We have a new addition to our collection of FAVORITE summertime cakes. Today, we are excited to share a fabulously moist and flavorful Piña Colada Cake recipe from scratch!
This homemade Piña Colada Cake recipe is bursting with the perfect combination of coconut, pineapple, and a hint of rum. Why drink a Piña Colada when you can have all of that wonderful flavor in a slice of cake? Or better yet, have your Piña Colada with your Piña Colada cake ;0). I can’t think of anything better.
This recipe would be fabulous for any occasion, but is especially perfect for summertime gatherings, or even beach and luau themed parties.
I just love cakes with fruit, and while we’ve made coconut cakes before, the addition of pineapple and rum really makes this recipe something special.
**You’ll notice that this recipe calls for the Reverse Creaming Method of mixing. The steps are listed in our recipe, but if you are new to this method, you may like to watch our free video tutorial on the Reverse Creaming Method of Mixing. We use this method for several of our scratch cake recipes as it yields a wonderfully moist cake. Please let us know if you have any questions!
Here’s a peek at the assembly of this cake. As you can see, the coconut cake layers are spread with Piña Colada Cream Cheese Frosting and a layer of crushed pineapple filling. So much goodness! We hope that you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!
Piña Colada Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the Cake:
- 3 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 cup (227g.) coconut milk (We buy ours canned from the baking aisle)
- 1/3 cup (70g) vegetable oil
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (6g) coconut extract
- 1 teaspoon (4g) rum extract
- 3 cups (342g) cake flour......*(see below if you do not have cake flour)
- 2 cups (400g) granulated sugar
- 1 Tablespoon (15g) baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon (3g) salt
- 1 1/2 sticks (12 T) ( 170g) unsalted butter, softened slightly, still cool to the touch (do not soften in microwave) you can cut into 1/2 inch slices onto waxed paper to soften more quickly
For the Pineapple Filling:
- One 20 ounce can (567g) of crushed pineapple
- 1/2 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (14g) cornstarch
For the Piña Colada Cream Cheese Frosting
- 2 sticks (1 cup) (226g) unsalted butter, slightly softened
- 2 (8oz.) (452g) cream cheese (use full fat cream cheese) straight from the refrigerator
- 1 1/2 teaspoon (6g) coconut extract
- 1 teaspoon (4g) rum extract
- 6 to 6 1/2 cups ( 747g) powdered sugar
Coconut for the outside of the cake:
- 1 bag (4oz (396g) of sweetened coconut
Directions
Instructions for the Cake:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour three 8 inch cake pans
- In a small bowl , combine eggs, coconut milk, oil, coconut extract and rum extract. Blend with a fork and set aside.
- Put the dry ingredients, cake flour, sugar, baking powder and salt into the bowl of your mixer and whisk for at least 30 seconds to blend the ingredients.
- With the mixer on low speed gradually increasing to medium speed gradually add the slices of butter to the dry ingredients a few pieces of butter at a time. Beat until the dry ingredients are crumbly and moistened. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl, there should be no spots of dry flour in the bowl.
- SLOWLY add approximately 1/2 of the egg mixture to the dry ingredients and beat for 1 1/2 minutes. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl then add the remaining egg mixture in 2
- pourings, scraping the bowl and beating for 20 seconds after each addition.
- Bake at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes
- Makes 7 cups batter
- Works well for cupcakes - cupcakes bake up with very little doming
- *CAKE FLOUR SUBSTITUTE — for each cup of all-purpose flour, measure out (lightly spoon and level) one cup of all purpose flour. Remove 2 Tablespoons flour from the cup and replace it with 2 Tablespoons cornstarch. Whisk to blend. For this recipe you would measure out 3 cups all purpose flour, remove 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons of the all purpose flour and replace it with 1/4 cup plus 2 Tablespoons cornstarch and whisk to blend.
Instructions for the Filling:
- Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat.
- When the mixture begins to boil, stir constantly until it begins to thicken, approximately 1 to 2 minutes. Keep in mind that it will thicken even more as it cools.
- Cool completely in refrigerator before using.
Instructions for the Pina Colada Cream Cheese Frosting:
- Add the butter to the mixing bowl and beat until smooth.
- Add the cream cheese that has been cut into small to medium size pieces, beating with the butter until well blended and smooth.
- Add the rum and coconut extracts.
- Slowly add the powdered sugar, beating until smooth.
- Use the frosting while it is still chilled. If it becomes too soft, refrigerate until it firms up a bit or put in the freezer for 5 minutes or so to return to a good piping consistency.
Instructions for Coconut around the top and sides of cake:
- Spread 1 cup of coconut evenly on a baking sheet and bake for approximately 5 minutes. Stir after a couple of minutes. Remove from the oven when some of the coconut is slightly brown. If it is baked too long it will become dry and chewy. I press some of the browned coconut into the untoasted coconut that is covering the cake. It is an interesting look on the cake, but completely optional.
