Coconut Milk Snack Cake is a quick and easy treat that's ideal for after-school snack, coffee breaks, and late night study sessions. This lightly sweet cake has a soft, tender texture that's delicious any time of day.
Why you'll love this recipe
- This easy coconut cake recipe is quick to make with just a few basic ingredients.
- The flavor of coconut milk cake is mild and the fluffy texture of the moist crumb is amazingly silky.
- Packed in the foil baking pan, this cake can be shipped in care packages.
Coconut milk baking recipes have been very popular on The Monday Box. Baking with coconut milk gives a lovely tropical flavor and a soft, tender texture.
I'm always looking for ways to use this delicious ingredient. The Coconut Milk Cookies recipe was followed by Coconut Milk Chocolate Chip Pound Cake and Coconut Milk Toffee Blondies. Now, Coconut Milk Snack Cake!
The cake is beautifully golden with a heavenly smell. It's simultaneously sturdy enough for shipping yet soft and tender, with such a lovely vanilla-coconut flavor, that adding frosting would be a crime.
Coconut Milk Snack Cake is delicious and easy to make (no mixer needed) snack cake that compliments a glass of milk or a mug of coffee or tea.
With a shelf-life of about 7 days, this perfect coconut cake can be enjoyed all week as an after-school snack, or shipped to your favorite college student for a sweet start to the semester!
Ingredients
Instructions
This is an overview of the instructions. The full recipe is in the recipe card below.
- Combine the contents of the canned coconut milk THOROUGHLY. The thick, heavy fat separates from the thin milk and MUST be recombined before using.
- Stir together the dry ingredients with the coconut milk mixture to form the batter.
- Pour batter into a gresed pan and bake for 30-40 minutes.
- Remove the cake from the oven and let the cake cool completely in the pan before cutting or storing.
Storage
Wrapped well or stored in an airtight container at room temperature, Coconut Milk Cake remains fresh for up to 1 week.
If shipping, leave the cooled cake in the disposable pan and ship uncut. Wrap the entire pan first in foil, then in plastic wrap.
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Tips
- Taking the time to thoroughly homogenize the can of coconut milk is essential for best results.
- Coconut Milk Cake has a very mild coconut flavor, almost neutral. For more pronounced coconut flavor add ½ - 1 teaspoon coconut extract.
- Powdered sugar can be added on top right before serving. For shipping include a small ziplock bag of powdered sugar.
- To mail Coconut Milk Snack Cake in a care package, I recommend baking in a disposable foil pan and wrapping the cake in the pan, uncut. The foil pan provides protection. Leaving the cake uncut, keeps the cake from drying out while shipping.
Related recipes
Made with cocoa nibs for crunch and chocolate flavor, Coconut Milk Cookies are fluffy, cake-like cookies made from a Thai recipe.
Soft, chewy Coconut Milk Toffee Blondies have the tropical taste of coconut.
Coconut Milk Chocolate Chip Pound Cake is a soft, fluffy treat that you'll want to enjoy for breakfast, snacks, and dessert.
Gluten Free Chocolate Cookies are flourless treats with chewy coconut deliciousness.
Coconut Macaroons are chewy coconut cookie balls with no flour and no condensed milk.
Toasted coconut gives Coconut Crunch Cookies lots of great flavor.
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Coconut Milk Snack Cake
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk, canned full fat, not low fat
- ¼ cup coconut oil melted
- 2 large eggs
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- ½ tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup unsweetened coconut shredded
- ¾ teaspoon baking powder
- 2 tablespoons confectioners’ sugar optional
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375° F. Grease an 8×8 inch pan with cooking spray (If shipping, use a disposable foil pan.)
- Open the can of coconut milk and combine the contents THOROUGHLY. The thick, heavy fat separates from the thin milk and MUST be recombined before using. This is most easily done in a blender, food processor, or in the bowl of a stand mixer, but can also be done with vigorous whisking. When the fat is completely blended with the liquid the consistency should be similar to dairy cream or milk.
- In a large bowl, stir together the homogenized coconut milk, melted coconut oil, eggs, granulated sugar, and vanilla.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, shredded coconut, and baking powder, then add to the wet ingredients. Mix until just combined.
- Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the center of the pan comes out clean.
- Remove the cake from the oven and allow to cool completely in the pan on a wire rack before cutting or storing. If shipping, leave the cooled cake in the disposable pan and ship uncut.
- When cooled, the top of the cake can be sprinkled with powdered sugar (optional).
- Wrapped well or stored in an airtight container at room temperature, Coconut Milk Snack Cake remains fresh for up to 1 week.
