Vegetarian Recipes

Coconut Rum Cake

My love for rum cakes runs deep. If yours does too, this is the cake for you. It’s hard to tell from the photo, but this beauty is basically a toasted coconut macaroon in cake form – doused in rum. It has a strip of freeze-dried raspberries baked in, but if you prefer pineapple, that swap is also really great. Sometimes I skip the fruit all together & let the rum really take center stage. A dusting of powdered sugar before serving makes it pretty.

Fruit or No fruit? What Kind?

You can see the strip of fruit (raspberries) in the rum cake in the photos above and below here. I’ve been using freeze-dried fruit a lot in my baking lately because it has incredibly intensity, color, and none of the moisture that goes along with fresh or frozen fruit. It works particularly well in cookies, cakes, quick breads, crusts, etc. Not as great for fruity fillings, although you could use it as a boost or accent as a percentage of the overall filling.

Rum Cake Add-Ins

Aside from the raspberries, the recipe below is quite straightforward, a great coconut rum cake canvas. From there you can take in in oh-so-many directions. Sometimes I add spices – a bit of Vietnamese cinnamon or freshly grated nutmeg is alway welcome. Grated makrut lime is amazing if you use freeze-dried pineapple in place of the raspberries. To be honest, you can’t really go wrong adding citrus zest in general – lime, lemon, Meyer lemon, orange – or a blend. All good. Last idea – how about a Dark ‘N’ Stormy rum cake? You could add dried ginger, candied ginger, and/or grated ginger. Along with the coconut? Yes please.

What Type of Rum Makes the Best Rum Cake?

Like most other recipes that call for alcohol in them, use wine (or in this case rum), choose something you drink anyway. It should taste delicious. On the rum front for this recipe there is a range of rums to choose from. I like a good-quality dark or spiced rum for this cake – the more flavor the better.

Transferring the Cake Batter into the Pan

I just want to call out the way I build this cake. I fill the baking pan two-thirds full with cake batter, and then sprinkle with the raspberries. After that I use a fork to poke and work the berries down into the batter just a bit. Lastly, top with the remaining batter (see below), and give the whole pan a couple good thwaps on your counter. This gives you a nice, condensed stripe of berries along the base of the finished rum cake. You could, of course, fold the raspberries into the batter along with the rest of the flour mixture, so they’re more evenly dispersed, but I like this version best.

How to Apply the Rum Syrup

This cake itself isn’t huge, but it can take on a good amount of rum. You can see my set up in the photo below. That is the cake hot out of the oven, just turned out of the pan. It is on a cooking rack arranged over a rimmed baking sheet. The rim on on the baking sheet keeps any run-away rum in the pan and off the counter. Be sure to brush the rum syrup all over the tops, sides, and inside the center of the cake.

Turning Cake into Rum Cake

There are other ways to get the rum syrup into the cake as well. You can pour half of it over the cake while it is still warm and in the pan. Turn the cake out after that and finish by topping it with the remaining rum. I like this approach in theory, and you’ll see it used in alot of other recipes, but the syrup tends to break down the crumb of the cake a bit, and you’re more likely to have trouble getting the cake out of the pan. I play it safe, and glaze after the turnout.

The finished rum cake dusted with lots of powdered sugar just before serving.

Here’s a close-up of a cross-section of the cake…

What type of Coconut?

One last thing, you really want to get the coconut right here. The key is unsweetened, dried coconut. And it’s important that it is finely grated. I see a lot of big-flake coconut in the stores now, and I love it, but it’s not right for this cake. If you want to get that nice, moist crumb you see in the pics, get the finely grated – I usually grab the Bob’s Red Mill brand for this cake if I see it in the store.

I hope you really enjoy this rum cake! It’s incredibly moist, tasty, and versatile. Aside from this cake I’ve been doing a lot of baking lately, both sweet and savory. I call out a few recent favorites that you might also enjoy as well. There’s this beautiful braided onion bread, this zucchini bread, cinnamon rolls forever, and this easy little bread made with rolled oats and whole wheat flours. These brownies are my absolute favorite, and everyone loves this Violet Bakery Chocolate Devils’ Food Cake. Happy baking! -h

Coconut Rum Cake

The cake bakes right to the edge (pictured above) of a 6-cup pan which can make some bakers a bit nervous. If that’s you, bump up to a 7-cup bundt pan. I’ve also had success using a 1-lb loaf pan (8.5-inch x 4-1/2-inch) for this cake, but you will need to bake the cake significantly longer for the middle to set.

INGREDIENTS

Rum Syrup:

1/3 cup / 65g sugar
2/3 cup / 160ml rum

The Cake:

- 9 tablespoons / 135g unsalted butter, room temp, plus more for the pan
- 3 eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups / 140g finely grated unsweetened coconut
- 1 1/2 cups / 300g sugar
- 1 1/2 cups / 190g unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon / 4g baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon / 3g fine grain sea salt
- 3/4 cup / 180 ml buttermilk
- 1- ounce / 28g freeze-dried raspberries, crushed a bit
- Powered sugar, for serving

INSTRUCTIONS

Make the Rum Syrup:

Combine the 1/3 cup sugar with 1/3 cup water in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a simmer and stir until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat, stir in the rum and allow to cool to room temperature while you work on the rest of the cake.

