If you love tropical flavors, this Pineapple Coconut Cake is a dream come true! With velvety soft cake layers infused with coconut and pineapple, a luscious pineapple filling, and a rich coconut cream cheese frosting, every bite is a little taste of paradise. It’s the perfect dessert for summer gatherings, special occasions, or whenever you’re craving something sweet and tropical!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Moist & Fluffy – This pineapple coconut cake is adapted from my reader-favorite coconut cake recipe, which has over 150 five-star reviews—so you know it’s going to be good! The cake layers combine butter and oil for the perfect balance of moisture and tenderness, while coconut milk adds extra creaminess. Plus, the batter includes crushed pineapple which adds little pineapple chunks to the batter for even more fruity flavor!
Incredible Flavor – Every element of this cake is packed with coconut, pineapple, or both! The cake layers feature a blend of pineapple and coconut, the pineapple filling (you could also call it a pineapple curd, but without eggs!) adds bursts of juicy pineapple in every bite, and the luscious coconut cream cheese frosting enhances the coconut flavor even more. It’s all finished with a coating of shredded coconut for added texture.
Surprisingly Simple – While this cake has a few different components, each one is straightforward and easy to make—I promise!
Want more summer recipes? Check out my pineapple cake, coconut cake, lemon cake and chantilly cake recipes!
How to Make Pineapple Coconut Cake
You can find the full ingredients list for this recipe in the recipe card at the end of the blog post (for easy navigation, hit the ‘jump to recipe’ button at the top of the blog post). Here is a quick visual breakdown of the recipe (recipe video is also provided in the recipe card below).
Pineapple Coconut Cake
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C) conventional and grease two 8-inch cake pans (I use my homemade cake release). Also line the bottoms with parchment paper.
In a bowl, sift together your flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, add in your butter, vegetable oil and sugar. Using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer are both fine), cream together for 2 minutes until lighter in color.
Add in the eggs one by one, mixing well in between each addition (about 10-15 seconds between eggs).
Add in your vanilla extract/essence, coconut extract/essence and crushed pineapple, and mix until well combined. Now set your mixer aside as the remainder of the batter will be finished by hand.
Add in half of your premixed dry ingredients to your wet ingredients, and gently fold it in with a spatula until just combined. Then add in the coconut milk, and fold it in until just combined. Lastly, add in the remaining dry ingredients and gently fold it into the mixture until just combined. Do not overmix.
Finish off by adding in the shredded coconut and gently fold with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix the batter.
Distribute the cake batter evenly into the two 8-inch cake tins, and bake for 35-38 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
Once baked, allow the cake layers to cool in the cake tins for about 15-20 minutes, and then turn them out onto a wire rack to completely cool.
Pineapple Filling
In a saucepan combine crushed pineapple, white sugar, cornstarch, milk and lemon juice. Mix everything well and then place it over a medium heat, continuously mixing until it becomes thick in consistency. It may look like the filling is curdling as it’s heating up, but don’t worry it will come together once the cornstarch is activated.
Once thick, take it off the heat immediately and add in the butter and gel color (if you’re using it). Stir until the butter is completely melted and incorporated. Transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap so that the plastic wrap is touching the top of the filling. Set aside to cool.
Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
Cream your butter for a few minutes until it’s light and fluffy. Either use a hand mixer or stand mixer on a medium-high speed. If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment.
Add in the powdered sugar in 3 batches while mixing on low. Ensure that each batch is mixed into the butter well before adding in the next batch.
Next add in your cold cream cheese, vanilla and coconut essence/extract. Mix just until the frosting is smooth. Avoid over-mixing.
Assembly (see video for visual demonstration)
Begin by trimming the tops of the cake layers with a serrated knife so that they’re nice and flat.
Place your first cake layer onto your cake stand, and spread out a generous amount of the frosting on top.
Place some of the frosting into a piping bag with a large piping tip (1M or 1A work well), and pipe a border/dam around the edges of the cake layer to hold in the pineapple filling. Fill the middle with half of the pineapple filling.
Place the next cake layer on top and cover the top and sides with more frosting. If you have a cake scraper, you can use it to smooth out the sides.
For the top, pipe a decorative border around the top edges (I like to use a 1M piping tip – see video for demonstration) and then fill the middle with the remaining pineapple filling. Finish off by covering the sides of the cake with shredded coconut by gently pushing the coconut into the frosting. Enjoy!
How to Store Pineapple Coconut Cake
This pineapple coconut cake can be left out at room temperature for about half a day, but due to the cream cheese frosting, it will need to be refrigerated after that/overnight.
Place in an airtight container before putting it in the fridge to prevent the cake from drying out. Allow to come to room temperature before serving.
Moist Pineapple Coconut Cake
Print Pin VideoIMPORTANT: For accuracy, I would recommend using the gram measurements provided, as those are the exact quantities I use. Cup measurements are given as estimates (based on US cup measurements) to make it easier for those who do not have a scale.
