Heidi Clark

This is not your typical carrot cake, my friends! Nope! First of all, for all my raisin-hating friends out there-Coconut Rum Soaked Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting doesn’t have any! Each layer is a little bit spicy from cinnamon and nutmeg, full of juicy bits of sweet pineapple, tender shreds of coconut and carrots, crunchy toasted walnuts, and two components that push this celebration cake over-the-top!

Drum roll, please!

And the secret ingredients are…

• A generous dose of homemade coconut rum syrup is brushed on the baked cake layers when they are hot and fresh from the oven. The hot cake layers soak up the syrup and infuse them with a hint of tropical flavor!
• In addition, a teensy bit of additional coconut rum is included in the smooth and creamy frosting!
• A Tablespoon of vanilla dry instant pudding mix creates cake layers that bake up rich and tender. And stay moist for several days!

Besides the standard oil, flour, eggs, and sugar, here’s what you need to make Coconut Rum Soaked Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting!

• Canned crushed pineapple packed in juice (not syrup!)
• Walnuts.
• Shredded sweet coconut flakes.
• Dry Vanilla Flavor Instant Pudding Mix. I use instant vanilla pudding mix in a lot of my baked goods. It’s the secret ingredient that creates a moist and delicious treat!
• Full-fat Sour Cream.
• Freshly grated carrots. Do not use grated carrots from the market for this recipe. They are too coarse.
• Coconut Rum! I use Blue Chair brand (this is not an advertisement for them, It’s what I tested the recipe with.)
• Full-fat cream cheese. Use the block cream cheese, not the tub variety.

Here’s a few tips for making the best carrot cake ever!

• Make the Coconut Rum Syrup first! There are two rules to play by when brushing cake layers with flavored syrup. The syrup must be hot and the cake layers cold, or the syrup must be cold and the cake layers hot! Otherwise, the cake ends up being a soggy, sad mess! I prefer to make the syrup first. That way, I know it is done, and I am not scrambling to make it later on in the process.
• Bring the eggs to room temperature by placing them in a medium bowl and pouring hot (not boiling!) tap water over them. Let them hang out while you prepare and measure the remaining ingredients. Warming the eggs helps them reach optimal volume when mixing the eggs and sugar. Which, in turn, helps to create a fluffy cake.
• Use a small slotted spoon to transfer the pineapple into a measuring cup. Try to leave as much juice behind as possible. After measuring the pineapple, transfer it to a mesh strainer placed over a bowl. Leave the fruit to drain while measuring the remaining ingredients. You can gently push down on it to extract a bit more juice. It doesn’t need to be dry-looking before adding to the cake batter! But it shouldn’t be swimming in liquid either.
• Toast the walnuts on a cookie sheet in a 350° oven for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown and toasted. Let the nuts cool completely before chopping and adding to the cake.
• Toast the coconut “nest” garnish the same way! Place a few handfuls of shredded sweet coconut on a cookie tray in a 350° oven for 10-15 minutes. Stir the coconut every five minutes! Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Careful! It can go from golden to burned in a heartbeat! Immediately transfer the toasted coconut to a large plate to stop the cooking process. Let cool completely before garnishing the cake. Store the extra toasted coconut in a jar for future baking projects, or add it to a yogurt parfait!

Let’s walk through the assembly process of this recipe!

1. Make the coconut rum syrup. Cool. Chill in the fridge until ready to use.
2. Toast the walnuts and the coconut for the garnish.
3. Put the eggs in a bowl of hot water.
4. Measure the sour cream.
5. Butter and flour two six-inch cake pans. Line each pan with a round of parchment paper. Set aside.
6. Drain the pineapple.
7. Grate the carrots.
8. Whisk together the flour, spices, salt, baking soda, and dry pudding mix.
9. Chop the cooled toasted walnuts. Add the walnuts along with the untoasted coconut to the flour mixture and whisk again.
10. Using a stand mixer, with the paddle attachment, mix the egg, egg yolk, and sugar on medium speed until pale and thick. About one minute of mixing does the trick. Don’t overmix the egg and sugar, or the cake could collapse during the baking process.
11. Mix in the vanilla extract.
12. With the mixer running, drizzle the oil slowly into the eggs and sugar. Do it slowly, so the oil emulsifies into the mixture.

