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Three Day Coconut Cake

Three Day Coconut Cake is a retro cake recipe that stands the test of time! It’s easy to make and starts with a box mix, but does require planning ahead, as it benefits from sitting in the refrigerator for three days to allow the flavors to develop.
Prep Time35 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
chill time3 days
Total Time3 days 1 hour
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: 3 Day Coconut Cake, box mix coconut cake, coconut cake with sour cream, coconut milk, Easter dessert, frozen coconut, make ahead recipe
Servings: 12 servings

Equipment

  • mixer

Ingredients

For the cake:

  • 15.25 oz. white cake mix
  • 1 cup unsweetened coconut milk
  • 1/3 cup vegetable oil or neutral oil
  • 3 large eggs room temperature
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the frosting:

  • 16 oz. sour cream full fat for best flavor
  • 8 oz. container whipped topping such as Cool Whip, thawed
  • 1 cup confectioners’ sugar
  • (2) 6 oz. packages frozen unsweetened coconut thawed or partially thawed
  • Extra sweetened flaked coconut for top and sides to garnish cake Baker's Sweetened Angel Flake Coconut recommended (about 3/4 of a 14 oz. bag)

Instructions

To make cake:

  • Place a rack in the center of the oven, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  • Grease and flour two 8 or 9-inch round cake pans; set pans aside.
  • Place the cake mix, coconut milk, oil, eggs, and or vanilla in a large mixing bowl. Beat with an electric mixer on low speed until blended, 30 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula, then increase the mixer speed to medium and beat for 1 minute longer. Divide the batter evenly between the two pans, smoothing it out with a rubber spatula. Place the pans in the oven.
  • Bake until cakes spring back when pressed with your finger and are lightly golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove the cakes from the oven, and place them on wire racks to cool for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove cakes from pan and place right side up on cooling rack. Allow the cakes to cool completely, about 20 minutes longer.
  • Optional: To make slicing easier and more precise, wrap each layer in plastic wrap and place in the freezer for 1 hour.
  • If your cakes have a dome on top, level them off with a serrated knife, then slice each layer in half horizontally to yield four layers.
  • Place the bottom half of a cake layer on a serving or cake plate, cut side up. Add strips of wax paper under edge of cake to keep plate clean before assembling.
  • Spread cut layer with 1 cup of the frosting. Sprinkle one fourth of the coconut (about a heaping 1/2 cup) on top of the frosting. Top with the matching top half of the cake layer, cut side down. Spread with another 1 cup frosting and another fourth of the coconut. Continue with cake layers, adding frosting, then coconut. Spread the top of the cake with the remaining frosting and coconut. Add frosting to sides of cake and press in sweetened flaked coconut to sides to cover and more on top to garnish. Remove strips of wax paper.
  • Place the cake in a cake saver or under a glass dome in the refrigerator for a minimum of four hours, but preferably 3 days for best flavor before serving. Flavors will meld and develop and cake will become moist and more flavorful the longer it sits.

To make frosting:

  • Place sour cream, whipped topping, and confectioners’ sugar in a large bowl. Beat with the mixer on medium speed until well combined, 30 to 45 seconds.

Notes

  • Frozen coconut is found in the freezer section by the frozen fruit. You can use frozen unsweetened or sweetened flaked coconut, whichever you prefer. I like the unsweetened frozen for between the layers of the cake as it has more coconut flavor and moister than what you buy on the shelf. I used Baker's Sweetened Angel Flake Coconut (in the baking aisle) for garnishing the cake sides and top, as it's pretty and moist. I used about 3/4 of a 14 oz. bag to garnish sides and top. If you can't find frozen coconut, substitute Bakers Angel Flake brand which is moister than other bagged coconut brands.
  • The sour cream cuts the sweetness of the Cool Whip and makes the frosting taste more homemade. Use full fat or reduced fat sour cream, (not fat free) for best flavor.
  • Optional: Frost just the top and between the layers, leaving sides naked on the cake. You can reduce the sour cream to 8 oz. and sugar to 1/2 cup for naked sides.
  • Optional decoration for Easter: Add green tinted coconut "grass" and jelly beans or candy eggs around rim of cake plate. Find directions to tint coconut