Pina Colada Cake

Pina Colada Cake! I’ve turned the classic cocktail into a fabulous layer cake. Velvety white cake is doused with plenty of coconut rum syrup then it’s layered with creamy coconut-rum frosting and pineapple curd.

How to make the best Pina Colada Cake:

There are three essential ingredients in the classic Pina Colada Cocktail:

  1. Rum
  2. Coconut milk
  3. Pineapple juice

To create a cake version of the cocktail I needed to include those three components.

  1. The rum? Well, what’s a cake named after a cocktail without plenty of the good stuff? The rum is brushed onto the cake as a syrup, it’s mixed into the frosting and it’s added to the pineapple filling.
  2. The coconut milk? Naturally, a “milk” frosting is the perfect way to add coconut to the cake. There’s also a good dose of coconut milk in the syrup and the cake is coated with shredded coconut for a final flourish.
  3. The pineapple juice? We use the juice to make a luscious curd filling for our Pina Colada cake.

A word of caution: Don’t be tempted to use fresh pineapple thinking it would be better than canned juice. This is one case where the fresh fruit is not the best option. Why?

When I use fruit curd as a cake filling I add a little gelatin as a stabilizer. Most fruit curds set soft, like a jam. A soft curd would just ooze out of the cake layers without a little help. The gelatin helps the filling keep it’s shape when the cake is sliced.

But pineapple poses a problem for any recipe that contains gelatin.

Why can’t I use gelatin with fresh pineapple?

Gelatin is an animal by-product made up of proteins. When gelatin is mixed into a hot liquid (like fruit juice) the molecules are free to move around. A warm gelatin solution is a free-flowing liquid.

As the solution cools down and the molecules move more slowly, the proteins form links. The protein links trap the water in the solution. The cooled gelatin solution is no longer free-flowing. The liquid has become a solid gel.

Fresh pineapple (and papaya, melon, and kiwi) contains a chemical called bromelain. Bromelain contains protein-digesting enzymes. If you add fresh pineapple to a recipe with gelatin, those enzymes will continuously break down the proteins in the gelatin, preventing them from linking-up to form the gel.

When pineapple is heated the enzymes are deactivated, so they no longer prevent the gelatin from setting up. So, for any recipe that includes gelatin you must use canned (or cooked) pineapple instead of fresh. 

Now, lets see how to make this fabulously boozy Pina Colada Cake:

Scroll through the process photos to see exactly how to make this recipe:

two cakes pans filled with white cake batter.
Bake the Velvety White Cake in two 8″x3″ cake pans.
A bowl with gelatin and butter. A pot with eggs and sugar and a cup of juice being poured into a pot.
1. Bloom the gelatin in rum and put butter in the same bowl. 2. Mix the eggs and sugar. 3. Add the pineapple juice.
pineapple curd cooking in a pot. A spatula coated with pineapple curd.
Cook the custard over medium-low heat until it coats the back of the spatula.
Pouring pineapple curd through a sieve over butter in a bowl.
1. Strain the pineapple curd into the bowl with the gelatin and butter. 2. Stir until the butter is melted.
pouring coconut milk into a pot of sugar syrup.
Pour coconut milk and rum into the sugar syrup.
a pot with coconut pudding. A bowl of whipped frosting.
1. Cook the coconut milk with the sugar and flour to make pudding. 2. Add the rum and vanilla. 3. Add the pudding to the creamed butter. 4. Whip the frosting until light and fluffy.
Cake layers, a bowl of coconut, a bowl of pineapple curd, a bowl of frosting, a jar of cherries, a piping bag, spatula, pastry brush and a scraper.
Gather all the components to assemble the cake.
a pastry brush on a cake layer. a layer of cake covered with frosting.
1. Brush the first layer with the coconut rum syrup. 2. Spread frosting over the layer.
a cake layer with a dam of frosting. a bowl of pineapple curd and a cake layer covered with pineapple curd.
1. Pipe a dam of frosting around the second layer. 2. Use a spatula to loosen up the pineapple curd. 3. Spread the curd on the layer.
a cake layer covered with frosting.
Cover the third layer with frosting.
an uniced layer cake and an iced layer cake.
1. Place the fourth layer on the cake. 2. Ice the cake with a crumb coating and chill until set.
A hand pressing coconut to the side of a cake. A piping bag piping a rosette on a cake. A spatula spreading pineapple curd on top of a cake.
1. After the final coating of buttercream, cover the sides of the cake with coconut. 2. Pipe 16 rosettes on top. 3 Spread pineapple curd on top.

How to work ahead to make this cake:

  • The cakes can be baked ahead and kept at room temp, wrapped, for 1-2 days. The cake can also be frozen for up to a month. Defrost in the wrapping at room temperature.
  • The coconut rum syrup can be made 2-3 days ahead and refrigerated or frozen for up to a month.
  • The pineapple curd can be made 2-3 days ahead and refrigerated in a covered container or frozen for up to a month.
  • You can make the “pudding” for the frosting a day or two ahead and refrigerate. When you’re ready to assemble the cake bring the pudding back to room temperature, then whip the butter and finish making the frosting.
  • The fully assembled and crumb coated cake can be frozen and double wrapped. Save the extra frosting and curd in the refrigerator to finish decorating the cake. The icing will need to be brought back to room temperature and rewhipped before using.

If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a star rating and a quick comment. Ratings and comments help my recipes show in search results. Thanks!

