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Coconut Rum Cake

Caribbean style rum cake made with coconut
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time55 minutes
Total Time1 hour 10 minutes
Course: Dessert
Servings: 12
Calories: 605kcal
Author: Cari

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup of brown sugar
  • ½ cup of granulated sugar
  • 4 teaspoons of baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon of salt
  • ½ cup of unsalted butter cut into bits
  • ½ cup of finely shredded coconut
  • 1 3.4 ounce package of JELLO French Vanilla instant pudding mix
  • ½ cup of full fat coconut milk
  • 4 eggs
  • ½ cup of good aged dark rum
  • ½ cup of coconut oil
  • 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon of coconut extract
  • For the rum glaze:
  • ½ cup of unsalted butter don't substitute
  • ¼ cup of water
  • 1 cup of brown sugar
  • ½ cup of aged dark rum

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
  • Grease and flour your desired bundt pan. Set your baking pan aside.
  • To a stand mixer or large bowl, add the flour, sugars, baking powder, salt and butter
  • On low speed, combine ingredients until the mix is the consistency of fine gravel, and all particles are about the same size.
  • If your coconut oil is solid, heat the oil until just melted and liquid in your microwave. Be sure that it's not too hot and it's just melted.
  • Then and to the flour mixture the pudding mix, coconut milk, eggs, rum, coconut oil, coconut extract and vanilla extract and combine on medium speed for 2 to 3 minutes, be sure scrape down the sides of the bowl halfway through.
  • Fold in the shredded coconut into the cake mix .
  • Pour the batter into your prepared bundt cake pan.
  • Bake for about 55 minutes- until fully golden and tooth pick comes out clean.
  • Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack while making the soaking rum glaze.
  • Once your cake is completely cooled, using a wooden skewer, poke the entire cake to ensure the rum soaks the cake as much as possible.
  • Prepare your rum glaze by combining butter, rum, water and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil to ensure all of the sugar is dissolved.
  • Once the sugar has completely melted into the syrup, remove from the heat and slowly pour it into the cake inside the cake pan.
  • After you've poured all the rum sauce onto the cake and it's been completely absorbed, carefully flip the cake pan onto a serving dish.

Notes

Variations and substitutions for this 

If you want a more intense coconut flavor, swap the dark rum for a coconut flavored rum. 
Want a sheet cake instead? Opt instead for a 9x13 baking pan and bake for about 50 minutes, but use a toothpick to test for doneness. Same oven temperature. 
Want a regular rum cake without coconut? Try this recipe instead. 

Storage for this rumcake

To ensure your cake has a longer shelf life, store in an air-tight cake container at room temperature, away direct light. At room temperature, the cake can be stored for upto 3 days.
If refrigerating, store in an airtight container for upto 7-10 days. I recommend wrapping the cake in plastic wrap to avoid the edges of the cake from drying out. 

Want to freeze your tropical rum cake? 

Once your leftover cake is completely cooled and at room temperature. Wrap it sercure with plastic wrap. Then place the wrapped cake in an airtight container. Place the container in the freezer for upto 3 month. 
To thaw the frozen rum cake, the best approach is to remove it from the freezer and let it thaw at room temperature. This gradual thawing process allows the cake to defrost evenly, preserving its soft texture and preventing any drastic changes in taste.
Place the sealed airtight container with the frozen rum cake on a plate or a flat surface at room temperature. Avoid unwrapping the cake at this stage to minimize moisture loss and to keep the cake protected from any contaminants in the surroundings.