Looking for your new favorite cake recipe? Make my fabulous Chocolate Coconut Cake! Dark chocolate cake is slathered with the creamiest coconut frosting and topped with toasted coconut. It’s a truly magical combination. If you love chocolate and coconut, you must try this recipe!
I always use Hershey’s Special Dark cocoa powder. It’s my not-so-secret ingredient. You can find it at most grocery stores and it adds such depth to baked goods. It’s perfect with coconut!
I decorated this as a naked cake but feel free to frost the sides if you prefer. I put toasted coconut in the middle and on top. It adds such a nice nuttiness and crunchy texture to this cake.
Chocolate Coconut Cake
2 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup dark cocoa powder (I use Hershey’s Special Dark)
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 cup 1% milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup boiling water
Coconut frosting, see below
3/4 cup shredded coconut
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease two 9″ cake pans and coat with cocoa powder.
- Combine sugar, flour, dark cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt in large mixing bowl. Add eggs one at a time and mix until incorporated. Add milk, oil and vanilla all at once and beat on medium speed of mixer about two minutes. Stir in the boiling water. Divide evenly between cake pans.
- Bake 28 to 33 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes; remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely.
- Toast shredded coconut in a nonstick skillet until slightly golden.
- Make coconut frosting (see below) and spread about half on the first layer. Top with shredded coconut, add second cake layer, and frost with more coconut frosting. If desired, reserve some frosting for rosettes around the cake. Sprinkle with more toasted coconut.
Coconut Frosting
6 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 tsp coconut extract
4 Tbsp milk
1 cup shredded coconut
- Cream together 2 cups powdered sugar and 1 stick softened butter with an electric mixer.
- Beat in two more cups of powdered sugar and 2 Tbsp milk, then second stick of butter, remaining two cups of powdered sugar, coconut extract, and last 2 Tbsp milk. Beat until smooth. Add additional milk or powdered sugar if needed for desired consistency.
