Many people have tried this now and no one thinks of it as a gluten free cake. It’s just a delicious cake! Love the coconut + lemon + almond meal combination, and the springy, moist crumb. BONUS: Just about the fastest, easiest cake recipe I know.
Lemon coconut almond cake
This is a cake that is as delightfully easy to make as it is delicious to eat. Just put everything in a bowl and mix! There’s no need to whip softened butter or pull out your electric beater.
It’s been likened to the fan favourite orange cake in texture – springy yet with an appealing moistness about it. And the flavour! Adore, adore, adore the coconut lemon combination. Idea swiped from my local coffee shop where I’ve been eyeing lemon coconut cake bars for years. This is my copycat.
I don’t actually know if theirs is gluten-free. Mine is, because I’ve never come across a flour-based cake recipe with a crumb as moist as you can make using almond meal.
What you need for this lemon coconut almond cake
Here’s what you need to make this lovely cake:
Almond meal (aka ground almonds) – This is raw almonds that are blitzed into a fine powder. Easily found nowadays, sold in the dried fruit & nut section and health food section of grocery stores. Or make your own by blitzing raw, unpeeled, unsalted almonds in a powerful blender (I use a Vitamix) until it becomes a fine powder.
Almond flour can also be used (not as common here in Australia). It’s finer so gives the cake a slightly fluffier texture and less almond flavour. Hazelnut meal can also be substituted though you’ll have lovely hazelnut flavour instead of almond.
Butter – The fat in this recipe, gives it a beautiful buttery flavour.
Baking powder – This is what makes the cake rise.
Eggs – Make sure they are at room temperature so they incorporate more easily into the batter.
Coconut – Desiccated coconut which is finely shredded, unsweetened coconut. Standard shredded coconut (which is like fine strands) will work but you’ll get more coconut texture in the cake. I don’t think coconut flakes (shavings) will work in this cake, it’s not absorbent enough.
Sugar – Use caster / superfine sugar if you can because it is finer so it will dissolve easier. Otherwise, regular / granulated sugar can be used.
Vanilla extract – For flavour. Not to be confused with artificial vanilla essence which is…well, artificial. So not as nice!
Lemon – We are only using the zest in this cake, for beautiful lemon flavour. Because the zest is where all the lemon flavour is – the juice is mostly just sour.
Flaked almonds – for sprinkling on the surface. Adds lovely texture to the cake, looks good and protects the surface from browning too much. But you can skip it you don’t have it!
Salt – Standard inclusion in most of my sweet recipes these days. Just a touch, to bring out the flavours in this cake. Doesn’t make it salty!
How to make lemon coconut cake
Put everything in a bowl and MIX! How good would life be if all baking recipes were this easy??? (Though, my waistline begs to differ).
Melt the butter in a bowl using your microwave.
Wet ingredients – Whisk in all the other wet ingredients (eggs, vanilla, sugar – yes, sugar is considered a wet ingredient in baking because it liquifies when mixed with other wet ingredients).
Dry ingredients – Whisk in the almond meal, coconut, baking powder, salt and zest.
Pour it into a 20cm/8″ lined round cake pan. DO NOT skip lining the pan! Even greasing very generously is not enough to stop it from sticking to the pan, no matter how non-stick you think your pan is. (As you might have guessed, I’m speaking from first hand experience here).
Bake 40 minutes – Sprinkle the surface with almonds then bake for 40 minutes at 180°C/350°F (160°C fan) or until a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.
Cool for 1 hour before cutting to serve. I was a bit impatient in early versions and found that because the cake is quite moist, it can appear undercooked if you cut it while still warm. (But it’s not undercooked, it just looks that way if you cut while still hot!).
Serve it plain!
While some cakes I recommend serving with a dollop of cream, ice cream or other such accompaniment, this is a cake that definitely stands on its own two feet. Great flavour (lemon + coconut with a hint of almond) with a very moist crumb which is virtually impossible to replicate with flour-based cakes.
So it’s a great cake for taking places – such as for a work morning tea, book club, school bake sale. Just cut and serve. And those who are gluten-intolerant can enjoy it too. Though honestly, don’t just make this because you need a gluten-free cake. Make it because it’s just a really great cake that happens to be just about one of the easiest, quickest cake recipes I know. – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Easy Lemon Coconut Almond Cake
Ingredients
- 150g / 10 tbsp unsalted butter
- 4 large eggs (55-60g/2oz each), at room temp
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 3/4 cup caster sugar (superfine sugar, Note 2)
- 1 1/2 cups almond meal (ground almond, Note 1)
- 1/4 tsp cooking/kosher salt
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 cup desiccated coconut (US: finely shredded unsweetened coconut)
- 1 1/2 tsp lemon zest (1 large lemon)
- 1/4 cup flaked almonds , optional (Note 3)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan). Grease a 20cm/8” round cake pan (or springform pan) with butter then line with paper.
- Melt butter – Place the butter in a large microwavable bowl and melt in the microwave. Let cool for a couple of minutes.