Notes
Nutrition
First Published: August 27, 2017. Last Updated: December 12, 2023. Updated for additional information and better reader experience.
Brenda
Really delicious
Wendy Sondov
Glad you enjoyed the cake, Brenda!
Boyo
Is it coconut milk from the can or coconut milk carton in the refrigerator? Thanks
Wendy Sondov
Hi. I used coconut milk (full fat not low fat) from a can. I hope you enjoy the cake!
Jennie
Can I make this with sweetened coconut and just cut the sugar by 2 Tablespoons or so?
The Monday Box
Hi, Jennie! You can definitely make the snack cake with sweetened coconut. You could make it with the 1 cup of sugar as written in the recipe or maybe just take out 1 tablespoon of sugar to start. The sugar in a cake recipe does more than sweeten. Sugar bonds with the liquids to keep baked goods moist and tender. So, I would start by taking out only 1 tablespoon. If you find the snack cake too sweet, maybe next time take out 2 tablespoons and see if the texture is effected. I hope this helps and answers your question! 🙂 Enjoy!
Abby
What do you do with the 1/2 cup of Shredded coconut???
I don't see it in the instructions
The Monday Box
Hi, Abby. I'm sorry the shredded coconut got lost! I fixed the recipe. The coconut gets mixed with the flour and baking powder before combining with the liquid mixture. This recipe is very forgiving and you really could have mixed the coconut in anywhere and still ended up with lovely snack cake! 🙂 Thanks for pointing out the missing ingredient! Happy baking!
Abby
Thank you!
I left the coconut out because i didn't know what to do with it ?
But it's delicious!
Next time will definitely incorporate the coconut.
Again, thank you!
April J Harris
I love it when "failures" turn into surprise successes, Wendy! Your Coconut Milk Snack Cake looks so tender and luscious. I love that it keeps and ships so well too. Thank you so much for sharing with The Hearth and Soul Link Party. Pinning and sharing later today on the Hearth and Soul Facebook page. Hope you are having a lovely Labour Day weekend!
Miz Helen
I just pinned your awesome after school treat, this looks awesome! Thanks so much for sharing with us at Full Plate Thursday. Have a great weekend and come back to see us real soon!
Miz Helen
Reeni
I love when a cake is called "snack" because then I don't feel bad eating it all day long! The texture is so light and fluffy - it looks delicious Wendy.
The Monday Box
Thanks, Reeni. The texture is really lovely. It seems to be a characteristic of baking with coconut milk. I'm loving it!
Claire Gough
Can you freeze the coconut Milk cake ?
Wendy Sondov
Hi, Claire. I haven't tried freezing this cake, but I see no reason why it wouldn't freeze just fine. Be sure to wrap well to keep it from drying out and getting freezer burn. Enjoy!
CHG
Thank you 🙂
Wendy Sondov
Any time! If you love the cake, I hope you will give it a 5 star rating! 🙂
Ashley@CookNourishBliss
This cake has my name alllll over it Wendy!! I've been having some major issues with dairy lately so I especially love that I can enjoy this!! Plus, coconut milk anything is just the best! haha
The Monday Box
Thanks, Ashley! I am finding that baked goods that don't include dairy, actually stay fresh and moist longer! Coconut milk is a great substitute!
Monica
What wonderful kitchen experiments are happening at your house! No offense to blondies but I would far rather have this snack cake. It just looks amazingly light, tender, and moist...so moist! And I love coconut milk and would love to try it in baking. It's always nice to bake a snack cake and I'm looking forward to doing some of that in the fall.
The Monday Box
Thanks, Monica! So many times experiments are frustrating. This time, for a change, the experimenting gave me two recipes instead of one. Snack cake is a delicious change from my usual cookies and bars! Fall and holiday baking season are here! 🙂
Jhuls
Wow! This sounds absolutely awesome! I will surely try this one. Thanks for sharing!
Helen Reynolds
I am definitely giving this recipe a try! Thanks for sharing!
saltandserenity
Even though you didn't plan on a series of 4 recipes using coconut milk, I am so glad you posted them all. Too much coconut is never a problem for me. Can't wait to give this one a try. Loving the black slate background. The cake really pops agains it.
cheri
Oh I love snacking cakes like this, sounds like this turned out to be something very special.
Chris Scheuer
This looks so moist and delicious Wendy! I love the flavor of coconut milk and with a double dose of coconut, I'm sure these are amazing!
Tricia @ Saving Room for Dessert
The texture looks wonderful Wendy! After school fuel - sounds like a winner to me. Simple and tasty and perfect when you need that little something sweet. Great recipe thanks for sharing!