Coconut Cream Gooey Butter Cake
Coconut Cream Gooey Butter Cake

Coconut Cream Gooey Butter Cake

5 from 1 reviews
Coconut Cream Gooey Butter Cake
 
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
 
This is a coconut lover's dream: a super easy gooey butter cake with a ton of fluffy coconut cream in the middle! If you don’t have a skillet, I believe you can bake this in a greased 9-inch square baking dish (I’d use a glass one if you have it, and check it early and often. Remove when there’s some jiggle left.) Let us know how it goes if you try it this way for all the other skilletless people!
Author:
Serves: 6-8
Ingredients
Crust Ingredients:
  • 1 cup cake flour
  • 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 1/3 cup butter, cold
  • pinch of salt
Filling Ingredients:
  • 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter, softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2/3 cup evaporated milk
  • 1/4 cup light corn syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon coconut extract
  • powdered sugar for dusting
Coconut Cream Ingredients:
  • 1/2 of a 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk (about 3/4 cup)
  • 6 tablespoons sugar
  • pinch kosher salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 1 tablespoon corn starch
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
  • 1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
  • 1/4 cup whipping cream
  • coconut for topping
Instructions
  1. Make the crust: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Whisk together cake flour, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in the butter with a pastry cutter or two knives until the mixture resembles fine crumbs and starts to cling together. (Alternatively, you can pulse the mixture in the food processor 6 times or so — this is how I usually cut fat into a flour mixture.) Press the mixture into the bottom (this step is a lot harder than it sounds, but be patient and use the back of a spoon to help spread/press the mixture down. I also stuck mine in the fridge for a bit to make the butter less sticky) and up the sides of a 10-inch cast iron skillet.
  2. Make the filling and bake: Cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy and pale yellow (about 2-3 minutes). Mix in the egg until just combined. Alternate adding the flour and evaporated milk, mixing after each addition. Mix in the corn syrup, vanilla extract, and coconut extract. Pour the filling into the crust and sprinkle the top with icing sugar. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes or until cake is nearly set (mine was probably ready around 30). Some jiggle is fine — do not overcook! It’ll finish setting up as it cools. Sprinkle some more powdered sugar on top. Let the cake cool in the skillet for 2 hours.
  3. Make coconut cream: While the cake bakes and cools, make the coconut cream. Heat the coconut milk, sugar, salt and vanilla in a medium saucepan over medium heat. In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and corn starch. Add 1/4 cup of the hot cream slowly to the yolks, whisking as you add. Then pour the yolk mixture into the pot of hot cream and whisk. Continue to whisk with heat on medium-high for 3 more minutes. The mixture will turn thick and bubble. You need to continue to whisk for the full 3 minutes or the pastry cream will separate once it is cool. After the 3 minutes, whisk in the butter. Add the coconut flakes. Pour into a shallow dish to cool.
  4. Cover with plastic wrap pressed right against the pastry cream. This will prevent a thick skin from forming on the surface. Refrigerate for at least an hour or freeze for 30 minutes. Once it is cold, stir the pastry cream to loosen. Whip the 1/4 cup cream to medium peaks. Stir in a third of the whipped cream to the pastry cream to lighten. Fold in the remaining cream until the pastry cream is nice and light. Chill until ready to use.
  5. Assemble the cake: Pile coconut cream into the center of your cake, top with extra shredded coconut, and serve.

 

17 Comments on Coconut Cream Gooey Butter Cake

  1. Taylor @ Food Faith Fitness
    March 30, 2015 at 7:50 am (9 years ago)

    What a bummer that you had to be sick for your break! It’s the worst when that happens!
    But, I am so glad this cake came out of it! Gooey goodness and coconut cream? I NEED THAT. Pinned!

    Reply
  2. grace
    March 30, 2015 at 10:43 am (9 years ago)

    this is all kinds of amazing! fantastic creation–this coconut-lover is already smitten.

    Reply
  3. Erin @ The Spiffy Cookie
    March 30, 2015 at 10:51 am (9 years ago)

    Holy cow that looks amazing! I want to dive right into that hole in the middle

    Reply
  4. Amy | Club Narwhal
    March 30, 2015 at 12:21 pm (9 years ago)

    Oh sweet mercy, Julie, I just want to dive into this gorgeous cake 🙂 I’m sorry you were sick for your break (I coughed up a lung for half of our spring break too) but am really glad you got all the rest you needed–and found a cozy little coffee shop!

    Reply
  5. Renee
    March 30, 2015 at 5:07 pm (9 years ago)

    Wow! I can’t even describe how much I think I will like this cake. Don’t be surprised to see me making it and posting it (I’ll link you back I promise).

    Reply
  6. Catherine
    March 31, 2015 at 12:05 am (9 years ago)

    Dear Julie, I am so sorry to hear you have not been feeling well. There must be something going on…last weekend I was horrible but thankfully make a speedy recovery. I am afraid to say though that I gave my cold to my son. Hopefully we will be rid of this virus by Easter!

    This coconut cake looks marvelous. I am dying to try a skillet cake…one of these days I’ll get around to it. Pinned for later. xo, Catherine

    Reply
  7. Aida@TheCraftingFoodie
    March 31, 2015 at 12:36 am (9 years ago)

    Julie, what a delicious sounding cake! I’m so sorry part of your break was spend feeling sick 🙁 I taught second grade for 5 years, and those first few years I was sick almost all the time. It was nuts! Glad that you rested up 🙂

    Reply
  8. tina
    March 31, 2015 at 10:39 am (9 years ago)

    I do not understand the qty under Coconut Cream Ingredients “6 tablespoons cup sugar” ??

    Reply
    • Julie Ruble
      March 31, 2015 at 10:56 am (9 years ago)

      Oops, just a typo! All fixed now, Tina!

      Reply
  9. Foodiewife
    April 1, 2015 at 11:47 pm (9 years ago)

    We are rather spoiled with our school breaks, aren’t we? I had a week off for President’s Week (preceded by two weeks of Winter Break). Now, it’s Spring Break. So far, my health is okay, and I’m loving the time to decompress. We’re both on a coconut kick, and good grief– does this look fabulous, you temptress!

    Reply
  10. Robin @ thebakingexchange
    April 13, 2015 at 11:39 pm (9 years ago)

    Hi JUlie,
    A while ago I noticed on your blog that you had a lot of coconut recipes and I remember thinking “this girl REALLY likes coconut”, that was strange for me because I hated coconut until last week when I toasted coconut for the first time and LOVED it. Whole new taste. So now I will be back checking out all of your coconut recipes, maybe start with making this one. 🙂

    Reply
    • Julie Ruble
      April 13, 2015 at 11:59 pm (9 years ago)

      Yay, you caught the coconut bug!! Now be prepared to get obsessed 😉

      Reply
  11. Ashley Allen
    April 27, 2015 at 2:57 pm (9 years ago)

    I made this for Easter & used a ceramic pie plate since I didn’t have a cast iron skillet. I also burned the butter cake. But I still got a ton of compliments on how delicious it was. But I wanted to find out how much better it could be. So this weekend I borrowed my sister’s skillet, and made it for a dinner party. Hands-down THEEE most delicious thing EVER. I can’t get enough. I went out the next day and bought my own skillet so I can make it anytime. Yummmm!

    Reply
    • Julie Ruble
      April 28, 2015 at 2:15 pm (9 years ago)

      YAY! I love this comment!! I’m so glad you loved it, Ashley!!

      Reply

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