Real Recipes From Real Home Cooks ®

southern style coconut custard cake

(2 ratings)
Recipe by
Maggie May Schill
Jacksonville, FL

It is a big one! I mean a really big one. four layers, ten inches, weighing almost 12 pounds! We were having a mad awesome party down at the ACofJ and I remember Sensei talking about how she loved coconut cake. She was describing this coconut cake she had in Fernandina, and to me it sound like she was describing a Southern style coconut custard cake. So I looked up about 15 million recipes for it and created this concoction out of the best ideas I could find on the subject.

(2 ratings)
yield 25 serving(s)
prep time 15 Hr
cook time 50 Min
method Bake

Ingredients For southern style coconut custard cake

  • FOR CUSTARD
  • 5 c
    heavy cream
  • 2 1/2 c
    sugar
  • 1 lb
    unsalted european style butter
  • 1/4 c
    cornstarch
  • 2 tsp
    pure vanilla extract
  • 8 c
    shredded sweetened coconut
  • warm water (exact amount will vary, according on kitchen conditions)
  • FOR CAKE
  • 1 lb
    unsalted european style butter
  • 3 c
    sugar
  • 6 lg
    eggs, room temperature
  • 4 1/2 c
    all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp
    baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp
    salt
  • 1 1/2 c
    heavy cream
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp
    pure vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp
    coconut extract
  • FOR FROSTING
  • 1 c
    unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 8 oz
    cream cheese, room temperature
  • 2 tsp
    pure vanilla extract
  • 4 c
    confectioners' sugar
  • SIMPLE SYRUP
  • equal parts sugar and water
  • GARNISH
  • 2 c
    toasted coconut flakes

How To Make southern style coconut custard cake

  • 1
    For Custard: 1- Over medium heat melt butter and sugar together. 2- Add cream and stir until it reaches a boil. 3- In a small mixing bowl mix cornstarch, vanilla extract, and just enough water to convert corn starch into a slurry. (paste-like consistency). 4- Put coconut flakes in a food processor and process until fine. 5- Mix cornstarch mixture into hot cream mixture. 6- Pour hot cream mixture out into a large casserole dish or baking pan. 7- Mix in coconut flakes 8- Let set in fridge for 12 hours.
  • 2
    For Cake: 1- Preheat oven to 325'F grease two 10" round cake pans. 2- Cream together butter and sugar for 6 minutes until super fluffy. 3- Add eggs to butter mixture, cream one at a time until completely incorporated. 4- Sift together all your remaining dry cake ingredients. (flour, salt, baking powder) 5- In a measuring cup mix together cream, coconut extract and vanilla. 6- Add flour and cream to butter mixture gradually, alternating between adding flour and cream. Start and end with flour mixture. Do not over mix!!! 7- Pour batter out into pans and bake for about 45 minutes or until a tooth pick comes out clean.
  • 3
    For Frosting: 1- beat sugar and cream cheese together until fluffy. 2- beat in vanilla extract 3- Gradually beat in confectioner's sugar until completely incorporated.
  • 4
    For simple syrup: 1- Pour water and sugar into a small sauce pan and cook over medium heat until sugar dissolves into water. 2- Bring to a boil, then set aside off of heat.
  • 5
    Assembly! 1- Once cakes have cool completely, level off their tops. 2- Cut each leveled coconut cake in half 3- Place first layer of cake down on a cake dish and brush liberally with simple syrup then coat with coconut custard. (a little less than 1/2 cup of custard per layer usually comes out about right.) 4- Repeat this process for each layer of cake, omitting a custard layer on the very top of the cake of course. 5- Frost cake and garnish. 6- Slice chilled. You can store it for up to 5 day in a fridge.
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