This Tropical Coconut Pound Cake garnished with whipped cream and pineapple is a crowd pleaser. Pound cake had fallen out of my roster because it just seemed sort of ho hum... but not this one!
With a delicate coconut flavour to the soft dense crumb, embellished with a sprinkle of icing sugar and a dollop of whipped cream, crowned with fresh pineapple pieces it was the hit of my last dinner party.
The cocounut and pineapple seem to herold Spring, Easter or even summer. I guess you could have it any time of year but it seems like a lighter option for warmer times.
Chef's Tips
- This makes a large cake so don't use anything smaller than a 10" bundt pan. My cake rose about 3 " above the rim with the 10" so if you have an even bigger bundt pan feel free to use it.
- The cream cheese makes this a stiff batter. It takes a lot of beating to get the ingredients evenly incorporated so don't skimp on beating in the additions.
- I prefer unsweetened coconut because I find coconut can quickly become overwhelmingly sweet but you can use sweetened if you like.
- Pulse the coconut in your food processor. You don't want flour texture but you want it to be fine like coarse sugar. This way you won't have any coconut texture in your cake crumb... just that lovely coconut flavour.
- This cake freezes beautifully. Seal it airtight and it will easily keep a few months. Just sift fresh icing sugar over it after it has defrosted and come to room temperature before serving.
- Pineapple and coconut are a classic combination but any fresh fruit in season would shine here with the delicate vanilla, coconut cake flavour. Strawberries, raspberries, mango would be great alternatives.
Wine Pairing
Well, it's not really wine but a little glass of Lemoncello would be wonderful with this!
Tropical Coconut Pound Cake
A soft, rich coconut crumb garnished with icing sugar, whipped cream and fresh pineapple pieces.
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Save Print Pin FacebookServings: 18 servings
Equipment
- 1 large bundt pan 10" minimum
Ingredients
- 1 cup coconut, flaked unsweetened
- 1 cup butter at room temperature
- ½ cup shortening
- 3 cups sugar
- 8 oz cream cheese at room temperature
- 3 cups all purpose flour 360 grams
- 7 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon coconut extract
- 1 teaspoon almond extract
Toppings
- ¼ cup icing sugar
- 2 cups whipped cream
- 2 tablespoon sugar
- 2 ½ cups pineapple pieces fresh preferred but if using canned drain it well.
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325° F. Spray a large 10" bundt pan and dust with flour. (A slightly larger Bundt cake will also work but don't go smaller.) See Note 1.
- Pulse the coconut in food processor until is is fine. (Not flour-like but like coarse sugar.) Set aside. See note 2.
- In a large bowl, beat the butter, shortening and sugar together until evenly combined and it starts to get fluffy. See Note 3. Add the cream cheese in cubes and continue beating until mixture is fluffy. Scrape down sides as needed to ensure everything is thoroughly mixed.
- Add the flour and eggs alternately, starting and ending with flour. Add them in about 4 additions, beating until mixture is well combined each time. Beat in the coconut and almond extracts until well mixed. See Note 4.
- Stir in the coconut until it is evenly mixed.
- Pour the batter into your bundt pan. Tap the pan a couple of times on the counter to even the batter out.
- Bake 85-90 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Let cake cool about 20 minutes before running a knife around the inner and outer edges to loosen. Invert the pan over your serving platter.Gently run your knife around the outer edge of the now top of the cake to loosen and gently remove the pan base.
Toppings
- Whip cream in a large bowl with 2 Tbsps sugar until it holds its peaks well.
- Dust the cake liberally with icing sugar to taste. Serve with a generous dollop of whipped and 2 couple of Tablepsoons of pineapple pieces.
Notes
Note 1: This makes a large cake that rises significantly. You can use a slightly larger bundt pan but don't go smaller. Mine rose about 3 inches over the rim of my 10" pan.
Note 2: You can use sweetened or unsweetened. I prefer the unsweetened but it is a matter of personal taste. Pulse the coconut until it is like coarse sugar so it will not be noticeable in the texture of the finished cake.
Note 3: The batters is quite thick and there is a lot of it so use a gbowl big enough to hold about 12 cups.
Note 4: The batter is thick so it takes a lot beating to get all the ingredients well and evenly combined, including the extracts and the coconut.
Nutrition
Calories: 491kcal | Carbohydrates: 58g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 15g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 117mg | Sodium: 152mg | Potassium: 131mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 40g | Vitamin A: 648IU | Vitamin C: 11mg | Calcium: 41mg | Iron: 2mg
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RALPH HETKE
Excellent!