Coconut custard cake

Two dear friends came over from London for a visit last weekend, so in addition to spending a couple of days tidying up the apartment and making up the study/guest bedroom, I was baking like nobody's business.



I made a(nother) big batch of chocolate chip cookies (using almond flour, recipes to come), a banana walnut bread (for breakfast), and a coconut custard cake (for dessert). The cookies I'm very comfortable making at this stage, but I had a minor mishap with the banana walnut loaf (accidentally tipped it on the shelf in the oven while putting in the cookies, causing the top of the loaf to spill over). Luckily I managed to salvage it and it tasted divine. The coconut custard cake was a new venture. I came across a recipe and after figuring out how I could adapt it using what I already had in the cupboard, I went for it.

Ingredients

½ C coconut flour, sifted
2 tsp baking powder
⅛ tsp fine Himalayan pink salt
4 large free range eggs
½ C organic honey
1 tsp vanilla bean paste
¼ C coconut oil, melted
2 C coconut milk (including the cream) 
1 tsp orange zest
1 tsp lemon zest
1 C dessicated coconut

Method

1. Preheat oven to 175⁰C (or 160⁰C with fan) 
2. Mix the sifted coconut flour, baking powder, and salt together. Make sure all the ingredients are mixed thoroughly.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, honey, vanilla, coconut oil, and coconut milk together. Then mix in the orange and lemon zest.
4. Pour the egg mix into the flour mix in 2-3 batches. Whisk thoroughly to combine each time until a smooth batter forms. Let sit for 10 minutes.
5. Add in the coconut and stir to combine.
6. Pour the batter into a 24cm glass Pyrex dish or 9 inch round pan. Cook in a water bath for around 50 minutes or until the top is a rich honey colour and the cake is cooked through (skewer comes out clean).
7. Let it cool sufficiently in the pan (this will take a while, well over 30 minutes). Transfer to a plate to cool completely and/or put it in the fridge to chill. Once it is completely cool, it will slice easily.
8. Serve with orange segments or spiced apples slices (stewed with cinnamon, nutmeg, and star anise).

Egg mix (step 3)

Egg & flour mix (step 4)

Egg, flour & coconut mix (step 5)

Cake cooked and cooling in the pan

It's vital that the cake is fully cooled before it's removed from the pan. I underestimated how long it would take and popped the cake out of the silicon pan while the bottom half was still warm. The coconut flour makes the cake quite crumbly so the bottom cracked. It wasn't a total disaster but the cake didn't look as pretty as it should've been. However, the taste was divine, very delicate and of course coconutty. The lemon and orange zest brought a welcomed zing, adding another dimension to the flavour. I love it. I do feel though that there could be more dessicated coconut, so next time, I shall add another half cup or perhaps try shredded coconut.