Halekulani coconut cake was the cake that our mom made us for every birthday growing up. She would serve it with chocolate ice cream and that combination was used to make every special occasion in our household. This cake is still the one we request for special events. It is light, filled with just the right amount of pastry cream, and still has so much flavor from the coconut and vanilla bean.
This cake is a recipe that originated from the incredible coconut cake at the Halekulani hotel in Hawaii. We make it very similar to their amazing original recipe, but we also add toasted coconut into the pastry cream for an extra flavorful center. We were in love with this cake as kids and are still in love with it to this day. As our mom says “In my opinion, this still is the best cake on the planet.”
Halekulani Coconut Cake
Servings 12
Ingredients
Pastry Cream:
- 1 cup toasted coconut flakes
- 2 cups whole milk
- 1 tablespoon vanilla bean paste
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup minus a tablespoon 90 g sugar
- ¼ cup flour
- 4 egg yolks + 1 whole egg
Cake:
- ¾ cup cake flour
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 egg
- ⅓ cup water
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 4 egg whites
- ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
- ¼ cup sugar
- Whipped Cream:
- 3 cups whipped cream
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 cups coconut flakes
Instructions
Pastry Cream:
- On medium heat toast 1 cup of coconut flakes until just golden. Set aside to cool
- Set aside a bowl to cool the pastry cream with a fine-mesh sieve/strainer on top
- In another bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, egg flour and sugar until smooth. Set aside the mixture
- In a saucepan, pour in the milk and vanilla bean paste. Add the salt and mix. Place the mixture on medium-high heat until just under a boil. Be sure to stir the mixture occasionally to ensure the milk solids do not stick to the bottom of the pan
- When the milk is warmed, add 1/3 of the hot milk into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to ensure the eggs do not cook. After it is combined, pour the egg-milk mixture back into the remaining ⅔ of the hot milk. Whisk over medium heat until the mixture is as thick as lightly whipped cream. It should just come just barely to a boil – be sure not to let it get beyond this as the cream will curdle. Remove from the heat and immediately pour through the sieve/strainer into the bowl. Do not leave the pastry cream in the pan as it will continue to cook.
- Let the cream cool for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 10 minutes, mix in the cooled coconut flakes
- Cover the bowl of pastry cream with plastic wrap. The plastic should press onto the pastry cream to keep it from developing a skin. After wrapping, place in the refrigerator to chill for about 30 minutes – 1 hour while making the other components
Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 F.
- Sift together the flour, ⅓ cup of the sugar, salt, and baking powder into a medium bowl.
- Add in the egg, water, and oil and mix until no lumps remain.
- In a second bowl with a hand mixture or in the base of a stand mixer, mix the egg whites with the cream of tartar
- With the mixer on low speed, slowly pour in the remaining ¼ cup of sugar. Whip the egg whites and sugar together until a meringue forms.
- Fold the batter together with the meringue and pour into an ungreased 9 inch cake pan. Do not line or grease the cake pan or it will fall out when it cools. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. It will be golden brown on top
- After baking, invert the cake onto a cooling rack to cool
Assembly:
- Prepare the whipped cream by whipping together the whipped cream and sugar until medium peaks form
- Take 1 cup of the whipped cream and fold it into the cooled pastry cream. The rest will be used to frost the cake
- Cut the cooled cake in 4 even layers. We like to do this by cutting it in half and then each in half again. They will be thin
- Place ⅓ of the coconut cream on the first layer and spread into an even layer. Repeat 3 times, ending by placing the last layer on top
- Frost the cake with the remaining whipped cream and coat the entire cake in coconut flakes
Notes
This recipe was adapted from the wonderful original recipe from the Halekulani hotel
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