This coconut lime drizzle cake is just as easy as it is delicious! Made with fresh ingredients, it's moist, flavorful, and perfectly sweet. In under an hour, you'll have a crowd pleasing dessert ready for any occasion.
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📋 About the Recipe
- For all the non-bakers, this coconut lime drizzle cake is incredibly easy and relatively quick to whip up. There are no overly complicated steps or unfamiliar ingredients. Many of the ingredients are probably already in your pantry or refrigerator, just like in my raspberry white chocolate blondies and blackberry lemon bread.
- It's a simple recipe packed with tons of lime and coconut flavor. Both are showcased in different ways, through different ingredients. For the lime, this recipe utilizes both the lime juice and zest. For the coconut, it utilizes coconut milk, coconut flakes, and coconut extract for the most amount of flavor.
- As a homemade, made from scratch recipe, it also utilizes fresh ingredients to make it healthier than store-bought or boxed cakes. This cake is preservative- and additive-free.
- Made in a bundt pan, this cake gets a pretty design from the grooves of the pan. It also retains it's moisture with the help of the full-fat coconut milk, as it is also a slightly denser cake.
- The sweet coconut lime drizzle on top of the cake is the perfect glaze for the denser coconut lime cake. It is light, yet sticky with both tangy and creamy flavors.
🛒 Ingredients
A few notes about the ingredients:
- All purpose flour - all purpose flour is a versatile flour that can be used for baked goods, breading, and thickening. It works well in this recipe to keep the cake moist with small crumbs.
- Salt, baking powder - both the salt and baking powder help in leavening the cake. The baking powder reacts with the acids in the cake to release carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide bubbles, then release to increase the cake's volume and lighten its texture.
- Unsalted butter - butter adds a rich flavor to the cake. You can try substituting margarine if necessary for dietary restrictions, but you may not achieve the same rich, buttery flavor. If you use salted butter instead of unsalted, omit the salt in the dry ingredients.
- Granulated sugar - sugar sweetens the cake, adds moisture, and keeps the cake light and tender.
- Large eggs - eggs help to combine the ingredients together, keep the cake moist, and add structure to it. They are another very important component for overall texture.
- Vanilla extract - vanilla enhances all of the flavors in the cake. Without it, baked goods taste bland and flat. Make sure to use pure vanilla extract (not imitation vanilla) for the best outcome.
- Coconut extract - coconut extract adds a punch of coconut flavor to both the cake and the glaze. Without it, the cake would still be delicious but with a more subtle coconut flavor. Coconut extract can be found in the spices and seasoning aisle of your grocery store, usually in a small box or plastic bottle.
- Lime juice and zest - both the zest and the juice add lime flavor. The oils in the zest pack a zesty citrus punch. When zesting the lime, make sure to avoid the white part of the rind, as it is bitter and flavorless.
- Unsweetened coconut milk - canned unsweetened coconut milk also adds moisture to the cake. Make sure to fully mix the fat at the top of the can into the water at the bottom before measuring and adding it to the cake batter. The fat in coconut milk makes the moister in texture and richer in flavor.
- Sweetened coconut flakes - the sweetened coconut in the batter is optional, but it provides a chewy texture to the cake. It also adds a subtle amount of sweetness and extra coconut flavor.
- Powdered sugar - powdered sugar is the base of the coconut lime glaze that's drizzled on top of the cake. It is sweet and balances the acid from the lime. It also helps the glaze harden on top of the cake for a slightly gooey, sticky feel.
📓 Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Using softened butter or nonstick spray, coat a 10 inch bundt pan thoroughly so the cake doesn't stick.
2. In a medium bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking powder. Set it aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter, sugar, and lime zest over medium speed. Beat until the butter and sugar mixture is creamy and pale in color.
4. Slowly beat in eggs, vanilla extract, coconut extract, and fresh lime juice until combined.
5. Beat in half the flour mixture and half of the coconut milk until combined. Then, repeat again with the rest until just combined. Don't over mix.
6. Using a spatula, fold the coconut into the batter.
7. Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean with a few moist crumbs. Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes, before turning it out onto a cooling rack to cool entirely.
8. Meanwhile, prepare the toasted coconut topping: Spread additional coconut on a baking sheet and place it in the 350 degree F oven. Watch it carefully so it doesn't burn. Remove coconut after about 5 minutes, or when it turns fragrant and perfectly golden brown.
9. When the cake is completely cool, about 1-2 hours after baking, make the glaze. In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, coconut milk, lime zest, and coconut extract. Whisk to combine.
10. Drizzle the coconut lime glaze over top and sprinkle with toasted coconut. The glaze will harden as it sits.
⁉️ Substitutions and Alterations
Instead of coconut extract: if you don't have coconut extract, you can simply substitute with additional vanilla extract instead. However, the cake and the glaze may not have as much coconut flavor.
