 A coconut cake garnished withPeeps | |
| Type | Cake |
|---|---|
| Course | Dessert |
| Place of origin | United States |
| Region or state | Southern states |
| Main ingredients | White or yellow cake,icing,coconut flakes |
| Variations | Coconut poke cake |
Coconut cake is a populardessert in theSouthern region of the United States. It is acake frosted with a whitefrosting and covered incoconut flakes.
Typically, the cakes used in coconut cake are either white or yellow cakes. While some recipes do not call for coconut flavor in the cake itself, there are others that replace the milk withcoconut milk or use coconutextract.[1] It is also common to brush the cakes with asimple syrup to make it more moist. Often the cake layers are filled with either a white frosting or coconutpastry cream.[2] Traditionally, the cake is frosted with a seven-minute frosting, butcream cheese icings andbuttercreams are not uncommon.[2] Like the cakes, coconut flavor is not always a must in the frosting. One constant characteristic of coconut cake is the use of shredded coconut (often toasted or sweetened) to cover the frosting.
One popular variation of coconut cake is coconut poke cake. While traditional coconut cake is round and multi-layered, coconut poke cake is either a white or yellow cake that is rectangular and single-layered. What makes it a "poke" cake are the holes made into the cake to act as pores to absorb a coconut liquid mixture or cream of coconut, such as CoCo Lopez. Afterwards, the cake is frosted with awhipped topping.[3]
Many Southerners also make non-traditional versions of coconut cake. One popular variation is to pair the coconut with other flavors, particularly by filling the cake with alemon curd to add a tart flavor to a usually very sweet cake.Red velvet cake, another cake popular inthe South, will sometimes have shredded coconut cover the cake.[4]
Media related toCoconut cakes at Wikimedia Commons
