Chocolate Coconut Cake

Every year, there is a celebration on our street. Everyone comes out and set up long tables under a series of colourful tents. It’s a lovely event. Moving to London, I had been warned about the unfriendliness of the city. I am so glad my neighbours are the antithesis of this stereoptype. That being said, this year, we can’t make the party. So how does one show neighbourly love while absent? Well, with cake, of course!

This week has been manic so I needed a cake I could make while doing about four other things at the same time. This is that cake. Kids love it, adults enjoy the barely sweet crunch of the coconut and bitter chocolate and it comes together under half an hour (including clean up). It is so moist that it keeps well for a few days. I dropped it off next door with strict instructions not to eat it before delivering it to the party tomorrow.

As a side note, you may notice that the glaze in the photo below is quite thick. You could definitely make a thinner one. The reason I didn’t was because I needed to hide the fairly deep dent my daughter made into the top of this cake when she pinched a bit while the cake was cooling… Yes, this cake is that good. Irresistible!

Cake (Adapted from Simple Cake):

200g Plain flour

45g Cacoa Powder (dark)

2 tsp Baking powder

1 tsp Salt

140g Unsweetened desiccated coconut

250g Granulated sugar

4 Eggs

320ml Unsweetened coconut milk

175g Butter, melted

glaze:

200G icing sugar

45G coconut milk powder

4 TbSP milk

Preheat over to 350F / Gas 4

Grease and flour a bundt tin (see “How To” for other tin options) 

Get to work:

1.     Sift flour, cacao, baking powder and salt together. Add coconut and sugar. Mix well

2.     In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs and coconut milk

3.     Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredient and stir until combined

4.     Stir in the melted butter until smooth

5.     Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake into the center of the oven for about 55 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean

7.     Remove the cake from the oven and let it stand in the tin for about 10 minutes before transferring onto a cooling rack. Leave to cool fully before icing

8.    While the cake cools, prepare the glaze: mix in all the ingredient and cover with cling film before pouring over the cake