Instead of lime: you can use orange or lemon juice and zest. Stick to about 2 teaspoons of zest and 2 tablespoons of juice for the cake and 1 teaspoon of zest for the glaze.
❄️ How to Store
To store: Store glazed or unglazed cake in an airtight container for about 3 days. If unglazed, make the glaze just before serving.
To freeze: Wrap the unglazed coconut lime bundt cake tightly in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn. Freeze up to 3 months. Make the glaze and pour it on top just before serving.
To defrost: Remove the cake from the freezer and allow it to defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Remove the cake from the refrigerator about an hour before serving to allow it to come to room temperature. Glaze the cake and top it with toasted coconut just before serving.
🔍 FAQs
This cake does not need to be refrigerated. For optimal taste and texture, store the cake in an air tight container on your counter for about 3 days.
After 3 days, the cake will still be good but it might be slightly drier in texture.
To prevent cake from drying out, don't over mix it or over bake it. Make sure it is covered completely with an air tight seal when storing.
Additionally, keep in mind that sugar does much more for a cake (or any baked good) than just adding sweetness. Baking is a science and sugar helps keep baked goods moist, since it absorbs moisture. Because of this, if you try to alter the sugar in recipes, you will inadvertently alter the moisture content as well.
This cake keeps it's moisture fairly well. However, if you're in doubt, you can also keep cakes moist by drizzling them with simple syrup.
💭 Baking Tips
- Make sure to use room temperature ingredients: Both the eggs and butter in this recipe should be room temperature before using. This allows them to mix in better with the rest of the ingredients. Hard butter and cold eggs will not incorporate as well.
- Measure flour and other dry ingredients correctly: incorrect measurements are often the main reason that baked goods don't turn out like they should. Even the smallest adjustments can make a big difference in the overall taste and texture.
To measure flour properly, fluff it with a spoon. Then, use the spoon to scoop the flour into your measuring cup. Level it off with a knife. Do NOT pack the cup or scoop the cup directly in the flour. Flour should be measured light and airy to prevent adding too much.
🍴 Related Recipes
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📖 Recipe
Easy Coconut Lime Drizzle Cake
Ingredients
For the Cake
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 sticks unsalted butter (1 cup) room temperature, plus extra for greasing the bundt pan
- 1 ¾ cups granulated sugar
- 1 lime, zest and juice
- 6 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon coconut extract
- 1 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk (see notes)
- 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes plus about ⅓ cup extra for toasting
For the Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 to 3 tablespoon canned unsweetened coconut milk (see notes)
- ½ lime, zest only
- ¼ teaspoon coconut extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Using softened butter or nonstick spray, coat a 10 inch bundt pan thoroughly so the cake doesn't stick.
- In a medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Set it aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat butter, sugar, and lime zest over medium speed. Beat until the butter and sugar mixture is creamy and pale in color.
- Slowly beat in eggs, vanilla extract, coconut extract, and fresh lime juice until combined.
- Beat in half the flour mixture and half of the coconut milk until combined. Then, repeat again with the rest until just combined. Don't over mix.
- Using a spatula, fold the coconut into the batter.
- Pour batter into the prepared bundt pan. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean with a few moist crumbs. Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes, before turning it out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
- Meanwhile, prepare the toasted coconut topping: Spread additional coconut on a baking sheet and place it in the 350 degree F oven. Watch it carefully so it doesn't burn. Remove coconut after about 5 minutes, or when it turns fragrant and perfectly golden brown.
- When the cake is completely cool, about 1-2 hours after baking, make the glaze: In a small bowl, combine powdered sugar, coconut milk, lime zest, and coconut extract. Stir to combine.
- Drizzle the coconut lime glaze over top and sprinkle with toasted coconut. The glaze will harden as it sits.
Storage
- To store: Store glazed or unglazed cake in an airtight container for about 3 days. If unglazed, make the glaze just before serving. To freeze: Wrap the unglazed coconut lime bundt cake tightly in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil to prevent freezer burn. Freeze up to 3 months. Make the glaze and pour it on top just before serving.To defrost: Remove the cake from the freezer and allow it to defrost in the refrigerator overnight. Remove the cake from the refrigerator about an hour before serving to allow it to come to room temperature. Glaze the cake and top it with toasted coconut just before serving.
Notes
- For the unsweetened coconut milk, make sure to fully mix the fat at the top of the can into the water at the bottom before measuring and adding it to the cake batter.
- If you don't have coconut extract, you can simply substitute with additional vanilla extract instead. However, the cake and the glaze may not have as much coconut flavor.
- This cake does not need to be refrigerated. For optimal taste and texture, store the cake in an air tight container on your counter for about 3 days. After 3 days, the cake will still be good but it might be slightly drier in texture.
Nutrition
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Stacy
A delicious and moist cake! Very easy instructions and everyone loved it.
Alana Lieberman
So happy you all enjoyed it. Thank you!