Coconut Pound Cake

This Southern-style coconut pound cake uses the cold-oven method, which is exactly what it sounds like. You put the cake into a cold oven and turn it on. The slow ramp-up gives the cake time to rise gently before the structure sets, producing a taller, more even loaf with the classic dense-but-tender pound cake crumb.

The ingredient list reads like an old church-cookbook recipe: cake flour for tenderness, a full cup and a half of shortening for the close-grained texture pound cakes are famous for, and both shredded coconut and coconut flavouring to make sure the coconut character carries through every bite.

The tube pan is non-negotiable. The hollow centre is what lets a cake this dense bake through evenly. A standard loaf pan or bundt won’t give you the right structure, and the centre will stay raw while the edges brown.

Pro Tips

• Flour the tube pan really thoroughly after greasing. Pound cakes have a strong tendency to stick because of their high fat and sugar content.
• Cream the shortening and sugar together for a full 3 to 5 minutes before adding the eggs. This is where the cake gets its lift; rushing it gives you a flat result.
• Add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each. Adding them all at once breaks the emulsion.
• Don’t open the oven during the first hour. Cold-oven cakes are especially sensitive to temperature changes; opening the door deflates the rise.

Variations

• Drizzle the cooled cake with a coconut-rum glaze (powdered sugar, coconut milk or rum) for a tropical finish.
• Toast the shredded coconut in a dry pan before adding for a deeper, nuttier flavour.
• Sprinkle additional toasted coconut over the glaze before it sets for a coconut-loaded top.