- Wet ingredients – Add egg, vanilla and sugar and whisk until combined.
- Dry ingredients – Add almond meal, salt, baking powder, coconut and lemon zest. Whisk until combined.
- Bake 40 minutes – Pour into pan. Sprinkle over almonds. Bake 40 minutes. Cool 15 minutes in pan then carefully turn out onto cooling rack.
- Cool at least 1 hour before cutting slices to serve. Moist enough to serve plain – doesn't need cream or anything!
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Eyeing end of day remnants in a glass cabinet like it’s a big juicy steak.
Outstanding! Moist, delicious and too easy.
★★★★★ Absolutely fantastic recipe!
I made this lemon cake for my daughter’s 15th birthday, and it was a huge hit! The recipe itself is super easy to follow with simple ingredients, but the end result is wonderfully fluffy, delicious, and smells amazing while baking.
Since I made a two-layer cake, I omitted the almond topping and tweaked the decoration. I filled the center with buttercream and lemon curd, then topped it with lemon curd and an icing sugar drizzle before decorating with fresh figs and blackberries. It turned out absolutely gorgeous and tasted incredible. Will definitely be keeping this recipe in my rotation!
I love your recipes, and this site pops up all the time if I google for a recipe: it’s often something I read about in a novel. I seem to gravitate to fictional characters who enjoy cooking. Oddly, it was my sister, who NEVER bakes, who put my onto this particular recipe. When I say “never” I mean she said until she made this, she hadn’t baked a cake in fifty years. It’s a great recipe. So easy and delicious. Not sure if it keeps well. It doesn’t get a chance to find out around here. Also handy because I have a couple of friends who have to be gf and this is a lovely, simple change from my usual orange & almond cake. Thanks, not just for this one, but for all the recipes and information I find here. 😊
I cooked this cake several times as my son and I avoid gluten. I fall in love with it every time I make it because it so easy to make and delicious. Thank you for this amazing recipe.
Fab recipe. I’ve made it twice and all my friends and family love it. So sorry you’ve lost Dozer. We lost our Tilli in January. Such faithful companions, she was 17. 🐶❤️
Made this before and it is DELICIOUS. Thannk you.
Do you think I would I be able to freeze this cake for a couple of days? Thanks!
Can I remove the desiccated coconut from the ingredient list?
I made this last month for my husband on his birthday & I couldn’t believe how good it tasted. Lemons are my favourite & coconut is my husband’s favourite so it was a great combination. It tasted divine & I’ve just made another one & cant wait to eat it. The recipe & instructions are so easy to understand & well detailed. This is one of my new favourite cakes to make! Thanks
This cake is absolutely delicious. I had almond meal about to expire. A quick google search and as soon as this website appeared, I knew it would be a winner. It was a hit at the work morning tea today. Not a crumb left. Thank you!!
I have made this a million times and it never misses.
I scaled the recipe up yesterday – to 15 serves (until it said 6 eggs) and used a 10 inch baking dish. I ended up cooking it for about 55 minutes and it was divine. I also added the almonds to the top about halfway through as I was a bit worried they might burn with the extended cooking time. The didn’t stick to the cake as well as usual, though!
Thank you Nagi – this cake is so easy and delicious.
I have already made this beautiful cake twice – it was so easy and I received compliments and requests for the recipe each time. The fact that it’s gluten free is just a bonus (for me) for certainty when serving to a group. I think that the texture is moist enough to also serve as a simple desert.
I baked it for about 45 minutes.
Thank you, Nagi. This one’s a keeper!
I want to make this as a naked 2 tier birthday cake, which means I’d like some sort of very thin icing… Any recommendations?
Loved this cake, only had thread coconut.. but worked well.. served with whipped coconut cream..
I whip this up in a jiffy and people always tell me how delicious it is. For both those who are gluten free and not. Great recipe. I make it all the time when our lemon 🍋 tree is overflowing. A winner and best served with Raglan coconut yogurt or Little Island Vanilla Bean coconut icecream.
Hi Nagi, am a huge fan of your recipes – both savoury and sweet. I love the lemon and coconut almond cake. As you say Nagi, it’s so easy to make and so delicious. Could it be made as a layer cake ie 2 layers. I’m happy to put flaked almonds to go on top of the cake, but wondering what to add in the middle to keep it light. Would love your feedback. Many thanks Helen.
I used 22cm round tin, so only baked by fan bake setting 160 degreed 22 mins. Cake was soft, moist and fluffy. All good balance flavours. Thank you, Nagi-san!
Love this recipe, its my go to for gf friends.
Dear Nagi, love your recipes. They work and I love how you explain every steps, provide useful tips.
Today I made lemon, coconut and almond meal cake. The other day it was Basque cheesecake , and I made the beef with that French name I keep misspelling, quiche and veggie slices.
And now my family thinks I am a great cook! You know what it means…😁
Thank you again for being so generous with your recipes!
Nagi where’s the ‘watch how to mak’ bit gone?
Has anyone tried this with orange?