Print Recipe
4.67 from 6 reviews

Pina Colada Cake Recipe

Velvety white cake is doused with plenty of coconut rum syrup and is layered with creamy coconut-rum frosting and pineapple curd.
Prep Time2 hours
Bake Time35 minutes
Total Time1 hour 35 minutes
16 servings
Save Recipe

Ingredients

Pineapple Curd

  • 1 1/2 teaspoons gelatin powder
  • 2 tablespoons rum
  • 3 oz unsalted butter
  • 3 each large eggs
  • 10 oz granulated sugar (1 1/4 cups)
  • 4 oz canned pineapple juice (1/2 cup)
  • 2 teaspoons lemon juice

Coconut Rum Syrup

  • 4 oz granulated sugar (1/2 cup)
  • 4 oz water (1/2 cup)
  • 1 oz rum
  • 4 oz coconut milk (1/2 cup)

Coconut Rum Frosting

  • 2 1/2 oz all purpose flour (1/2 cup)
  • 12 oz granulated sugar (1 1/2 cups)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 12 oz coconut milk (1 1/2 cups)
  • 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
  • 1 oz rum
  • 12 oz unsalted butter (1 1/2 cups, room temperature)

Assembly

  • 1 recipe Velvety White Cake ( baked in two 8"x3" pans)
  • 7 oz sweetened coconut flakes
  • 16 maraschino cherries

Instructions

Pineapple Curd

  • Bloom the gelatin in 2 tablespoons rum in a medium size bowl. Place the butter on top of the bloomed gelatin. Put a fine mesh sieve over the bowl and keep it near the stove.
    1 1/2 teaspoons gelatin powder, 2 tablespoons rum, 3 oz unsalted butter
  • Thoroughly combine the eggs and sugar in a medium saucepan. Add the pineapple juice and lemon juice. Heat the egg/juice mixture over medium low heat, stirring constantly. You must be sure to keep stirring across the entire bottom and corners of the pot so the custard does not have a chance to stick. The mixture will start out opaque with a fine white foam over the surface. As it heats up the curd will thicken, become more translucent and the foam will disappear. Cook until the curd coats the back of a wooden spoon and it JUST BEGINS to boil. Don't allow it to come to a full rolling boil.
    3 each large eggs, 10 oz granulated sugar, 4 oz canned pineapple juice, 2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • Immediately remove from the heat and pour through the sieve over the butter and gelatin. Stir until the butter and gelatin are melted and thoroughly incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and chill in the refrigerator until the gelatin is set, at least 3-4 hours.

Syrup

  • Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan and heat over medium high heat until all the sugar is dissolved. Remove the syrup from the heat. Add the rum and coconut milk and cool to room temperature. The syrup can be made several days ahead and refrigerated
    4 oz granulated sugar, 4 oz water, 1 oz rum, 4 oz coconut milk

Make the frosting

  • Combine the flour, sugar and salt in a small saucepan, whisk to combine. Slowly whisk in the coconut milk until smooth. Heat the mixture over medium low, whisking constantly, until it begins to boil.
    2 1/2 oz all purpose flour, 12 oz granulated sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, 12 oz coconut milk
  • Continue to cook and stir for 2-3 minutes until it thickens to a pudding-like texture. Immediately remove from the heat. Transfer to a small bowl, stir in the vanilla and the rum, cool to room temperature.
    1 tablespoon vanilla extract, 1 oz rum
  • Cream the butter until light and fluffy. With the mixer running on low add the pudding a little at a time until completely incorporated. Remove the beater from the mixer and scrape the bowl. Switch to the whisk attachment and whip the buttercream until it’s light and fluffy.
    12 oz unsalted butter

Assembly

  • Trim any browned edges off of each cake layer. Split each cake in half horizontally so you have 4 layers.
    1 recipe Velvety White Cake
  • Scoop 1 cup of frosting into a pastry bag fitted with a large star tip. The rest of the frosting is for filling and icing the cake.
  • Place the first cake layer on the serving platter and brush generously with 1/4 of the coconut-rum syrup. Scoop 1/4 of the frosting from the bowl onto the layer and spread evenly.
  • Place the second layer on the cake. Brush generously with the syrup. Pipe a "dam" of buttercream around the edge of the layer. Use a spatula to loosen up the pineapple curd so it's easier to spread. Spread 1 cup of the pineapple curd onto the layer within the dam.
  • Place the third layer on the cake and brush with syrup. Spread coconut filling over the layer and place the fourth layer on the cake. Brush the final layer with syrup.
  • Use some of the frosting to ice the cake with a thin "crumb coat", then refrigerate until firm. Use the remaining icing to frost the top and sides of the cake with a final coating. While the buttercream is still soft, coat the sides of the cake with coconut flakes.
    7 oz sweetened coconut flakes
  • Use the piping bag to pipe 16 rosettes around the top of the cake. Spread a 1/2 cup of pineapple curd within the rosette border. Place a maraschino cherry on each rosette.
    16 maraschino cherries
  • Refrigerate until 2-3 hours before serving. The cake is best when it has time to soften up at room temperature.

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Notes

The cake should be stored in the refrigerator. Take it out 2-3 hours before serving so it can come to room temperature before serving.

Nutrition

Serving: 1slice | Calories: 637kcal | Carbohydrates: 84g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 23g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 58mg | Sodium: 304mg | Potassium: 152mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 65g | Vitamin A: 668IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 89mg | Iron: 2mg
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3 Comments

    1. For the frosting and pineapple curd just leave the rum out. For the syrup add a little vanilla extract to the syrup to flavor it instead of the rum.