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Lemon Coconut Naked Cake with Whipped Vanilla Buttercream. The pretty “garden” cake that tastes amazing too. Three soft, perfectly sweet, very moist, extra coconutty, lemon scented cake layers. Each drizzled lightly with a sweet honey lemon syrup, and then generously frosted with the most delicious whipped vanilla buttercream. Decorate with coconut, and dainty chamomile flowers and you’ll have a beautiful spring coconut cake that’s just a touch more special…and delicious…than any other coconut cake.
I feel like I say this every time I make a new layer cake, but I really think this is my favorite yet. I take that back, I really love all the layer cakes I’ve created. Especially the spring cakes, because they tend to be the prettiest. But this one…this cute little layer cake…it was a true labor of love. Even when I thought I’d given up on it, I somehow talked myself into trying one last time. Finally I had success.
I could not be more excited to share this cake today, it’s everything I wanted it to be, but actually better. When a recipe turns out better than I had envisioned, all is good in my world. It’s the simple things, right?
You guys may remember, but the other week I hinted that I was really struggling to create a coconut cake that was both delicious and beautiful. At this point, I can’t even remember how many versions of this cake I attempted. I just know it was a lot. I also know that I am currently well loved at both the rec center and my little sister’s school. As they’ve been the recipients of multiple cakes over the last couple of weeks.
Guess it’s cool they like me! And yes, we don’t throw the “testing” food out…unless it’s incredibly gross. In which case I will not hand it off to anyone because, well, that’s just mean.
Anyway…
I wanted so badly to create a cake that would be perfect for both Easter and Mother’s Day. I’ve never shared a true coconut cake before, so I knew right away that the flavor needed to be more classic coconut. In the past, I’ve shared a coconut banana cake, and a coconut carrot cake, but never just coconut. So coconut was my favor. With the additional flavors of lemon and vanilla hinted throughout, and a vanilla buttercream frosting. Sort of simple, but not too simple, and SO GOOD.
I had the flavors down, now I just needed to get the cake as perfect as can be. This was the (very) hard part. First round was dry, second round was way too moist, third round was just ugly, and I can’t even remember the round after that. I started out with normal standard (8 inch) cake layers. Then moved onto a pink buttercream. After that I attempted to add in brown butter. I tried just about everything, and then I just needed to give up. I could not make this cake one more time. So I told myself I was done…
Until three days later when a slightly different version of this exact cake formed in my head. I hesitated to even try one last time, but for some reason, I was feeling good about this cake. I had the fresh chamomile flowers and pretty thyme blossoms to decorate with. So I went for it, and IT WORKED!
Yes. Yes. YESSSS. It worked, and then I made it again to be sure, and then again to film the process. So much cake, but I’m so happy.
This cake is everything. It’s springy, coconutty, so delicious, and pretty too! All the things a cake needs to be.
The best part is that even though this cake is layered with deliciousness and might look fancy, it’s pretty simple. I mean, simple for a layer cake.
First, I used 3 (6 inch) cake pans, but 2 (8 inch) standard cake pans can also be used. The cake layers are true coconut with just the slightest hint of lemon swirled throughout. It’s not even that you notice the lemon so much as it really just helps to highlight the coconut flavors and make them that much better. These cake layers are MOIST, and SOFT, and SO FLUFFY.
You’ll love it.
Now, I wanted this cake to be sweet, but not like a sugar bomb. I also wanted to ensure that the layers of cake would hold up and stay moist if you plan to leave the cake out during your spring gatherings. So…I added a honey lemon “syrup” to drizzle over top each cake. The syrup adds a light sweetness all while keeping each cake layer very, very moist. The syrup is my secret. Go with it.
Moving along. No cake is complete without a buttercream. This one is extra buttery, extra whipped, very heavy on the vanilla, and sweetened ever so slightly with a touch of honey. It also has a touch of cream cheese, to really play with the classic coconut flavors going on in the cake. Simple vanilla flavors, but kicked up a notch. It’s better than words can describe.
Every forkful of cake is roll your eyes back good, and filled with lemony, coconutty, and vanilla flavors.
To decorate, I used fresh thyme blossoms and chamomile flowers, which gave the cake a very spring-like garden feel. It’s exactly what I wanted from the start…even though I may not have known that from the start.
