Coconut Cupcakes + Lemon Vanilla Buttercream

Fluffy coconut cupcakes topped with luscious lemon + vanilla buttercream.

Ingredients:

For the cake:

• 8 tablespoons (115 grams) butter
• if using unsalted butter add 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup (110 grams) sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup (45 grams) desiccated coconut
• 1 cup (140 grams) all purpose flour
• 1 + 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon coconut essence

For the buttercream:

• 1 + 2/3 cups (250 grams) icing sugar
• 6 tablespoons (85 grams) butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

To decorate:

• toasted coconut flakes

– If using metric cups, reduce volume measures by 1 tablespoon for every cup of dry or liquid ingredients – 

Equipment:

• Standing or hand-held mixer
• 12 cup regular muffin/cupcake pan
• Optional: Piping bag and large closed star tip

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 180C (350F). Line a regular cup muffin pan with paper cases and set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg and beat until well combined and fluffy.

Whisk the flour, baking powder and coconut together in a bowl. Add half the dry ingredients to the creamed mixture and fold together until mostly combined. Add the milk, coconut essence and vanilla extract and fold until almost mixed. Add the remaining dry ingredients and fold one last time until just combined. The mixture will be quite thick.

Divide the batter evenly between the 12 muffin cups. The large OXO Good Grips scoop is the perfect size.

Bake for 20 minutes until the cakes are slightly golden and spring back when pressed gently in the centre. Rotate the muffin pan halfway through baking to ensure even cooking.

Let the cakes cool slightly in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

While the cakes are cooling, make the buttercream. Put all the buttercream ingredients in a bowl and beat with a hand-held or standing electric mixer until smooth and fluffy – three to five minutes. To make the toasted coconut flakes gently heat coconut flakes in a dry frying pan until they just start to colour.

Tip them onto a cold plate as soon as they are golden as they will burn quickly.

Pipe or spread the buttercream on the cupcakes – there should be just enough for 12. Top with toasted coconut flakes.

Cook’s Notes:

• If you don’t like lemon, switch out the juice in the buttercream for milk
• Keep a close eye on the coconut flakes while they toast – they will go from perfect to burnt in a flash
• To make this recipe up as a whole cake, double the recipe and bake in a round 8 inch pan. A double recipe of the buttercream should ice and fill a two-layer cake.

 – These cakes are best on the day they are made, but are still good on day three – 

© 2016 The Winsome Baker. All images & content are copyright protected. Please do not use my images without prior permission. If you want to republish this recipe, please re-write the recipe in your own words, or link back to this post for the recipe.