This classic vanilla coconut flour cake is so beautiful! Many people have a hard time working with coconut flour because it is very dry and crumbly, so you really have to take extra steps to ensure that it will hold together well. Carol Lovett, author of Indulge is a whiz when it come to grain-free baking. You can be sure this cake will be a winner!
Carol Lovett of Ditch The Wheat has created an amazing e-book with desserts all made with whole food ingredients and without grain. I have enjoyed Carol’s many recipes on her blog, but one thing she does exceedingly well are sweets. She even includes tips on the ideal ingredients and methods to use in order to make the best flavor and texture in your desserts. This book has everything from grain free pie crust to doughnuts to sprinkles! I for one am excited to have a natural alternative to sprinkles!
The great thing about this book is that it shows you that you don’t have to feel deprived if you are grain-free or trying to go grain-free. These recipes are truly indulgent and allow you to enjoy something sweet without that sad feeling after you’ve eaten dessert with tons of sugar and processed grains.
Carol has so graciously allowed me to share a recipe from her book, so you can see the kind of quality recipes that she has in her book. Enjoy!
Click here to learn more about Indulge: 70 Grain Free Desserts!
Classic Vanilla Coconut Flour Cake from Indulge:
- 4 large eggs, separated
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- ¼ cup extra virgin coconut oil
- 3 tbsp raw honey
- ¼ cup coconut flour, sifted
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- ¼ tsp baking soda
- ⅛ tsp salt
- 4 large egg whites
- 1⁄4 cup raw honey
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line the bottom of an 8x1.5 inch round cake pan with parchment paper. In a large bowl combine the egg whites and cream of tartar. Whip until stiff peaks form.
- In a bowl, cream together honey and coconut oil. Mix in the egg yolks. Add to the mixture, coconut flour, vanilla, baking soda and salt. Mix until combined. Fold the batter into the egg whites starting with a little bit at a time. Combine until the batter is completely mixed.
- Pour the mixture into the cake pan. Bake for 20 minutes. The cake is done when a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool before icing and serving. Don't forget to check out Indulge: 70 Grain-Free Desserts to get even more delicious grain-free recipes like this one.
- Using a double boiler, fill a pot with about 2 inches of water and bring to a boil. In the bowl part of the double boiler, mix all of the ingredients.
- Place the bowl over the pot with the heated water. Using a handheld blender, whisk the egg whites continuously until they are warm to the touch. This takes a few minutes. Your egg whites should be light & puffy.
- Immediately use as an icing. Even though the egg whites have been warmed they are still considered raw and should not be consumed by pregnant women, children and the elderly. If you are concerned about the egg whites being undercooked, ice the outside of the cake with the meringue and then place them under the broiler and lightly toast them.
Get My FREE "6 Easy Tips to Quit Sugar" Guide!
Get instant access when you subscribe!
Get My FREE "6 Easy Tips to Quit Sugar" Guide!
Get instant access when you subscribe!
This looks great. Where can I get the Swiss Meringue recipe?
Hi Joan,
The swiss meringue for this particular cake is only available in the book Indulge: 70 Grain Free Desserts. Unfortunately, I was only able to share the recipe for the actual cake. There are a bunch of other amazing, healthy and grain-free/ sugar-free recipes in the cookbook!
I would like the cookbook but do you have an actual book or only available on ebook?
thank you
Hi Rose, Sorry, it’s only available in ebook format for now.
Is this recipe correct – only 1/4 C of coconut flour? It just seems like there is not enough volume of ingredients to make a cake in that recipe. Granted maybe it’s because of the unique ingredients, but I am curious as it struck me as far too little dry ingredients.
Hi Cate, yes the amounts are correct. When baking with coconut flour the ratio of flour to liquid is a lot different from wheat flour because coconut flour soaks up A LOT of moisture.
Can one substitute arrowroot for cream of tartar?
Once I mixed the egg yolk/coconut flour mixture together, the coconut flour quickly absorbed all the moisture, which made it difficult to simply fold it into the egg whites. I basically had to whisk it for a while until the ingredients fully incorporated into whites. As a result, the cake did not rise. If I try this recipe again, I’d first pour egg yolk, etc mixture into whites, then gradually add coconut flour as I fold.