Ingredients
Pineapple Coconut Cake
- 2¼ cups (280 g) all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup (30 g) cornstarch
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt - omit if using salted butter
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- 5 tbsps (66 g) unflavoured vegetable oil - I use canola oil
- 1⅔ cup (332 g) white granulated sugar
- 3 large eggs - room temperature
- 1½ tsp vanilla essence/extract
- 1 tsp coconut essence/extract
- ¾ cup (165 g) canned coconut milk
- 1 cup (226 g) canned crushed pineapple in juice
- 1 cup (80 g) shredded coconut - dried & unsweetened, also called threaded coconut.
Pineapple Filling
- 1 cup (226 g) canned crushed pineapple - in pineapple juice (not syrup)
- ¼ cup (50 g) white granulated sugar
- ¼ cup (30 g) cornstarch
- ¾ cup (180 g) milk - full fat
- 1¼ tbsp (18 g) fresh lemon juice
- ¼ cup (56 g) unsalted butter - cold and cut into cubes
- 1 drop yellow gel food color - optional (see note 1)
Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
- 1 cup (225 g) unsalted butter - room temperature
- 3 cups (360 g) powdered sugar - also known as icing/confectioners' sugar
- 1½ cup (335 g) cream cheese - cold, firm type (see note 2)
- 1½ tsps vanilla essence/extract
- 1 tsp coconut essence/extract
Extra
- 1½ cup (120 g) shredded coconut - dried & unsweetened, for decorating (recommended for texture). Also called threaded coconut.
Instructions
Pineapple Coconut Cake
- Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C) conventional (see note 3 if using a convection oven with a fan) and grease two 8-inch cake tins (I use my homemade cake release). Also line the bottoms with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, sift together your flour, cornstarch, baking powder and salt. Using a whisk or fork, mix until well combined. Set aside.
- In another large bowl, add in your butter, vegetable oil and sugar. Using an electric mixer (hand or stand mixer are both fine - see note 4), cream together for 2 minutes until lighter in color.
- Add in the eggs one by one, mixing well in between each addition (about 10-15 seconds between eggs).
- Add in your vanilla, coconut essence/extract and crushed pineapple, and mix until well combined. Now set your mixer aside as the remainder of the batter will be finished by hand.
- Add in half of your premixed dry ingredients to your wet mixture, and gently fold it in with a spatula until just combined. Then add in the coconut milk, and fold it in until just combined. Lastly, add in the remaining dry ingredients and gently fold it into the mixture until just combined. Do not overmix (see note 5).
- Finish off by adding in the shredded coconut and gently fold with a spatula until just combined. Do not overmix the batter.
- Distribute the batter evenly into the two 8 inch cake tins, and bake for 35-38 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs on it.
- Once baked, allow the cake layers to cool in the cake tins for about 15-20 minutes, and then turn them out onto a wire rack to completely cool.
Pineapple Filling
- In a saucepan combine crushed pineapple, white sugar, cornstarch, milk and lemon juice. Mix everything well and then place it over a medium heat, continuously mixing until it becomes thick in consistency. It may look like the filling is curdling as it's heating up, but don't worry it will come together once the cornstarch is activated.
- Once thick, take it off the heat immediately and add in the butter and gel color (if you're using it). Stir until the butter is completely melted and incorporated. Transfer to a bowl and cover with cling wrap so that the cling wrap is touching the top of the filling (see note 6). Set aside to cool.
Coconut Cream Cheese Frosting
- Cream your butter for a few minutes until it's light and fluffy. Either use a hand mixer or stand mixer on a medium-high speed. If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment.
- Add in the powdered sugar in 3 batches while mixing on low. Ensure that each batch is mixed into the butter well before adding in the next batch.
- Next add in your cold cream cheese, vanilla and coconut essence/extract. Mix just until the frosting is smooth. Avoid over-mixing (see note 7).
Assembly (see video for visual demonstration)
- Begin by trimming the tops of the cake layers with a serrated knife so that they're nice and flat.
- Place your first cake layer onto your cake stand, and spread out a generous amount of the frosting on top.
- Place some of the frosting into a piping bag with a large piping tip (1M or 1A work well), and pipe a border/dam around the edges of the cake layer to hold in the pineapple filling. Fill the middle with half of the pineapple filling.
- Place the next cake layer on top and cover the top and sides with more frosting. If you have a cake scraper, you can use it to smooth out the sides.
- For the top, pipe a decorative border around the top edges (I like to use a 1M piping tip - see video for demonstration) and then fill the middle with the remaining pineapple filling. Finish off by covering the sides of the cake with shredded coconut by gently pushing the coconut into the frosting. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information are estimates only as they are automatically calculated by a third party application. Actual values may differ based on brands and types of products used.