Sometimes things really just need time to evolve into their best version. That could not have been more true than with this cake. It may have just about driven me insane, but I’m so happy I didn’t give up on it. Often the recipes that I try over and over again, until I am more than happy with them, are the ones I just can’t wait to share.
I hope my excitement over this cake inspires you to make it a part of your Easter celebrations this weekend. Or maybe Mother’s Day in a few weeks. Or maybe just a celebratory spring weekend cake. For absolutely no reason at all. Other than that you simply want a damn good coconut cake.
Whatever your reason for making this cake may be, I hope you love it as much as I do!
If you make this lemon coconut naked cake, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to also tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Lemon Coconut Naked Cake with Whipped Vanilla Buttercream.
Servings: 12
Calories Per Serving: 2424 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup melted coconut oil, cooled
- 1/2 cup plain greek yogurt
- 3 large eggs
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup canned full fat coconut milk
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 1 cup shredded sweetened coconut, plus more for layering
Honey Lemon Syrup
- 1/4 cup lemon juice
- 1/3 cup honey
Whipped Vanilla Buttercream
- 3 sticks (1 ½ cups) salted butter, at room temperature
- 2 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/3 cup honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, or vanilla bean powder
Instructions
- 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease 3 (6-inch) round cake pans or 2 (8 inch) round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter/spray with cooking spray.2. In the bowl of a stand mixer (or use a hand-held mixer) beat together the coconut oil, yogurt, eggs, sugar, vanilla, and coconut milk. Add the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Mix until just combined. Fold in the lemon zest and shredded coconut. 3. Pour the batter among the cake pans and bake 30-35 minutes, until the tops are just set, and no longer wiggly in the center. Remove and let cool five minutes, then run a knife around the edges of the pan and turn the cakes out onto a cooling rack. Poke 3-5 holes in the top of each cake.4. Make the honey lemon syrup. In a small sauce pan bring the lemon juice and honey to a boil over high heat. Boil 1-2 minutes, until just slightly thickened. Let cool until warm to touch, about 10 minutes. 5. Make the buttercream. Add the butter and the cream cheese to the bowl of a stand mixer and whip until extra light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add the powdered sugar and honey. Beat together until whipped, about 2 more minutes. Add the vanilla and beat until combined. If the frosting feels too loose, add powdered sugar to thicken.7. To assemble, place one cake layer on a serving plate or cake stand and drizzle lightly with the cooled honey syrup. Spread 1/3 of the buttercream over the cake and add a handful of shredded coconut. Repeat with the remaining 2 cake layers. Be careful not to over fill your layers or the cake will be hard to slice. Serve or store in the fridge for up to 1 day. If desired, decorate the cake with thyme blossoms and edible flowers.
This post was originally published on April 19, 2019
Tieghan, I plan to bake this for Mother’s Day. I was curious to know if homemade coconut milk (coconut and water) can be substituted for canned coconut milk. Thanks so much. You truly are an inspiration!
You are too sweet! Thank you so much Mallory! xTieghan
I made this on the weekend for my daughter’s first birthday and it was delicious! The icing is to die for and the cake perfectly moist. Crowd pleaser for sure 🙂
Thank you so much Heather! xTieghan
Best cake ever! I didn’t have 6” cake pans only 9” so I made cupcakes! I cut the tops off and brushed insides w the lemon/ honey glaze. Then I piled on that delicious buttercream an put the tops back on. They were seriously the best cupcakes we’ve ever eaten!
Thanks again for your recipes!
Wow yes! I am so glad these turned out amazing for you, Lindsay! Thank you so much! xTieghan
making this gluten free is easy and painless! I use either Amy’s gf artisan flour blend, or my own mix of almond flour and coconut flour. The mix is my personal favorite and works well but sometimes you need to add a little more liquid to the cake mix — I usually add an additional egg.
Yum! I am so glad you loved this Shirley! Thank you so much! xTieghan
I made this cake for friends at work — I used fresh pansies because they are edible & in my yard 🙂 It turned out lovely & was a real show stopper. The 6 inch pan also makes it feel a little sweeter too!