Yes same thing happened to me. I didn’t like the texture of the cake either. I dont know if this had to do with the difficulty folding or just my personal tastes.
What do you use for frosting? I would love to make this for the weekend! Looks delicious!
We just made it and are ready to put it in the oven. Smells wonderful. The kids wanted to eat it before I baked it!
So do you double the recipe if you want to make a layer cake?
Hi – this cake looks great! Wondering if an egg substitute could be suggested.
Is the cake suppose to rise? I just made two batches: the first I followed the recipe as is, the second I folded the egg whites with the egg yolk mixture (honey and oil) and then added the flour and remaining ings. Both didn’t rise. Am I doing something wrong?
I don’t think it’s suppose to rise. Usually when I bake with coconut flour, it rises very little, if at all.
Think this would turn out ok as cupcakes?
I made cupcakes and they turned out great. I would add more ingredients to make it a full 12 cupcakes. For instance 5 total eggs, 5 tablespoons of coconut oil, 5 tablespoons coconut flour, etc.
Made this last night for my birthday. Mine did not look quite as nice and cake like as yours. Mine was like a souffle almost. Is that how yours was as well b/c of all the egg and very little Coconut Flour? However it did not taste that bad, but not really like a cake I guess.
wow what an easy recipe! and the result is – fluffy, light, and yummy cake! the portion is also lovely – perfect for two!:)) I made some cream cheese frosting, and layered this mini-cake and my husband was delighted, cake was gone in no time!: ) thank you for this lovely recipe!
I ran out of coconut oil and need a cake for this weekend, LOL Am not vegan or paleo. May I sub butter or melted butter for the coconut oil?
Hello, I was wondering if you’ve ever made this into a chocolate cake? Any suggestions? I’m excited to try it 🙂
Nope, just vanilla 🙂
Hi. Can Xylitol Birch Sweetener be substituted for the honey?
THEY TASTE AMAZING, but, i could only make about 5 cupcakes….i know that coconut flour expands differently. But, this is my favorite sugar free coconut oil recipe yet! Next time i’ll be sure to double the recipe (:
I just made it now – added some shredded coconut. It is so moist and delicious!
Glad you enjoyed it Lise! 🙂
While making these tonight i came across an issue… the “batter” is more like cookie dough and cannot feasibly be folded into the eggwhites. I had to add liquid… in this case half and half to the “batter”. Was there supposed to be milk added? I dont see how there cant be… perhaps you forgot to mention that ingredient. They are in the oven now… will update on how they turned out.
when I added the flour/egg yolk mix into the egg whites, the whites seemed to loose stiffness.. Is that normal?
I think so. It deflates a little bit when you mix it up.
Does this cake freeze well?
I’m not sure. I’ve never frozen it before, but let us know how it does! 🙂
I made three batches yesterday! 3rd attempt a success. I melted the coconut oil in all 3. 1st batch the coconut oil solidified and cake didn’t fold with the egg whites. Turned out dense and eggy. 2nd batch I rather mixed the egg yolks after combining the flour this seemed to prevent the oil soildifing, I also used a held held blender to mix with the egg whites. This made the batter very runny and once baked, dense again. 3rd attempt same as 2nd but folded the batter with egg whites gently and contiously until it was still fluffy and the volume was almost double that of the first two batches. Which filled out my cake tin to the top. When baked it rose nicely about half an inch and turned out fluffy to touch compared to the other two. You have to take your time when mixing batter with egg whites to remain air rated. I figured out this was the key to a fluffy cake. I look forward to making it. Not yet made the icing but will do that today so it’s fresh.
The picture is deceptive because the recipe only makes one layer. I will not make this recipe again, the consistency and taste were just not as good as some other coconut gluten free cakes I have made. My one layer was not even as high as the layer in the picture, what a disappointment.
Did you slice the cake or make two in order to have a layer cake as shown? Thanks!
I’m not sure. I shared the recipe from the book Indulge, so that’s how it’s written in the book.