in the baking aisle of your grocery store.
Coconut Loaf Cake
- Butter - 1 cup of room temperature butter. Having butter that is softened to room temperature will help it to cream together with the sugar properly!
- Sugar - 1½ cups of white granulated sugar.
- Eggs - 3 large room-temperature eggs. Having your eggs at room temperature will help the loaf cake bake quickly and evenly.
- Vanilla - 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract. Pure vanilla extract just adds so much more flavor than the imitation version!
- Almond Extract - ½ teaspoon of pure almond extract. If you have coconut extract, you can use that instead.
- Salt - 1 teaspoon of salt. This will balance the flavors as well as enhance the sweetness!
- Baking Powder - ½ teaspoon of baking powder as a leavening agent.
- Flour - 1¾ cups of all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled. You can also use cake flour for an even more tender, moist cake crumb.
- Coconut Milk - ½ cup of unsweetened coconut milk. You'll want the canned kind, as it is thicker and richer (rather than the kind from a carton).
- Shredded Coconut - 1 cup of sweetened shredded coconut.
Coconut Glaze
- Confectioners' Sugar - 1 cup of confectioners' sugar (or powdered sugar).
- Coconut Milk - ⅓ cup of canned, unsweetened coconut milk. This is the same kind of coconut milk that was used in the cake itself.
- Vanilla - 1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract.
- Shredded Coconut (optional) - ½ cup of sweetened shredded coconut for topping.
*Be sure to see the free printable recipe card below for ingredients, exact amounts & instructions with tips!*
🔪 How To Make A Coconut Loaf Cake
The hardest part of this cake is waiting for it to come out of the oven! Of course, I highly recommend adding the optional shredded coconut on top of the cake for the best experience!
You'll need a loaf pan, stand mixer, silicone spatula, and a mixing bowl to get started. This recipe will yield one loaf cake, which can be cut into 12 servings!
Make the Coconut Loaf Cake
- Preheat. Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and prepare a loaf pan by lining it with a strip of parchment paper and some butter.
- Cream. Use a stand mixer to cream together 1 cup of butter and 1½ cups of granulated sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Mix. Add 3 eggs, one at a time, mixing well between each. Then, add 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon of almond extract, ½ teaspoon of baking powder, and 1 teaspoon of salt and mix well. *Stop to scrape down the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl with a spatula as needed.
- Finish the dough. Reduce the speed to low, and gradually alternate between adding small amounts of the flour (1¾ cups total) and coconut milk (½ cup total) until they both have been fully incorporated. Then, stir in 1 cup of shredded coconut.
- Bake. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and use a silicone spatula to spread the top evenly. Bake in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for 1-1½ hours, or until the top has turned golden and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out almost clean.
Top With the Coconut Glaze
- Whisk. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together 1 cup of confectioners' sugar, ⅓ cup of coconut milk, and 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract until well combined.
- Pour. Pour the glaze over the loaf cake when it has been out of the oven for 10-15 minutes.
- Top and cool. Sprinkle ½ cup of shredded coconut over the top, if desired. Allow the cake to cool before slicing and serving.
This amazing coconut loaf cake is perfect, just how it is! Serve it alongside a Bahama Mama, Bay Breeze cocktail, or a Pina Colada mocktail, and then get ready to relax! Enjoy!
💭 Angela's Pro Tips & Recipe Notes
- The cooking time for this loaf cake can vary based on the material of the loaf pan you are using! Don't worry if your cake is not done at the 1½ hour mark, as it could take up to 2 hours to finish baking, depending on your oven and pan! Just check it with a toothpick to see if it is done.
- If the top of your cake is browning too much but isn't done baking, you can cover the top with some foil and finish baking.
- Leave some excess parchment paper hanging out of your loaf pan for easy removal!
- Choose canned coconut milk (as opposed to the kind in the carton) since it has a higher fat content and is thicker.
- You can serve your loaf cake by either removing it from the pan, placing it onto a serving platter, and pouring the glaze over the top, or by keeping it in the loaf pan, pouring on the glaze, and serving it straight from the pan itself.
🥡 Storing
Keep any leftover coconut loaf cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
You can also freeze this cake before adding the glaze. Let it cool completely before wrapping it in a double layer of plastic wrap and then one layer of heavy-duty aluminum foil. Then, it can be frozen for up to 3 months.