Thank you so much Marie! I am so glad you tried this! xTieghan
It was the first cake I’ve ever made in my life. It was for my baby girl’s 100 day celebration! It was a big hit, everyone liked the lemony coconut flavors and that the cake wasn’t too sweet. However, as a new mom, I didn’t have time to make the frosting (but also intimidated) so I used store bought. Thank you for the great unique recipe!
Wow I am so glad this cake turned out so well for your daughter, Erica! And Happy 100th Day to her! Thank you so much for making it! xTieghan
Tieghan you have done it again. This cake is DIVINE! Made it for a work lunch and we ate it for breakfast! All your hard work to perfect it has truly paid off. I will make this cake again and again. Not too sweet and the right amount of tang. I love the way the honey hits you after the bite lingers, and yum yum yum COCONUT! Thank you so much for sharing!!
Some notes for other readers: I wouldn’t have subbed anything if my kitchen inventory wasn’t low, but I didn’t have coconut oil, so I subbed canola equal parts and it was great (I can only imagine how much better this would be with coconut oil!!!). Also, I only had two sticks of salted butter. So I used 2-salted and 1- unsalted for the buttercream and I loved it so much.
Thank you so much Brittany! I am so glad you loved this! xTieghan
I made this cake for Easter and it was so good!! My family loved it and every bite of it was ate! I forgot to take a picture of it, untill it was to late.I give it 5 stars!
Thank you so much Anita! I am so glad you enjoyed this cake! I hope you had a wonderful Easter! xTieghan
What a beautiful cake! Do you think it could be made into cupcakes? How long would you suggest they be baked?
HI! Yes, you can bake about 24 muffins and I would bake 18-25 minutes. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
I loved this, made it for Easter. I made it the night before, i thought the time of an hour and 20 was pretty spot on. I thought the cream cheese was just enough to cut the sweetness of the honey and the powdered sugar. I typically don’t like buttercream, but this was so light and melty. I will be using it again for sure. The whole thing was pretty easy and everyone loved it and it made a statement being nice and tall!
Thank you so much Kate! I am so glad you enjoyed this recipe, especially for Easter!! xTieghan
I made this for Easter because it sounded so wonderful. The flavor was yummy but I had trouble with this icing. 3 sticks of butter, cream cheese and honey made it way, way to runny. I added multiple extra cups (6 i think) of powdered sugar to firm it up which made the icing sicken sweet but the cake still slid (I made two 8″ rounds). Of course all the added sugar increased the volume of icing so I could have iced two cakes. I put crumb coated cakes in the freeze and the icing in the refrigerator just to get it firm enough to ice and serve. Please note that It was only 62F in my kitchen so the environment shouldn’t have been a problem. I took every step in my bag of tricks to save this icing but nothing worked well.
My last comment is that that this cake took a lot longer to make than the time stated. I really wanted to love this recipe (and even shared it with a friend on Friday) but there wasn’t enough bang for my buck to make it again.
Hey Lyn, I am so sorry you had so much trouble with the icing. Honestly, I am not sure what is happening as I have never had this issue and everyone else who has made the cake did not have any issues either. Did you use more honey the directed possibly? How long did you whip the frosting? I like to allow mine to really whip, this also helps thicken it up. Hope I can help you problem solve!
I made this beautiful cake for Easter dinner. Love the honey syrup. I feel like it keeps it moist for longer.
That is amazing! Thank you Ally! xTieghan
Oh my this looks soooooo good! I wish I had seen this recipe before I made lemon bundt cake for Easter but considering I don’t yet own a cake carrier, its probably for the best. Will definitely need to get one of those before Mother’s Day. I can’t wait to make it! Thanks so much for persevering Tieghan and coming up with this amazing recipe to share with us!
I hope you love this cake Melanie! Thank you so much! xTieghan
This looks amazing!
Just wondering– if I were to turn this recipe into cupcakes instead of a cake, is there anything I would need (or likely need) to adjust, like timing, temp, etc.?
I can’t wait to make them!
HI! Yes, the timing will be different, maybe 18-22 minutes in the oven. Should make about 24 cupcakes. Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
Made this for my daughter’s 18th birthday over Easter weekend. It was delicious!! Loved the layered flavors and beautiful presentation.
Thank you so much Jennifer! xTieghan