I didn’t bring much back from our vacation, but I did buy some cocoa and a bottle of white vanilla. Once home, I decided to bring back the tropics with a little coconut loaf. So I grabbed Sarah’s cookbook and found what I was looking for. True to her recipes her cake is not too sweet, so I had to add a little chocolate ;), because I remember having coconut white chocolate bread one time in Turcs and Caicos (feel free to omit). So this is a hybrid of fond tropical memories. I also used all purpose flour, instead of a mix of all-purpose and whole-wheat. This cake is perfect as a not too sweet dessert, but also amazing toasted with a bit of butter in the morning.
It may still be cold around here, but the time changed, the sun is shining and coconut will always make me think of summers!
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup extra-virgin coconut oil, melted, plus more for the pan
- 2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
- 3/4 cup turbinado sugar
- 1 3/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 11/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 2 eggs
- 1 can coconut milk
- 1 cup powdered sugar, or more as needed
- 3/4 cups white chocolate chunks (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 81/2 inc loaf pan with a thin coat of coconut oil.
- Spread the shredded coconut on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in the oven until just golden brown, about 4 minutes. Watch it carefully, it can burn really quickly. Set aside 1/2 cup for topping.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups of the toasted coconut and the turbinado sugar. Sift in the flour, nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda and salt and stir to combine. In another bowl, whisk the eggs together, then whisk in 1 cup of the coconut milk the coconut oil, and the vanilla. Gently stir the wet mixture into the dry ingredients until just combined, add white chocolate and gently mix. Pour the mixture into the loaf pan and bake until a toothpick comes out clean, 45-55 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool to room temperature.
- While the loaf is cooling, combine 1/4 cup of the remaining coconut milk and the powdered sugar in a bowl and whisk until there are no clumps. Add more sugar or more coconut milk to taste. Pour the glaze over the cooled cake and sprinkle the remaining toasted coconut on top.
Notes
This recipe is adapted from Sprouted Kitchen, she doesn't add white chocolate and uses some whole wheat flour. Feel free to omit the chocolate. I find the cake also tastes great without the glaze.
