Coconut syrup cake
A popular dessert within the Greek and Cypriot community, this coconut syrup cake (κέικ ινδοκάρυδο) will sure be enjoyed. It has a light, sponge like texture drenched in a sweet aromatic syrup. The following recipe is a slight variation to the one given to me by my stepmum Eva, one of her select favourites.
The ingredients needed
The cake is really easy to make itself and uses mostly staple ingredients such as sugar, milk, oil, eggs. I used shredded coconut instead of desiccated as I like the added texture when you take a bite, however you may substitute it with the latter.
The syrup to use
As the name suggests, coconut syrup cake, you need to make a sweet syrup to pour all over the cake. There are numerous sweets in the Greek cuisine that require a syrup e.g. diples, melomakarona, baklava and more. Very common aromatics used are lemon peels, orange peels, rosewater, cinnamon quails and cloves. Depending on the flavours you like and the type of dessert you are creating you adjust the combinations.
For the coconut syrup cake, the syrup is aromatic but not heavy in flavour. As the cake itself is not spiced we don’t tend to add cinnamon or cloves in the syrup. Simply adding a lemon peel and some rosewater is all that it needs.
Whenever you make a dessert that requires a syrup you need to cool it down first. A cold syrup on a hot cake will be absorbed quicker and more efficiently. Hence it’s important to make the syrup first to allow it to chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours. On the other hand you may also have a cooled cake with a hot syrup to pour over it. As long as one of the elements is cold and the other hot.
For more sweet creations, traditional and non, check out this link!
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- ¾ cup sugar, 160g
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 tsp vanilla bean paste, or vanilla extract
- ½ cup full fat milk, 125mL
- ½ cup vegetable oil, 125mL, or any other neutral oil
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 2 cups self-raising flour, 300g
- 1 ¼ cups shredded coconut, 100g, extra for garnish
- 3 ½ cups water, 875mL
- 2 ¼ cups sugar, 480g
- 1 tsp lemon zest or 1 large lemon peel
- 1 tbs rosewater
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Make the syrup ahead of time so that it can chill. Simply stir all the ingredients in a pot except the rosewater. Bring the contents to a boil and then simmer for 10min. Take the pot off the heat, stir in the rosewater, pour the syrup in a heatproof jug and place it in the fridge to cool down.
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Preheat the oven to 170°C, fan forced. To make the cake whisk the sugar, eggs and vanilla paste together for 2min on a medium speed. The ingredients should be well combined and the eggs would have a lighter colour. Slowly add the milk and oil while whisking.
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Combine the baking powder with the self-raising flour. Beat it in the mixture in parts, not all at once. Finally fold in the shredded coconut. Pour the batter in a small rectangular deep baking dish (mine measured 28cmx23cm) and bake for 35-40min on the middle rack. The cake should be golden brown and a skewer pierced in the middle should come out clean.
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Pour the cold syrup all over the hot cake evenly and garnish with some shredded coconut. You may toast the coconut if you wish for a difference in colour and texture. Allow it to cool down in the baking dish and then cut it. You may keep the coconut syrup cake in the fridge for up to 5 days.
What size pan should I use for this recipe? Thanks!
Dear Eleni,
I was looking for this recipe for many many years, this cake was named Karida here, în Romania, My friend has made it once long time ago and it was so tasty and light! I unfortunately lost her recipe and also lost contact with her and tried to find her recipe and couldn’t. Until now! I am so happy and grateful to you for sharing this and I kindly thank you for that. Warm embrace from România!
I’ve been looking for this cake recipe for ages. My mom used to make it when we were little and it was spectacula! It certainly brought back many wonderful memories of my mom. Can hardly wait to serve it tomorrow.. Thank you so much!
Hi Chris! Glad you finally came across it! Hope you enjoyed it as much as we do 🙂
Would it work out in a 28cm springform just as good?
Hi Fofo, sorry for my late response. I haven’t tried it but thinking about the volume comparison and the space to expand i think it might be a little bit too small. The issue also would be that the syrup may leak out of the springform when it gets to the edges.
I made this many yrs ago at school for my yr 6 cooking class i loved it and made it again fir the family for dessert i hwve been looking for this recioe so i can make it again for my partner and work mates.
Superb! So glad you came across it and you got the chance to make it! Thank you for leaving your review!
Dear Eleni,
I just made this cake for the first time ever for my son’s 15th birthday. We had when we were last in Cyprus – due to Corona we’ve not been able to get back there and he’s really homesick for pappou and giagia. So it was a good choice for his birthday cake.
So, as you do, I checked out other recipes on the web and settled on your version because it seemed most consistent with what I know of cake baking in Cyprus – oil instead of butter.
It worked out brilliantly and we all loved it! We live in The Netherlands so just had the thumbs up from a bunch of 14-15 year old boys – some of which normally don’t actually like cake.
Just a couple of points to mention, I separated the eggs and frothed up the whites, as suggested by some of the recipes I came across. I don’t know if it makes any difference to the final product but the cake was very light and fluffy. Also, I didn’t use all the syrup as it seemed way too much when I was pouring it on. In retrospect I could’ve used more.
But overall a great success. Thanks, I will definitely be making it again!
Hi Mary, Happy birthday to your son! I’m glad you made the cake and enjoyed it with the family. I shared the same thoughts when I was pouring the syrup but it absorbs it all so it does need it 🙂
Baked the coconut syrup cake for Valentine’s Day and it was truly delicious everyone loved it. My Mum used to always bake this & we somehow forget all the beautiful tradional recipes that we grew up with & this cake reminds me of beautiful memories. Ps my mum loved the cake. Thanks Eleni
That’s so special! Thank you so much for trying it Flora and I’m glad it got your mum’s stamp of approval too 🙂
What a beautiful recipe!
My mother made this cake as I remember having a similar cake many years ago and never being able to find one just as good.
Well this one is it….. this cake is even better than I could’ve imagined.
The sponge is perfectly moist and the syrup is divine. This will now be a recipe that we’ll continue to use.
Thank you Eleni
I have the biggest smile reading this review! Thank you so much Despina, really glad it was what you remembered and more 🙂
What a crowd pleaser! I used an orange peel instead of lemon simply because that’s all I had at home and it worked out perfectly! The syrup is just beautiful and doesn’t make the cake soggy – the perfect amount moisture. These flavours take me back to my childhood, so comforting and authentic. Great recipe!
Thank you for your review Julia! Yes indeed it seems to be a lot of syrup but it doesn’t make the cake soggy 🙂
Oh my gosh, I was almost speechless as I took my first mouthful…so light, moist and that syrup!! I will be making this again and again. Thank you, Eleni for another gorgeous recipe xx
Thank you Amy for making it! Super excited you baked it with Beau by your side, thanks for sharing the photos and videos with me.
Thanks for the recipe for the Coconut Syrup Cake.! I made it and it was delicious! The syrup was a lot waterier than how I would make it after the 10mins of simmering but I tried it anyway. The taste of the cake and the light texture was great and so easy to make. I’ve put loads of it in the freezer to see how that works otherwise I would just eat it all.
I ran out if coconut so I added some sesame seeds on top which worked well, still nutty. Next time I would thicken the syrup a bit more.
Thanks again, will have a piece for you!
Thanks for your feedback Stella and for making the sweet. I’d love to hear how well it freezes as I haven’t tried that before.