Before I say any more about the recipe, I need to preface this by saying that these cakes are 100% gluten-free. I used coconut flour for additional natural coconut flavor(since coconut flour is just finely ground up coconut flakes) and mochiko(glutinous rice flour) for that stability. You can substitute the mochiko and upwards to half of the coconut flour, and all of the xanthan gum with all-purpose flour if you do not have a gluten intolerance, but when I was writing out this recipe, I figured I would fully commit to making it gluten-free, since using coconut flour kind of already put me halfway there in that general direction. I wanted to go with coconut-white chocolate specifically because I felt like the textural contrast between the soft coconut cake and the occasional crunch of a white chocolate chip sounded pretty delightful. But I did not want to just stop there with the cake itself. I love adding a little bit of fun to my recipes and ideas, so for this one, I included an interactive element. By adding an acetate ring on top of the bundt cakes, I could fill that with an oozy, flowing sauce that when you pull the acetate off the cake, it will flow over the cake and glaze it. These kinds of lava bundt cakes are super cute and fun to make, and it just felt like the best way to guarantee a. there is prominent coconut flavor in this recipe, and b. the cake won’t dry out, since the glaze/sauce will really soak into it. For those of you who don’t have acetate, you can make this recipe without the acetate, by simply filling the bundts with the glaze. You won’t have the fun theatre of pulling up the acetate and seeing the cascade of glaze coat the exterior of the cakes, but it will still be a similar eating experience!

For the cake itself, since I wanted the recipe to be an inescapable coconut purgatory, we are using coconut oil, coconut milk, and coconut flour in the batter. With gluten-free flours, you run the risk of the end product made from them tasting dry, chalky, or sandy. While I would normally do something more pound cake-like for this kind of bundt cake, which means that you would only use flour, sugar, eggs, and butter, I included coconut milk in the recipe to help hydrate the flours better. I used xanthan gum as my binder in lieu of gluten, and just so the cake does not run the risk of being dense, some baking powder for that extra leavening. I tossed my white chocolate with the other dry ingredients, since this will help coat the chips and keep them from sinking to the bottom of the cakes as they bake. I also used 4-inch mini bundt cake molds to bake my cakes in, just so that these minit bundts take less time to bake – the bundts took about 30 minutes to bake all the way through, just because of how rich the batter is, so I dread to think about how long a giant version of this cake would take. For the glaze, it is essentially a coconut-white chocolate ganache, but made a lot looser than you would a ganache that would be used in truffles, just so that it stays saucy in most temperatures. If you love coconut or are looking for a gluten-free recipe that is relatively easy to prepare, I highly recommend these cakes! They came together in less than an hour, and really check the box for any coconut dessert cravings you may have!

Makes 6 bundt cakes:
For the cake batter:
3oz coconut oil
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3oz coconut milk
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup coconut flour
1/2 cup mochiko
14 cup chopped white chocolate chips
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 1/4 tsps baking powder
a pinch of salt

In a bowl, start by whipping together coconut oil and granulated sugar. In another bowl, whisk together the coconut milk, egg, and vanilla – these will consist of your wet ingredients. In a third bowl, sift together the coconut flour, mochiko, and to that, mix in the white chocolate, xanthan gum, baking powder, and salt – these will form your dry ingredients. To the coconut oil, alternate between adding in the dry, then wet ingredients, in three parts of each, stirring the coconut oil with the dry and wet ingredients upon each addition. Eventually, you’ll have your batter. Transfer the batter to a piping bag, and cut about 1 inch off the tip. Line 4-inch mini bundt cake molds with some coconut oil and fill each mold all the way with your batter – I managed to get 6 total out of this recipe. Bake at 350 degrees F for 25 minutes. Allow the bundt cakes to cool completely before unmolding.

For the coconut glaze:
4oz coconut milk
3oz white chocolate chips
a pinch of salt
1 tbsp coconut oil

In a pot, melt everything down together. Allow the mixture to come down to lukewarm before attempting to use in the assembly process.

To garnish:
Coconut flakes

Toast the coconut flakes at 350 degrees F for 5-6 minutes.

For assembly:
Using acetate and tap, cut out and form 3 inch in diameter by 1/2 inch in height rings of acetate, using the tap to hold them together in ring shape. Press the acetate rings into each bundt cake, and transfer the bundt cakes to their desired serving surfaces. Fill the bundts with the glaze, filling them to about halfway up the acetate rings, and then sprinkle coconut flakes on top to finish.