Carrot and pineapple cake with coconut and pistachio nuts is a step up from traditional carrot cake. Alongside these goodies there are sweet baking spices and a sublime cream cheese frosting, making this rustic carrot cake one of the best around.
Don’t miss my spelt carrot cake cupcakes if you have a soft spot for this cake flavour.
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If you love taste & texture in your cake you will find this carrot and pineapple cake with coconut easy to fall for. It’s loaded with flavour and plenty of bite. Alongside those three headline flavours enjoy pistachio nuts, cinnamon, nutmeg & ginger in every bite.
Be warned: delicious as this rustic carrot cake may be, it can be a little messy to serve. It won’t necessarily slice neatly. Not all cakes do. I make no apologies here. Plates and forks are definitely recommended.
Why you’ll love this cake
- Classic with a twist: There’s nothing wrong with classic carrot cake, but it is also good to ring the changes sometimes. In this case, the changes include pineapple, coconut and pistachio nuts. Think of it as a tropical carrot cake.
- Taste: Adding roasted pineapple to the carrot cake batter lends a certain tropical brightness to the flavour of this bake.
- Texture: This is a loaded carrot cake that is full of bite. It may be a little messy to eat but it is totally worth it.
- Easy: There’s nothing complicated about this rustic carrot cake recipe. Even the decorating is simple.
Don’t miss my other recipes featuring pineapple. There’s a lovely pineapple crumble and a great fruit cake featuring pineapple and marzipan. It would also be criminal to overlook my pineapple & passionfruit G&T or my version of the Royal Hawaiian cocktail.
Ingredients notes
Pineapple: Use tinned pineapple in juice rather than syrup. Alternatively, fresh pineapple can be used. I’ve chosen to roast the pineapple ahead of making the cake to intensify the flavour. It’s a great trick to include in your baking repertoire. You’ll find this technique used in my recipe for pineapple ice cream too.
Carrot: Use fresh carrots and grate them when you bake this cake. Do not use store-bought grated carrot or matchstick carrots as they will be too dry.
Pistachio nuts: Classic carrot cake often features pecan nuts but pistachios are a lovely alternative. You can replace these with pecans or walnuts if preferred.
Coconut: Desiccated coconut is dried coconut that has been ground to a fine texture. Find it in the baking aisle of UK supermarkets. Alternatively, make your own by breaking down dried shredded coconut in a food processor (3 short pulses should suffice).
Spices: I used cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger as they marry well with pineapple.
Step by step instructions
Full instructions and measurements are given in the printable recipe card at the end of this post.
Step 1. Drain the pineapple from the tin and lay the circles on a baking tray lined with parchment. Cover with foil and roast for 45 minutes.
When cool chop the pineapple into fine pieces.
Also grate the carrot coarsely, finely grate the orange zest and finely chop the pistachio nuts (or pulse them in a processor).
Step 2. Use electric beaters to combine the oil and sugar, then beat in the eggs.
Step 3. Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together then sieve them into the wet ingredients. Mix them in until no streaks of flour remain.
Step 4. Fold the carrot, pineapple, pistachios, zest and coconut into the cake batter.
Step 5. Divide the mixture between two 8-inch baking tins and bake for approximately 30 minutes until cooked through.
Remove from the tins and allow the cakes to cool completely on a wire rack.
Step 6. Use electric beaters to cream the butter and icing sugar in a bowl until smooth. Add the cream cheese and blend it in until no lumps remain. Stop beating as soon as possible.
Use half of the cream cheese frosting to sandwich the 2 cake layers together. Use the rest to top the cake.
Dust a little nutmeg over the top of the cake and garnish with chopped pistachio nuts.
Expert Tips
Top Tip: don’t skip roasting the pineapple. Not only does it help intensify the flavour of the fruit but it also removes excessive liquid.
- Use digital scales and gram measurements to weigh your ingredients. This is the most accurate way of measuring them, leading to the best results.
- Ensure that you use the correct-sized tins (8-inch sandwich tins) and don’t forget to grease & line them with baking parchmenteven if they are non-stick.
- Use cake bands (baking bands) to ensure your cake rises evenly.
- Ensure the cake is completely cold before adding the cream cheese frosting.
Variations
- Nut-free: If you do not like nuts or need to ensure it is safe to serve to someone with a nut allergy, make this rustic carrot cake without any nuts!
- Vary the nuts: replace the pistachio nuts with pecan nuts, hazelnuts or walnuts.
- Add raisins: Some people love a juicy raisin in their carrot cake. If that resonates with you, feel free to fold in 75g along with the nuts.
- Turn it into a three-layer cake: Make 1 ⅓ times the recipe below and divide it between 3 baking tins. The layers will be slightly thinner, but utterly scrumptious still.
Frequently asked questions
Adding pineapple to carrot cake adds a burst of tropical flavour to the overall cake. It also adds moisture and tenderness to the bake too.
This cake will stay fresh for up to 5 days. It is best to keep it refrigerated and let it come to room temperature for several hours before serving because of the cream cheese frosting.
I do not recommend eating this carrot cake warm. It is sandwiched & topped with cream cheese frosting, which would melt when applied to warm cake.
This pineapple carrot cake has so many additions (carrot, pineapple, coconut and pistachios) that it is bound to be more prone to crumbling than a lot of cakes. Go with it and enjoy the flavours and textures this rustic carrot cake brings.
There are several reasons why your cream cheese frosting might be loose or runny. Firstly, low-fat cream cheese can cause this to happen as it contains more water than full-fat cream cheese. Do not use low-fat versions. Likewise, use butter rather than margarine as butter holds its shape better.
