Grandmama’s Coconut Cake With No-Fail Seven Minute Frosting

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Prepare yourself for an old-fashioned coconut cake recipe like no other, thanks to Grandmama’s decadent no-fail 7-minute frosting. Try not to lick the bowl clean!

Grandma's Coconut Cake with Seven Minute Frosting Southern Plate

Coconut lovers, are you ready to devour a slice (or more) of Grandmama’s homemade old-fashioned coconut cake? This from-scratch cake with decadent (and no-fail) 7-minute icing is a favorite of our family for holidays and special occasions year-round. I found it in an old box of papers that belonged to my grandmother. She had typed it out on a letterhead from the company where she worked and later came back, circled it, and wrote in “Real good”. After trying it for myself, I have to agree! When it comes to moist cakes, this is the mother of them all. If a crumb drops from your fork, don’t be surprised if you find your finger chasing it around your plate – it’s just that good. I mean, a soft and fluffy interior coupled with coconut flavor is a match made in cake heaven.

Complete with no-fail seven-minute frosting and a sprinkling of coconut, prepare yourself for a southern coconut cake experience unlike any other! One of the great things about Grandmama’s seven-minute frosting is that you don’t need a double boiler to make it. You can also forget fretting over whether or not the weather is dry enough – this comes out perfect every time regardless. If you’re making a layer cake and you like generous amounts of frosting, I suggest doubling the frosting recipe.

 

Our Triple Chocolate Cake (a.k.a Chocoholic Cake), Fresh Strawberry Cake With Cream Cheese Icing, or Red Velvet Bundt Cake are also delicious, so make sure you check them out.

Mixing Grandmama's Coconut Cake with No Fail Seven Minute Frosting

Recipe Ingredients

  • Vegetable shortening and flour for preparing your pans
  • Unsalted butter
  • Sugar
  • Eggs
  • Vanilla extract
  • Coconut flavoring
  • Flour
  • Baking soda
  • Baking powder
  • Salt
  • Buttermilk.
  • Shredded sweetened coconut for garnishing the cake

Helpful Kitchen Tools

Steps for Grandmama's Coconut Cake with No Fail Seven Minute Frosting

  1. Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until very smooth – at least four minutes.
  2. Add eggs, vanilla, and coconut flavoring and beat well to combine.
  3. In a separate medium sized bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
  4. Add flour mixture and the buttermilk to the butter mixture and beat with an electric mixer at medium speed, scraping down the sides as needed, until thoroughly blended and smooth – about two to three minutes.
  5. Pour batter into two prepared 9 inch cake pans.

Icing Grandmama's Coconut Cake with No Fail Seven Minute Frosting

Prepare the No-Fail Seven-Minute Frosting – you can find the recipe and instructions here. Don’t worry, I also have a link to it in the recipe card below. Just print out both recipes and you’re good. 

I suggest doubling the frosting for a layer cake but one recipe works fine if you are careful with it. One recipe is plenty for a 9×13. 

Iced Grandmama's Old-Fashioned Coconut Cake with No Fail Seven Minute Frosting

Now it’s time to ice the cake. 

You can absolutely make this as a 9×13 cake if you like. I usually make 9×13 cakes because they are simpler and taste the same! 

Finishing Up Grandmama's Coconut Cake with No Fail Seven Minute Frosting

If you are doing the stacked 9 inch cakes make sure you put it on a pretty cake plate. I love this gorgeous jade green color with this cake. When you’re done icing your old-fashioned coconut cake, (as soon as you’re done, don’t wait), press coconut into the sides and sprinkle it on top. 

Grandmama's Old-Fashioned Coconut Cake with No Fail Seven Minute Frosting

Pretty as a picture! 

Grandmama's Old-Fashioned Coconut Cake with No Fail Seven Minute Frosting

I hope you get to make this soon and I’m sure this will become a recipe your family cherishes as much as mine does!

Storage

  • This old-fashioned coconut cake can be left in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two days and in the fridge for up to one week.
  • You can also freeze cake slices for up to three months. Simply thaw them overnight in the refrigerator and then bring them to room temperature before serving.

Recipe Notes

  • When making any kind of cake, it’s best to use room temperature butter and eggs so the batter mixes together easily.
  • Wondering where to find the coconut flavoring? It can be found near the vanilla extract. While it may cost a couple of dollars, trust me, it’s worth it.
  • If you’d prefer not to buy buttermilk, you can simply use a cup of whole milk and add a tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice to it. Stir and wait five minutes before adding it to the recipe. I’ve been getting a lot of questions about substitutions for whole milk in my recipes lately and while a substitution will work, I encourage you to stick with whole milk on this one. Some things are just worth it!
  • If you want to toast the coconut before garnishing the cake, spread the coconut on a parchment-lined baking sheet and place it in a 325-degree oven for about five minutes, or until it’s to your preference. Allow the coconut to cool before you garnish your cake.

