Those of you who love cozy, fall cakes will adore this pecan coconut cake which is deliciously soft, vegan and full of flavor. Who's having a big slice? I know you're going to love it!
The luscious and airy cake takes less than 30 minutes to bake inside the oven which is great.
I also made a maple caramel sauce to accompany the cake and I must say that the two are a match made in paradise. The cake has the perfect level of sweetness from the caramel, plus the chopped pecans and coconut give the cake a nice autumnal balance.
Some other treats with strong and tasty flavors include my vegan coffee cream dessert, vegan peanut butter banana cake and vegan biscoff cheesecake.
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Why You Will Love This Cake
- Captures Fall Bliss - Whenever I want to make a cake during the autumn time, I always think of this recipe first. I'm so happy that I'm finally sharing it with you all! It contains all the classic fall spices, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.
- Maple Caramel - The best part of this recipe is arguably the maple caramel sauce topping which I can never get enough of. You'll understand why I love this caramel so much once you try it. Check out some of my other caramel recipes such as, my vegan caramel slices and vegan dulce de leche caramel.
- Amazing Consistency - The cake is already super soft before the caramel topping but once it is added, the dessert almost becomes a moist tres leches cake.
- Allergy Friendly & Plant Based - This pecan coconut cake recipe is fully vegan and dairy free.
Ingredient Notes
- Apple Cider Vinegar - This important ingredient reacts with the leavening agents and improves the texture of the cake. Without it, the pecan coconut cake wouldn't be as light and airy.
- Self-Rising Flour - I opted to use this instead of regular all-purpose flour in order to help the cake to rise more, like in my vegan sticky toffee pudding recipe.
- Pecans - To me, pecans are the ultimate nuts to have during the fall time. They always compliment baked goods and take them to a new level. Check out my vegan maple pecan cake for more pecan inspiration.
- Light Brown Sugar - As brown sugars have more molasses than white, using light brown soft sugar was a no-brainer. It gives cakes more moisture and a deeper flavor.
- Ground Cinnamon - This is the dominant spice used in the recipe. You can reduce the amount if you prefer a more subtle cinnamon taste. I also used ground ginger and ground nutmeg for this recipe.
- Maple Syrup - This is one of the main ingredients for the maple caramel. Maple syrup is always one my best friends in the autumn and here is another amazing use for it.
See recipe card for full information on individual ingredients and quantities.
Substitutions & Variations
- If pecans aren't your favorite kind of nuts, there are plenty more kinds of nuts that you can use. If you've seen my vegan almond chocolate cake or my vegan apple walnut crumble cake, you'll know that I love to use nuts in my baking. Some of my personal favorites are chopped hazelnuts, chopped almonds and chopped pistachios.
- Want thicker caramel? All you need to do is place it in the fridge for a short while after it has cooled and it will become more like the classic sticky caramel that we all know and love. I simply preferred a thinner caramel for this particular cake.
How To Make Pecan Coconut Cake
For the full method, please refer to the recipe card at the bottom of this post.
1: Line and grease a square baking pan. Set aside.
2: Make the dairy-free buttermilk.
3: Combine the dry cake ingredients inside a large bowl.
4: Add the wet ingredients and fold into a batter.
5: Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan. Smooth out on top and bake.
6: Allow the cake to cool fully.
7: Combine the caramel ingredients in a saucepan and place over the heat.
8: Add the cream to the caramel.
9: Continue to cook the caramel until it becomes a lighter color and thickens.
10: Pour the caramel over the cake and serve.
Expert Tips
Don't over-mix the cake batter - By over-mixing the cake batter, you are risking the gluten being over-worked and therefore, creating a dense and unpleasant texture. Fold gently and patiently.
Avoid burning the caramel - As the main ingredient in caramel is sugar, it is very easy to burn if you take your eye off the pan for too long. Keep your pan at a steady heat and stir regularly.
Recipe FAQs
The advantage of toasting pecans before adding them to the cake batter is that their natural flavors will be brought out more beforehand. They will also be even crispier which is another plus.
Dust the pecans lightly in flour before adding them to cake batter. This will prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the pan.
As most people who bake cakes are people with a sweet tooth, pecans are better due to their lack of bitterness, in comparison to walnuts.
Store inside an airtight container and place inside the fridge for up to 3 days.
More Vegan Fall Recipes
If you tried this Pecan Coconut Cake Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how you go in the 📝 comments below. I love hearing from you!
Pecan Coconut Cake With Homemade Maple Caramel
Ingredients
Cake batter:
- 270 ml soy milk
- 1 Tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 270 g self-rising flour sifted
- 60 g pecans chopped
- 35 g desiccated coconut ground
- 115 g light brown sugar
- 1.5 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 0.5 teaspoon ground ginger
- 0.5 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 0.25 teaspoon baking soda
- 0.5 teaspoon salt
- 75 ml canola oil
- 75 g dairy-free plain yogurt room temperature
Maple caramel sauce:
- 85 g light brown sugar
- 1.5 teaspoons maple syrup
- 85 g dairy-free butter
- 85 ml dairy-free heavy cream
Instructions
Preparation:
- Preheat your oven to 170 Celsius (338F). Line a square, 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper and grease well with dairy-free butter.
- Start by making the buttermilk. Stir the apple cider vinegar into the soy milk and set aside to curdle for 8 minutes or so. While you wait, measure out all the other ingredients.
Making the cake batter:
- To a large mixing bowl, add the self-rising flour, chopped pecans, desiccated coconut, light brown sugar, ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Combine well.
- Add in the dairy-free buttermilk, canola oil and dairy-free yogurt. Fold the cake batter gently until all flour pockets are gone. It should be just combined and not over-mixed.
- Pour the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake inside the oven for 25-30 minutes.
Making the maple caramel sauce:
- Now the cake is inside the oven, you can now make the maple caramel topping.
- Place a medium-sized saucepan over a medium heat. Add the dairy-free butter, maple syrup and light brown sugar and stir continuously until the mixture simmers and everything is melted and dissolved.
- Remove from the stove and pour in the dairy-free heavy cream. Stir and set aside. It will thicken as it cools down at room temperature.
Final touches:
- Take your cake out of the oven and let it cool fully. A skewer will come out clean at this point.
- If you wish, you can use a longer skewer to poke as many small holes across the cake and pour on the maple caramel sauce so it gets into the holes. This step is completely optional. Otherwise, slice the cake, pour the caramel onto the cake however you wish to and enjoy.
Video
Notes
- By over-mixing the cake batter, you are risking the gluten being over-worked and therefore, creating a dense and unpleasant texture. Fold gently and patiently.
- As the main ingredient in caramel is sugar, it is very easy to burn if you take your eye off the pan for too long. Keep your pan at a steady heat and stir regularly.
Kerry says
So soft. Loved the maple caramel!