With the mixer running on low add the remaining cake ingredients in this order:

• A third of the flour mixture.
• Sour cream.
• Half of the remaining flour mixture.
• Drained pineapple.
• The remaining flour.
• The grated Carrots.
• Mix on low until combined. Only mix until there are no dry streaks of flour in the batter.

Divide the batter between the two prepared pans and bake for 40-45 minutes until a toothpick inserted into each cake’s center comes out clean when removed.

Here Comes the Fun!

When the cakes are hot out of the oven. Brush each one with a generous amount of coconut rum syrup. You won’t use all of it. The cakes will drink up the syrup immediately when you brush it on!

Transfer the pans to a cooling rack and let rest for 5-10 minutes. When the pans are cool enough to handle, remove the cakes and let them finish cooling completely before frosting. Make the cream cheese frosting while the cakes cool and set aside. If you like, wrap the cakes in plastic and freeze them overnight. I find that partially frozen cake is easier to frost. Remove the cakes from the freezer about 10 minutes before you want to frost them.

Here Are Some Tips For Assembling Coconut Rum Soaked Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting!

1. Place a small dollop of frosting in the center of the serving plate the cake will be displayed on. This little bit of frosting becomes the “glue” that helps the cake stay in place while frosting.
2. Frost, the cake from the bottom, working your way to the top. Always keep your frosting spatula in contact with a generous amount of frosting at all times. That way, crumbs don’t speckle the coating.
3. Pipe a border of frosting around the base of the cake, if desired. I use a piping bag with the Wilton #12 tip. It creates a cute little teardrop design. Of course, feel free to pipe away to your hearts’ delight! Make this cake your own- it can be elaborate or minimalistic! Either way, it’s delicious. The frosting recipe makes a generous amount so you can play and not have to stop in the middle of the fun and make more. Leftover frosting will keep in the fridge for a week. And you can freeze it for up to three months! Place the frozen container in the fridge overnight and bring it to room temperature and remix it if you want to use the leftovers another time.
4. Grab a handful of toasted coconut and mound it in the center of the frosted cake.
5. Nestle three blue candy-coated chocolates in the center. I use Cadbury Mini-Eggs. Again, not an advertisement. It is what I use.
6. Serve the cake immediately if you like. I find it’s easiest to slice after it has chilled for several hours in the refrigerator.

Chill the frosted cake for several hours, then loosely drape a large piece of plastic wrap lightly over the cake, and continue storing it in the fridge until serving. Store any remaining cake in the refrigerator for up to five days. Or freeze for three months.

Try one of my other recipes for your Easter celebration!

Watermelon Elderflower Sangria

Strawberry Black Pepper Basil Cocktail

Blackberry Herbed Goat Cheese Crostini with Homemade Hot Honey Drizzle

Sourdough Cornmeal Thyme Crackers

If you enjoy this recipe, forward it to a friend, Pin it to your Pinterest board {and follow me on Pinterest } and rate and review it!

This post does contain affiliate marketing links. If you purchase items via the provided links, I may receive a commission from your purchase. Thank you for helping to support my work here at Yums & Kisses!

Happy Easter!

Coconut Rum Soaked Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting

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★★★★★

5 from 1 reviews

• Author: Heidi Clark~ Yums & Kisses
• Prep Time: 25 minutes
• Cook Time: 60 minutes
• Total Time: 3 hours
• Yield: serves 8 1x
• Diet: Vegetarian

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Description

Coconut Rum Soaked Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting! Perfect for a small Easter gathering or celebrating a special someone’s {21 and over!} birthday! Sweet and spicy layers of moist cake packed full of pineapple, coconut, grated carrots, and chopped toasted walnuts. Each baked cake layer is brushed with coconut rum syrup, stacked, and frosted with a rich coconut rum-infused cream cheese frosting! 

 

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Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

For the Coconut Rum Syrup:

1/4 cup coconut rum

1/4 cup granulated sugar

For the Carrot Cake:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 Tablespoon dry vanilla instant pudding mix

1/2 cup toasted walnuts, finely chopped

1/2 cup shredded sweetened coconut flakes

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 large egg {at room temperature}

1 large egg yolk {at room temperature}

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 Tablespoons full-fat sour cream

3/4 cup loosely packed grated carrot

1/2 cup canned crushed pineapple packed in juice, drained

For the Pipeable Cream Cheese Frosting:

1 cup butter, softened

16 ounces full-fat cream cheese {use block not tub cream cheese}, softened

pinch of fine sea salt

5 cups sifted powdered sugar {sift then measure!}

2 teaspoons coconut rum

For the Toasted Coconut “Nest”:

a few handfuls of shredded sweetened coconut flakes

three blue Cadbury Mini Egg candies

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Instructions

For the Coconut Rum Syrup:

Combine the sugar and rum in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir until the mixture is warmed and the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from the heat. Cool and transfer to a small jar and place in the refrigerator while you prepare the cake.

