I love this cake! Falling somewhere between angel food and pound cake, it has a sweet, crunchy outside and fluffy inside. It tastes both tropical and comforting, thanks to the complimentary flavors of coconut and cinnamon. Although not mandatory, I recommend toasting the shredded coconut, just for a couple of minutes, in a dry skillet before mixing it into the batter; the added toastiness really amplifies the coconut flavor and lends itself especially well to the cinnamon. This is the perfect cake to serve in the afternoon alongside coffee or tea.
Cinnamon-Coconut Tea Cake (from Dorie Greenspan’s Baking: From My Home to Yours)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- Pinch of salt
- 3/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
- 1 cup canned unsweetened coconut milk (shake well before opening)
- 4 tb (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
- 4 large eggs
- 2 cups sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a 9- or 10-inch Bundt pan.
In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
In a small, dry skillet, toast the shredded coconut over medium heat until golden-brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool, then whisk into flour mixture.
In a small saucepan, combine the coconut milk and butter; heat over medium, stirring occasionally, until butter is melted. Remove from heat.
In the bowl of a standing mixer, beat the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed until pale and nearly doubled in volume, about 3 minutes; beat in vanilla. Reduce mixer speed to low and add dry ingredients, mixing just until combined. With mixer running, stream in coconut milk mixture and beat until batter is smooth. Pour into pan and bake for 60 minutes, until top is golden and inserted cake tester comes out clean.
Let cake cool 10 minutes, then invert onto cooling rack to come to room temperature.
Comments 13
2 c seems like an awful lot of sugar. Do you think you can cut back to 1.5 without shifting the texture too much?
Posted 24 Nov 2008 at 11:38 pm ¶great post… the cake looks like a nice fall treat! thanks for sharing
zesty
Posted 25 Nov 2008 at 10:49 am ¶That is a great looking cake!
But that is a LOT of sugar, though.
Posted 25 Nov 2008 at 10:51 am ¶Zak, I had the same feeling when I started this recipe. My guess is that you need that much sugar in order to beat the 4 eggs to a fluffy-enough consistency. Rest assured that the cake is not overly sweet–I think that the unsweetened coconut milk tempers the sugar to an extent. I would also be sure to use unsweetened shredded coconut. Hope this helps!
Posted 25 Nov 2008 at 11:12 am ¶what a light, fluffy, and altogether glorious creation. i’m smitten.
Posted 25 Nov 2008 at 2:59 pm ¶Your cake looks wonderful! I have Dorie’s book but hadn’t noticed the recipe. Thanks for sharing……..
Great photo!
Posted 26 Nov 2008 at 2:59 pm ¶~ingrid
Like Ingrid, I too, must’ve had overlooked the recipe! Yours look perfect. I love how you captured the texture in the photo
Posted 09 Dec 2008 at 9:46 am ¶Zak, I had the same feeling when I started this recipe. My guess is that you need that much sugar in order to beat the 4 eggs to a fluffy-enough consistency. Rest assured that the cake is not overly sweet–I think that the unsweetened coconut milk tempers the sugar to an extent. I would also be sure to use unsweetened shredded coconut. Hope this helps!
Posted 22 Dec 2008 at 12:20 pm ¶Mmm, this sounds so delish, and so comforting in the dead of winter.
Posted 08 Jan 2009 at 10:54 pm ¶Great site and post! I’m def. there with you in trying to cook in a little kitchen in manhattan. Half of my ingredients are always on the floor, on top of the fridge, or sitting on a radiator..but I guess that’s the fun in it??
Posted 11 Jan 2009 at 7:34 pm ¶That looks so good!
Posted 17 Mar 2009 at 12:49 pm ¶I made this cake today – very nice. It’s not too sweet at all (and I’m not a fan of sweet). A good recipe to use up that leftover cup of coconut milk that I’m always stuck with.
Posted 24 Apr 2009 at 4:00 pm ¶I’ll make it again, maybe with white chocolate glaze on top.
Thanks for the recipe!
I made this last weekend and it was to die for! I toasted the coconut, left out the cinnamon and added in a few tablespoons of key lime juice. It was spectacular! I’ll definitely be making it again
Another Dorie recipe winner!
Posted 09 Mar 2010 at 4:30 pm ¶Post a Comment