17 Comments
Very moist and really delicious<3
So glad you loved it Parastou! 😀
I just wanted to let you know I did make your pineapple coconut cake and it’s absolutely delicious. It is big and it looks beautiful. Problem was whatever didn’t get eaten. I eat the rest well it was so delicious. I think I would have to say that you need to let it should be in the fridge. I like it cold be insert. I think it was better was first I was disappointed in it, but I realized it should’ve been in the cold. That’s my opinion. That’s the way I would do it and I made your lemon squares today and they turned out beautiful so I love your recipes and keep on doing it. That’s fantastic. You’re really a great cook and it’s not so complicated but it certainly is a while factor. keep up the great baking.! God bless
Hi Heather! So glad it all turned out awesome and that you enjoyed the lemon squares too 😀
So glad you’re finding the recipes easy to follow too 🙂
Hi Do you add crushed pineapple with the juice or without the juice. 226 gms of crushed pineapple in juice includes pineapple with juice or just the the pineapple . Pls advice. Planning to make this for my friends birthday and recipie looks very yummy
Hi Sandhya! With the juice – although try and keep the ratios as equal as you can so you don’t end up with too much or too less of the juice or pineapple 🙂
Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe!
Oh, I just wanted to tell you I made the coconut cake and I made the filling today and the icing but I’m just wondering should I leave the filling at room temperature before because it’s quite thick or should I thin it out a little bit before I put it on the cake. I know it shouldn’t be too runny. That’s the pineapple Filling so I’m just wondering about that and if I find it too thick, is it just because it’s cold I know it has certainly the cornstarch in it that makes it thick, but it looks delicious. It was easy to make so I’m excited. I can’t put the cake together though. I wanted to do it Friday. It’s for my sister‘s birthday on Saturday And I didn’t wanna do it too soon and can you freeze it? Thank you. I’m being anxious to hear your. really loving your recipes. I think they look terrific. I can’t wait to try a lot more.! if I while I’m subscribed so if I want to keep a recipe, do I keep having to give you my email again or wouldn’t it know? I’m a little confused over that thank you. Have a great!
Hi Heather! So glad you ended up trying out the cake 😀
Yes so the filling is quite thick, but should still be smooth if that makes sense. If it seems quite clumpy even after mixing it well, you can thin it out a little with some pineapple juice, but yes you don’t want it to be too runny otherwise it may seep out the edges of the cake. If the filling isn’t being used on the same day I would recommend keeping it in the fridge and then bringing it to room temp before using it 🙂
I haven’t tried freezing the cake myself, but with the cream cheese frosting it may not be best to freeze the whole cake (freezing just the cake layers for assembling in the future should be fine).
In terms of the email, you only need to subscribe once and you should get any new recipes in your inbox 😀
Hope that helps Heather and all the best with the cake 🙂
Hi Heather! 😊 The filling will loosen slightly as it comes to room temperature — it’s thick mainly because it’s cold and the cornstarch has set. I wouldn’t thin it unless it feels too stiff once softened. Try giving it a good stir and that should soften it up a bit too.
You can freeze the cake layers (well wrapped in cling wrap and I recommend placing them into an airtight container before freezing), but I don’t recommend freezing the fully assembled cake as the pineapple filling and frosting may not thaw well. Assemble closer to Friday for best results.
And don’t worry you don’t need to re-enter your email each time once you’re subscribed 🙂
Just joined your website it looks delicious your recipes. I was looking at the coconut pineapple layer cake with the cream cheese icing and I’m wondering, can I make the cake without putting the canned pineapple in the cake and just make the filling for the layers you said as usual I just wanted to know cause I don’t know if it will make the cake very wet with the pineapple although it sounds delicious, but I haven’t made it before so I’m not sure when I’m thinking of making it for my sister‘s birthday this week so if you could let me know that would be wonderful thank you ,
Hi Heather! Welcome to the blog 😀
In terms of the cake, I would recommend keeping the pineapple in as it adds moisture to the batter. Alternatively, you could make the coconut cake layers from my coconut cake recipe if you prefer not to have pineapple in the cake layers and then continue with the recipe as is 🙂
Sorry for my delay in reply I think I’m a bit late, but I hope the cake turned out great if you did end up making it for your sisters birthday 🙂
Hi there MK. Your cake looks absolutely delicious but just one question if i may. Do you need to drain the pineapple?
Thanks so much Molly! 🙂
Nope, no need to drain the pineapple (the crushed pineapple cans usually don’t have too much liquid). Hope that helps and hope you enjoy the recipe 😀
😍 MK, will you do cakes like your simple blueberry cake.. easy to make using 1pan instead of 2 8-inch pans 🙆♀️ that cake was really awesome!!! I really wish that you do simple cakes in diff flavour bcz I loved all ur recipes, which came out perfectly!!
I only bake ur cakessss, to whoever sees this, trust me her recipes all works like magic. It can b seen that she put lots of hardwork to create these recipes, really appreciate Maryam sis 😍🥰 keep going!
Hi Rasheedah! Awww so glad you’re enjoying the recipes and thank you so much for the wonderful feedback 🙂
Yes will try and do more single layer cakes for future recipes 😀
Is the pineapple drained?
Hi Eugene! 🙂 Nope not drained (there usually isn’t too much liquid in the crushed pineapple cans). If you can, try and get an even amount of pineapple and liquid so you don’t have too much or too little of either 🙂
Hope you enjoy the recipe!