Recipe FAQs

What do you serve with cake?

While a slice of coconut cake is perfect on its own, you can also add some whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream if you can’t resist!

If one cake isn’t enough, here are some more mouthwatering cake recipes:

Chocoholic Cake

Peanut Butter Cake (From Scratch!) with PB Cream Cheese Frosting

Red Velvet Bundt Cake

Italian Cream Cake with Pecan Cream Cheese Icing

Grandmama's Coconut Cake with No-Fail Seven-Minute Frosting

Grandmama's homemade coconut cake is a from-scratch cake with decadent (and no-fail) 7-minute icing. This is a favorite of our family!
Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 22 minutes
Total Time: 57 minutes
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Keyword: cake
Servings: 8

Ingredients

  • vegetable shortening and flour for preparing the pans
  • 1 cup unsalted butter two sticks, at room temp
  • 2 cups granulated sugar
  • 5 eggs large
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon coconut flavoring found near the vanilla extract
  • 2.5 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • No-fail seven-minute frosting click here for printable recipe
  • 2 cups shredded sweetened coconut for garnishing cake

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease and flour two 9-inch round cake pans or one 9x13-inch cake pan and set aside.
    vegetable shortening and flour
  • Cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl with an electric mixer at medium speed until very smooth, at least four minutes. Add eggs, vanilla, and coconut flavoring and beat well to combine. In a separate medium-sized bowl, stir together flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.
    1 cup unsalted butter, 2 cups granulated sugar, 5 eggs, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon coconut flavoring, 2.5 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • Add flour mixture and the buttermilk to the butter mixture and beat with an electric mixer at medium speed, scraping down the sides as needed, until thoroughly blended and smooth, around two to three minutes.
    1 cup buttermilk
  • Pour batter into the prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. This is about 25 to 30 minutes for round cakes and 30 to 35 minutes for a 9x13 cake.
  • Cool completely and frost with the no-fail seven-minute frosting. Sprinkle with coconut and press coconut into the cake's sides immediately after frosting.
    No-fail seven-minute frosting, 2 cups shredded sweetened coconut
  • Keep covered at room temperature for up to two days or in the refrigerator for up to one week.

Video

Tried this recipe?Mention @southernplate or tag #southernplate!

Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out. 

~Robert Collier

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58 Comments

  1. Oh my goodness! Made this for Easter dinner today and I felt like I died and when to heaven and my mother in law made it! She always made the best coconut cake and it was just like this. I still miss her a lot and this brings back lots of past Easter dinner memories.

  2. I’ve said it before, but I really mean it. Your Grandmama and my Grandma have to be the same person … or perhaps they were separated at birth. That recipe is exactly like the one my mother passed down to me saying it was her mother’s recipe. Thanks for posting it, it was a reminder to get busy and bake one.

    I’m glad your outage problems are over.

    Happy Easter

    1. I can remember when I was a child and my mother would make this cake, and cook the icing in a cast iron skillet, and the cake was so very good! She also used to buy fresh coconuts and grate them so the coconut would be really fresh. Talk about a labor of love!

      She also made a fresh pineapple cake with boiled/7 minute icing as well. Does anyone have the recipe for this cake?

      Happy Thanksgiving!

      Vicki in Virginia

  3. Christy, I’m up early on Easter Sunday just praising the Lord for his death and resurrection. I’m praying for your computer problems. I, too, wasn’t able to get on a couple days ago. I know how discouraged you have been. You inspired me so much with your comments about God’s plan for all this, not your plan. Like I told you previously, my son’s girlfriend is suffering with cancer – still in Moffitt Hospital after
    8 weeks. Her situation is up and down like a roller coaster. I was real discouraged this week with what seemed like tremendous regression in her progress, so your inspiration about waiting for God’s plan, not my plan, was what I needed so much.
    Thanks – and Happy Easter to you and continued payers.

    1. We’ve always used two and had no issues, just as photographed here. Although I tend to enjoy my 9×13 cakes best for less fuss. I’m sorry you had issues with it, though, and hope you have a blessed day tomorrow.

  4. Re. the coconut flavoring, the store I went to the box said Imitation coconut flavoring (Watkins). Is that ok or should I look for real coconut extract. I always use pure vanilla so I am wondering.
    Thank you
    Terri

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