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❓ Recipe FAQs
As the name implies, a loaf cake is baked in a loaf pan while a traditional cake can be baked in a sheet pan, a baking dish, or in round cake pans. However, the recipes vary as well! While they share a lot of common ingredients, the ratios of fat, sugar, and flour are different.
If you pulled your loaf cake out of the oven only to return and find that the center had sunk while it cooled, your cake was underbaked. Make sure you test your cake for doneness using a toothpick or knife. Insert it into the center of the cake and when removed, it should only have a few crumbs on it (and no raw batter).
If you want to remove your coconut loaf cake from the pan for serving, make sure you let it sit for at least 10 minutes before doing so. If you try to remove it from the pan as soon as it comes out of the oven, it could fall apart because it is extra tender.
🍰 More Delicious Cake Recipes
- Sweet Potato Coffee Cake - A sweet and delicious cake that can be enjoyed any time of the day!
- Dutch Apple Cake - Tender vanilla cake is topped with cinnamon-coated apples and then baked!
- Mandarin Orange Cake - A fluffy cake that is loaded with citrus flavor and is super easy to make!
- Pineapple Upside Down Bundt Cake - Yellow cake is infused with pineapple juice and then baked on top of pineapple slices and maraschino cherries!
- Pineapple Sunshine Cake - This cake is packed with crushed pineapple and topped with a light whipped topping!
- Carrot Cake - Another Easter favorite, this classic cake is coated with homemade cream cheese frosting!
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📖 Recipe Card
Coconut Loaf Cake
Ingredients
Coconut Loaf Cake
- 1 cup butter (room temperature)
- 1½ cups sugar
- 3 large eggs (at room temperature)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
- ½ cup coconut milk (unsweetened)
- 1 cup shredded coconut (sweetened)
Coconut Glaze
- 1 cup confectioners sugar
- ⅓ cup coconut milk (unsweetened)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup shredded coconut (sweetened, optional for topping)
(Note: 2x or 3x only changes the ingredient list)
Instructions
Make the Coconut Loaf Cake
- Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and prepare a loaf pan by lining it with a strip of parchment paper and some butter.
- Use a stand mixer to cream together the butter and granulated sugar at medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well in between each one. Then, add the vanilla extract, almond extract, baking powder, and salt and mix well. *Stop to scrape down the bottom and sides of the mixing bowl as needed.
- Reduce the speed to low, and gradually alternate between adding small amounts of the flour and coconut milk until they both have been fully incorporated. Then, stir in the shredded coconut.
- Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and use a silicone spatula to evenly spread out the top. Bake in the oven at 350°F (175°C) for 1-1½ hours, or until the top has turned a golden color and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out almost clean.
Top With the Coconut Glaze
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the confectioners' sugar, coconut milk, and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Pour the glaze over the loaf cake when it has been out of the oven for 10-15 minutes.
- Sprinkle more shredded coconut over top, if desired. Allow the cake to cool before slicing and serving.
Notes
- The cooking time for this loaf cake can vary based on the material of the loaf pan you are using! Don't worry if your cake is not done at the 1½ hour mark, as it could take up to 2 hours to finish baking depending on your oven and pan! Just make sure to check it with a toothpick to see if it is done.
- If the top of your cake is browning too much, but it isn't done baking, you can cover the top with some foil and finish baking.
- Leave some excess parchment paper hanging out of your loaf pan for easy removal!
- Choose canned coconut milk (as opposed to the kind in the carton) since it has a higher fat content and is thicker.
- You can serve your loaf cake by either removing it from the pan, placing it onto a serving platter, and pouring the glaze over top, or by keeping it in the loaf pan, pouring on the glaze, and serving it straight from the pan itself.
- To store: Keep any leftover coconut loaf cake in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.
- To freeze: You can freeze this cake before adding the glaze. Simply let it cool completely before wrapping it in a double layer of Saran wrap and then one layer of foil. It can be frozen for up to 3 months.
Angie says
This was so delicious and easy that I made it for the holiday baking season as a change to the usual cookies. Can't say enough good things about how this coconut cake turns out. Thanks.
Edwin says
Will try your coco loaf cake.Also, explore, Try experimenting coconut pie.
Same ingredients, but if you can buy a fresh coconut imported from Thailand, in Asian Store the better. Or you can use canned also sold in Asian store.
Pamela Stanley says
This sounds delicious. It’s only my husband and I and coconut cake is one of our favorites and this will be ideal. I will be making this real soon.