The order in which the frosting ingredients are mixed can also have a huge impact. It is best to cream the butter and icing sugar together first and then add the cream cheese, beating on a low speed until it is just combined. If the cream cheese is beaten for too long it will make the frosting runny.
More fruity cakes to enjoy
Find plenty of other fruit-based delights in my full collection of cake recipes. Here are a few examples.
Have you made this recipe for carrot and pineapple cake with coconut? Please give the recipe a rating or leave a comment as I love to hear how you get along with my creations.
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📖 Recipe
Carrot and Pineapple Cake with Coconut
Equipment
- 2 x 8-inch (20cm) sandwich tins
Ingredients
- 432 g Tin Pineapple Rings in juice or approx 400g fresh pineapple, skin and core removed before weighing
- 200 ml Sunflower oil or rapeseed oil
- 3 Large eggs free-range if possible
- 225 g Light brown sugar
- 150 g Fresh carrot
- Zest of 1 orange
- 250 g Plain flour (all-purpose)
- 2 Teaspoons Baking powder
- ½ Teaspoon Bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- ¼ Teaspoon Salt
- 2 Teaspoons Ground cinnamon
- 1 Teaspoon Ground ginger
- ½ Teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- 60 g Pistachio nuts (removed from their shells)
- 30 g Desiccated coconut
Cream cheese frosting & garnish
- 150 g Butter room temperature
- 300 g Icing sugar
- 150 g Philadelphia cream cheese (full fat)
- ½ Teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- 1 Tablespoon Pistachio nuts (roughly chopped)
Instructions
Roast the pineapple
- Preheat the oven to 180℃/ 350℉
- Drain the pineapple from the tin (reserve the juice for drinking) and lay the fruit on a baking tray lined with parchment. Cover with foil and roast for 45 minutes.432 g Tin Pineapple Rings in juice
- When cool, chop the pineapple into fine pieces.
Bake the cake
- Grease and line two 8-inch (20cm) sandwich tins with baking parchment.
- Grate the carrot coarsely, grate the orange zest finely and chop the pistachio nuts finely (or pulse them in a processor). Set aside.150 g Fresh carrot, Zest of 1 orange, 60 g Pistachio nuts
- Use electric beaters to combine the oil and sugar, then beat in the eggs for around 2 minutes.200 ml Sunflower oil, 225 g Light brown sugar, 3 Large eggs
- Mix the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and spices together then sieve them into the wet ingredients. Mix in until no streaks of flour remain.250 g Plain flour, 2 Teaspoons Baking powder, ½ Teaspoon Bicarbonate of soda, ¼ Teaspoon Salt, 2 Teaspoons Ground cinnamon, 1 Teaspoon Ground ginger, ½ Teaspoon Ground nutmeg
- Fold the carrot, pineapple, pistachios, orange zest and desiccated coconut into the cake batter.432 g Tin Pineapple Rings in juice, 150 g Fresh carrot, Zest of 1 orange, 30 g Desiccated coconut, 60 g Pistachio nuts
- Divide the mixture between the baking tins and bake for approximately 30 minutes until cooked through (use baking brands if you have them to ensure an even rise & bake. After 30 minutes, test the cakes with a cocktail pick: poke it into the centre of each one, and if it comes out clean, the cake is baked through.
- Remove the tins from the oven, let them rest for 2 minutes and then remove the cakes from the tins. Let the cakes cool completely on a wire rack.
Make the buttercream & assemble the cake
- Use electric beaters to cream the butter and icing sugar in a bowl until smooth.150 g Butter, 300 g Icing sugar
- Add the cream cheese and blend it in until no lumps remain. Stop beating as soon as possible to prevent the icing from turning runny.150 g Philadelphia cream cheese
- Use half of the cream cheese frosting to sandwich the 2 cake layers together and use the rest of the frosting to top the cake.
- Dust a little nutmeg over the top of the cake and garnish with chopped pistachio nuts.
Notes
- Don’t skip roasting the pineapple. Not only does it help intensify the flavour of the fruit but it also removes excessive liquid.
- Use digital scales and gram measurements to weigh your ingredients. This is the most accurate way of measuring them, leading to the best results.
- Also use the correct-sized tins (8-inch sandwich tins) and don’t forget to grease & line them with baking parchment.
- Use cake bands (baking bands) to ensure your cake rises evenly.
- Ensure the cake is completely cold before adding the cream cheese frosting.
- Go nut-free: if you do not like nuts or you need to ensure it is safe to serve to someone with a nut allergy then make this cake without any nuts!
- To turn this into a 3-layer cake make 1 ⅓ times the recipe listedvand divide the batter between 3 baking tins. The layers will be slightly thinner, but utterly scrumptious still.
Deborah Hallam
Hi Jane. This sounds amazing with roasting of pineapple. Defo next level.
I will shortly be making carrot cake so has come at the perfect time! Is the tinned pineapple a 432g and once drained of juice the pineapple weight is then 397g? I use Dole.
Hope to hear from you soon. Thank you.
Jane Coupland
Hi Deborah, ah thanks for bringing this to my attention – for some reason I had 397g in my head! But yes, I used Dole in my trial bakes and it was the 432g tin. I’ll update the recipe card 🙂
Deborah
Thank you for swift response. I’ve been asked to make a carrot cake this week for a birthday.🎂 So, deviating from the regular one and rolling with your elevated cake! 🍍🥥 I’m excited to bake but a little anxious given first time of making. Your recipes always a winner🏆 so here goes!😋👍🥕👩🏻🍳🤣
Jane Coupland
I hope you enjoy this cake – don’t forget to use a fork and a plate as it’s as messy as it is delicious 🙂