For the Toasted Walnuts:

Place the walnuts on a cookie tray and bake at 350° for 8-10 minutes or until golden and toasted. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack while you measure and prepare the remaining ingredients.

For the Coconut Nest:

Place the coconut onto a cookie sheet. Bake at 350° for 10-15 minutes. Stir every 5 minutes for 10-15 minutes. Or until golden brown. Immediately transfer the coconut to a large plate to stop the browning process. 

For the Carrot Cake:

• Preheat the oven to 350°
• Butter and flour two round six-inch cake pans. Line each with a parchment round.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and dry pudding mix. Add the cooled and chopped toasted walnuts and coconut. Whisk again.
• Using a stand mixer, place the egg, egg yolk, and sugar into the mixing bowl. Using the paddle attachment, mix on medium speed until pale and thick. This only takes about a minute. Don’t overmix, or the cake could collapse.
• With the mixer running, slowly drizzle in the vegetable oil and vanilla extract.
• Add the flour mixture and remaining ingredients in this order:
• a third of the flour
• sour cream
• half of the remaining flour
• drained pineapple
• the remaining flour
• stir in the carrots
• Mix on low speed until thoroughly combined, and no dry streaks of flour are present.
• Divide the batter between the two pans. Pick each pan up and lightly tap on the counter to release any air bubbles.
• Bake for 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of each cake is clean with a few moist crumbs clinging to it when removed.
• Transfer cakes to a wire cooling rack. 
• Immediately brush the cake layers with the cold coconut rum syrup. The layers will immediately drink up the syrup as you brush it on. You won’t use all of the syrup. Store the remaining syrup in the refrigerator for up to a week, if you like. I won’t tell if you drizzle it on your morning pancakes!
• When the pans are cool enough to handle {10 minutes or so} remove the cakes from the pans and allow them to completely cool before frosting.

For the Cream Cheese Frosting:

• Place the softened butter and cream cheese in a large mixing bowl. Using the paddle attachment, mix the butter,  cream cheese, and salt on medium speed until smooth. 
• Scrape the bowl down.
• Add a third of the sifted powdered sugar and mix until smooth.
• Scrape the bowl again.
• Add half of the remaining powdered sugar. Mix again until smooth.
• Add the remaining powdered sugar and coconut rum. Mix until smooth.
• If the frosting is a little on the soft side and you would like to use it for piping, place the frosting in the refrigerator for 30-40 minutes to firm up.

To assemble the cake:

• Put a small dollop of frosting in the middle of the serving plate you are using for the cake. This becomes the glue that holds the cake in place while frosting. Place one cake layer on the plate. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
• Remove the cake layer from the fridge and slather a generous amount of frosting on top.
• Flip the second cake layer over. Place it onto the frosted layer so that the bottom of the cake is now on top. This will provide an even top surface suitable for decorating.
• Frost the cake from the bottom to the top.
•  Decorate by mounding a handful of toasted coconut on top. Nest three blue candy-coated chocolates into the coconut. Slice and Serve. Or chill for several hours for the easiest slicing.
• You can skip the coconut nest and chocolate eggs if you prefer and pipe the desired designs with the remaining frosting.

Notes

• If serving this cake to an underage crowd, omit the coconut rum syrup and replace the coconut rum in the frosting with vanilla extract.
• Always sift the powdered sugar for the frosting. Lumpy sugar= Lumpy frosting. Sift the powdered sugar for the frosting before measuring.
• Store leftover Coconut Rum Carrot Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting in the refrigerator for up to five days.  It can also be frozen for up to three months. You may store leftover cream cheese frosting the same way. 
• To use frozen cream cheese frosting another time, place it in the refrigerator overnight. The next day bring it to room temperature and mix in a stand mixer. 

• Category: Dessert
• Method: Bake
• Cuisine: American

Keywords: carrot cake, coconut, rum, layer cake