Coconut Loaf Cake!
*This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosure for more details!*
A simple yet elegant sponge cake, full to the brim with the delicious coconut flavour – perfect for afternoon tea, or a scrumptious treat!

This cake is a beautifully simple yet delicious bake for all of the coconut lovers out there… it is heavenly.
Coconut recipes
My coconut brownies recipe is pretty popular recipe on my blog, and they go down an absolute storm when I post them on my social media pages. I always forget that coconut is loved by so many, but is forgotten so often. Don’t worry, I know there are a load of you who hate coconut, but there are plenty of coconut free recipes on this blog.
My bounty fudge is an easy go to coconut recipe for me as well as I tend to shove in as much bounty as possible, along with my bounty cheesecake. I decided therefore it would be time to post my recipe for my coconut loaf cake as I know you’ll all love it! I also have a jam version of this (YUM!) – my jammy coconut loaf cake.
Coconut
I do realise that not everyone likes coconut, but I seriously do underestimate how many do like it – like I find its a flavour that is forgotten about, but when remembered – it is cherished so highly – and this bake is so easy to make and enjoy.
For the cake I use desiccated coconut as it’s a lightweight ingredient that is easy to buy in supermarkets. The coconut in the sponge makes each mouthful so moist yet full of flavour. The decoration is a simple water icing with more desiccated coconut on top. It makes for a delightful texture that everybody craves in something coconutty.
If you want, you can definitely lightly toast the coconut for the decoration of the cake. Add the desiccated coconut to a dry frying pan on a medium heat and move it about constantly until it is golden. It won’t take long to toast at all so be careful!
Loaf Cake
This recipe is utterly delicious – yet so super easy to make. It makes a nice change from your regular cakes you get at coffee shops, or even the staple bakes that you might make at home – and, it looks impressive, even considering how simple it is!
The rest of the ingredient for the sponge are simply a butter (I use either block unsalted butter or a baking spread for a cake sponge, caster sugar, self raising flour and eggs. Mix this all together with the desiccated coconut mentioned above and you have a cake mix.
I wacked this cake out at a dinner party recently, and nobody knew it was seriously THAT simple! And equally as yummy. Loaf cakes always go down an absolute treat – just like my Terry’s Chocolate Orange Loaf, Red Velvet Loaf, Sticky Toffee Loaf and my White Chocolate and Raspberry Loaf.
I use a 2lb loaf tin for this cake, and whilst I say 2lb loaf tin… some vary in size. No idea why these tins can’t be consistent in their sizing but we move… make sure to line the tin well and then fill it no more than 2/3 full.
Tips & Tricks
- You can turn this cake into a normal round cake if you like, but the baking time will be less – about 35-40 minutes – be careful when baking if you use a different tin!
- I use desiccated coconut because it is readily available in my local supermarket – and it tastes utterly delicious when toasted – I matched this with the simple water icing, but if you would prefer a buttercream recipe there are plenty available on my recipes page – or just search ‘buttercream’ on my blog!
- This cake will last 3 days, at room temperature, in an airtight container, or you can freeze it for up to 3 months.
- I use this Tala 2lb loaf tin
- I use this baking parchment

Coconut Loaf Cake
Ingredients
Cake
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 200 g caster sugar
- 200 g self raising flour
- 4 medium eggs
- 2-3 tbsp whole milk
- 75 g desiccated coconut
Topping and Decoration
- 250 g icing sugar
- 1-2 tbsp water
- 25 g desiccated coconut
Instructions
Cake
- Grease & line a 2lb loaf tin with parchment paper, and preheat your oven to 180ºc/160ºfan
- Beat together the unsalted butter and caster sugar until smooth and creamy - this can take a couple of minutes.
- Add in the self raising flour, eggs, and whole milk and beat again until smooth.
- Once smooth, briefly mix in the coconut and pour into your tin.
- Bake in the oven for 45-55 minutes, testing the cake after 45 minutes, but a skewer should come out clean - depending on your oven it can take the full amount of time, if not a tad longer!
- Once baked, remove from the oven and leave to cool fully in the tin.
Topping and Decoration
- In a bowl, mix together the icing sugar and water until smooth.
- Remove the cake from the tin and pour the icing over the top - sprinkle with the dessicated coconut and leave the icing to dry. Enjoy!
Notes
- You can turn this cake into a normal round cake if you like, but the baking time will be less - about 35-40 minutes - be careful when baking if you use a different tin!
- I use desiccated coconut because it is readily available in my local supermarket - and it tastes utterly delicious when toasted - I matched this with the simple water icing, but if you would prefer a buttercream recipe there are plenty available on my recipes page - or just search 'buttercream' on my blog!
- This cake will last 3 days, at room temperature, in an airtight container, or you can freeze it for up to 3 months.
- I use this Tala 2lb loaf tin
- I use this baking parchment
ENJOY!
Find my other recipes on my Recipes Page!
You can find me on:
Instagram
Facebook
Pinterest
Twitter
Youtube
J x
© Jane’s Patisserie. All images & content are copyright protected. Do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words and credit me, or link back to this post for the recipe.







I made your coconut cake last weekend, I opted without the icing on top, it was delicious. Very light, spongy. My other half said it was better than a shop bought one. I am making another today with cherries. I put my oven on convential shelf 3 for 45 mins. The top started to get very brown towards the end so I took it out a few mins before time was up but found near the middle when cutting it could have done a little more time in the oven. So this week I am trying by my oven book suggestions on shelf 2 convential temp 170 for 60 mins. Do you weigh eggs in shells or broken? My eggs are home laid, sometimes different sizes. Thanks for the recipe.
Hey! So glad you liked them. Ovens are definitely a mind of their own some times so I appreciate the experimentation on yours. It’s always best to weigh eggs in their shells x
Hi Jane, how many tsp baking powder/soda do you recommend if using plain flour?
Is the measurement correct 250g of icing sugar with only q to 2tbps of water? 250g seems a lot. I’ve weighed it out and there is loads of it and 2tbsp of water doesn’t seem anywhere near enough.
Hello, I only have large eggs.. how many is the equivalent, 3?
Hello Toni, I had the same problem. I made my cake as a tray bake just yesterday 18.2.25. I used 3 large eggs and just the yolk from another and it was lovely. !
Thank you for this delicious recipe! I haven’t made coconut cake before, made this for someone’s birthday and it turned out perfectly with 50 minutes in the oven. It looks really pretty and has a lovely flavour and texture. I’ll definitely be making it again. 🙂
Do you think this would work in a number tin? My daughter has requested a coconut number cake. Thanks
Hi
Will it matter if I use semi skimmed milk instead of whole milk?
Made this cake and it is very yummy! I didn’t put the topping on the cake but just drizzled icing over the top which made it look very pretty. Will be using this recipe again. Thank you.
Is it sweetened or unsweetened coconut?
Hi could this recipe be used in a Bundt tin?
Similar size to your other Bundt tin recipes.
I’d love to see more Bundt recipes on your page also if this could be something for the future!
Thank you!
My sister-in-law has asked me to make a coconut and flake (the chocolate one) loaf cake as her mum used to make it. Do you think I could add chunks of flake to the cake (thinking I could freeze them first))? Thank you
Hi Jane,
I have a friend who loves malibu… Was wondering about making this as cupcakes but adding a dash of malibu to the mix – and then making a malibu flavoured buttercream. How much liquid would you add to the cake mix? Thank you so much!!
Just add by capful & keep tasting it it’ll be gorgeous x
Made this today. Super easy and absolutely delicious! My husband is a coconut fan and loved it.