Assembly of Cake
- Place a cake layer on a cake board or serving stand and spread with a thin layer of frosting. Pipe a dam of frosting around the edge of the cake layer (approx. 1/2 inch in). Spread a layer of pineapple filling over the thin layer of frosting and inside the dam. The dam will keep the pineapple filling in place as you begin to stack your layers. You can also sprinkle a bit of coconut over this if you like. Repeat with the next layer.
- Crumb coat the cake with a thin layer of cream cheese frosting and refrigerate for 1 hour or freeze for 15 minutes to firm everything up. Now you will be ready to spread on the final coat of frosting. Press in the coconut on the sides and top of the cake, adding a bit of the toasted coconut here and there.
- Optional: Using a 2D tip, decorate the top and place maraschino cherries and shown in the picture of the cake.
Sounds delicious! When you say coconut milk in the cake ingredients do you mean from a can or from your dairy case?
I will give it a try in my own GF way :) Thanks for always being so generous with your recipes. :)
Hi MsGF, We used canned coconut milk
Thanks BeBe! I will give it a try :)
In the picture of the cake you have three layers and not two. Can I double the recipe and get three nine inch layers?
Would this cake need to be kept refridgerated because of the filling ? I am trying to find new cake fillings that do not require refridgeration.
Hi Prisca, I have not tried doubling the recipe so I cannot say for sure. Let us know if you give it a try.
Hi Kim, Yes I would refrigerate this cake because of the filling and frosting.
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Will this cake recipe hold under fondant tiers?
Yes, it will. Hope you like it.
Thank you Bebe!
I love it thanks
Hello!!! I made this cake last week. It was a hit. Thanks. I took a picture but I dont know how to post it.
waw! your pina colada cake sounds yummy. i gonna try it soon.
I am sorry if I missed this in the instructions. How many layers of cake does this make and what size round pan did you use? Thank you!
This cake sounds delicious, but I still wanted to know what’s the servings and the amount of time it takes to make?
@Valerie- You’ll use three 8 inch cake pans.
@Tereckiann Bain- 8 inch cakes serve approx. 20. Here’s a helpful serving chart:
link to wilton.com
It’s hard to say how much time it would take to make this cake as everyone decorates at a different pace. I would say approx 45 min to mix up the batter and bake. Making the filling, frosting, and decorating would be another 1 1/2 hours or so.
can i use AP flour
Hi Stacy, You can use all-purpose flour but the cake will be more tender if you use cake flour. You can make cake flour by making adjustments to the all purpose flour. Look at the last item under Instructions for Cake, it begins CAKE FLOUR SUBSTITUTE. Let me know if you have any questions. I hope you enjoy the cake!
Just made this today for my 30th tomorrow. The batter tasted so a amazingly good!! Can’t wait for tomorrow to decorate and devour!
So happy to her it, Nisha!! Happy birthday and enjoy the cake!
Can I use the creaming method instead of the reverse method, using the same recipe?
Hi Deborah, Yes, you can use the conventional creaming method for the recipe. I suggest writing it out and counting the ingredients just to make sure nothing is left out. We are in the process of adding the Conventional Mixing Method as an option to reverse creaming because there are members who prefer it. Hope you like the recipe.
Thanks very much for your reply….I have tried the cherry recipe…looking forward to trying out others
I can’t wait to try it. I love coconut cake and pineapple too😋
Hey how long would this cake last
Hi Deniel, We think cakes are best eaten within 3 days of completion. This cake needs to be refrigerated because of the cream cheese frosting. Take out of the refrigerator an hour before serving to allow it to warm slightly.
Hi , can I use this recipe with more of 3 layers and 2 cakes ???
I love this recipe .
Hi Dalila, Do you mean you want to double the recipe and make more than 3 layers? If it is more than 3 layers, you will need to put in dowels for support and having the next layer on its own cake board, place it on the dowels. With this method the dowel support the layers above it. I am not sure I understood the question so let me know if that is what you meant.
Hi , can I use this froating with paper towel method?
If not, can Idd some shortening and is it possible???
Hi Dalila, this cream cheese frosting probably would not work well with the paper towel method of smoothing. Adding shortening will not help it to crust. You can still get it pretty smooth with a bench scraper as it is, or you could chill the tiers until the frosting firms up a bit and then smooth with a hot spatula. (Or of course, you can just frost with a crusting buttercream flavored with coconut and/or rum extract if you’d rather!)
Cupcakes?? ;) Can this recipe be used to make cupcakes perhaps Melissa? Don’t know if anyone has already asked, but I didn’t see such a question.
Hi Jessie, you can make cupcakes with this recipe. They bake up with very little dome. This recipe uses the reverse creaming method, are you familiar with it? If not, you might like to watch Melissa’s video on the method. She has posted a link under the picture of the cake. The cupcakes will be baked at 350 degrees for 18 to 20 minutes. The cupcake liners can be filled approximately 3/4’s full.
Oh wonderful! Thank you very much for replying BeBe! Yes I am familiar with it. Will definitely give these a try. Thank you once again for the info.