Make the Rum Cake:

1. If you haven’t already done so, allow your butter and eggs to come up to room temperature. Preheat your oven to 350F with a rack in the center.
2. Prepare the pan. Butter and flour (or coconut flake) a 6-cup bundt pan (see the head notes for alternate pan size ideas). Set prepared pan aside.
3. Combine the coconut and a big spoonful of the sugar in a food processor (or blender). Pulse until the coconut breaks down into tiny dry flecks. Stop short of the coconut breaking down into any sort of paste. You’re after a coarse coconut meal texture. Whisk this coconut mixture in a medium bowl along with the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
4. Make the batter. Using a mixer (or by hand), beat the butter until creamy. Add the sugar and continue to mix until uniform. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl a few times along the way. Gradually add the buttermilk, mixing until it is just incorporated. Fold in the flour mixture, mixing just until the batter is uniform. Transfer 2/3 of the batter immediately to the pan, sprinkle with the raspberries, and then use a fork to press the berries into the batter a bit, you want to make sure they are pushed into the batter, so you don’t end up with any dry pockets. Cover the berries with the remaining cake batter, and rap on the counter a few times to knock out any air bubbles.
5. Bake for 45-55 minutes or until a cake tester to the center comes out clean. If you’re baking in a loaf pan, this can take quite a bit more time. When done baking, remove from the oven, wait five minutes, and turn out onto a cake rack arranged over a rimmed baking sheet. Brush, with the cake right side up, all over with the rum syrup. I usually do this in two batches, letting the cake absorb the first half of the syrup first. Wait ten minutes, then apply the rest of the syrup.
6. Serve dusted generously with powdered sugar.
7. This cake stores beautifully, wrapped and refrigerated, for days. Bring back to room temperature to serve, redusting with more powdered sugar if needed.

NOTES

Serves 12.

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Cheesy Vegetarian

Easy Vegetable Moussaka Casserole

Just like vegetable lasagne, vegetarian moussaka is one of those dishes that I adore, but I rarely cook for myself, because it always seems like such a huge effort. Cooking lentils, boiling potatoes, grilling slices of eggplant, simmering tomato sauce… the vast majority of the time, I really, truly can not be bothered.

That’s why this vegetable moussaka casserole is such a revelation! It’s a casserole-style version of my favourite veggie moussaka, which tastes just the same, but is so much less effort to make! Just stick everything in a baking dish and let it do its thing, casserole-style.

A spoon taking a scoop from a baking dish of cheesy moussaka casserole.

This moussaka casserole has two sections:

a tasty tomatoey layer underneath, made with all the usual ingredients you’d expect to find in a vegetable moussaka – tender lentils, melt-in-your-mouth eggplant and roasted potatoes, cooked in a rich tomato sauce
a thick layer of creamy bechamel sauce on top

As you scoop into the casserole, the creamy sauce drips down and smothers the tomatoey layer. It. Is. Delicious.

How is this Easier than a Regular Vegetarian Moussaka?

I’m not going to lie, this vegetable moussaka casserole takes quite a long time to bake, and the ingredients list is a fair bit longer than the majority of my easy recipes.

However, I stand by the fact that this is so much easier to make than most moussaka recipes. Although it takes a while to cook, it’s almost all hands-off time, where you can go and relax / do some other useful jobs / play with your kids / whatever else you like to do with your life.

Vegetarian moussaka casserole topped with sliced tomato.

This vegetarian moussaka casserole is easy to make because:

using canned lentils mean there’s no boiling required.
the vegetables are roasted in the oven, rather than the more hands-on method of cooking them on the stovetop.
there’s no fiddly layering of sliced ingredients – it’s all baked up together.
even the tomatoey sauce is cooked right there in the oven with the other ingredients.

It’s definitely not a quick weeknight dinner, but if you’re at home over the weekend, it’s the perfect dish to have baking in the oven while you’re busy with other things.

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Overhead shot of a cheesy topped moussaka casserole with sliced tomatoes.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to make this recipe. See the printable recipe card below for detailed ingredient quantities.

potatoes
eggplant (aubergine)
canned lentils (mine were green lentils)
onion – I only used half an onion (a small onion would also work!)
canned tomatoes
tomato paste
garlic – I used pre-minced garlic from a jar (my favourite time-saving ingredient!)
dried herbs – mint and oregano. I very rarely use dried mint but trust me, it tastes amazing in moussaka! Not a hint of toothpaste, I promise.
tomato – to slice up for the topping
milk, flour and butter – for the creamy white sauce. You can add a pinch of nutmeg to it as well, if you like.

Becca’s Top Tip

I used the same baking dish to roast up my vegetables, and then to cook the casserole itself. If you’ve got a little less time on your hands, the veggies will actually roast a little quicker if you spread them out on a baking tray – but I wanted to save on dishes to wash! I love a one pot meal.

Recipe Video

Overhead shot of a portion of vegetable moussaka with salad.

Printable Instructions

Vegetable Moussaka Casserole

This vegetable moussaka casserole is a much easier version of a vegetarian moussaka – but is just as tasty, with a luxurious creamy topping!

Course Main Course

Cuisine Greek, Middle Eastern, Turkish

Diet Vegetarian

Prep Time 25

Cook Time 1 35

Total Time 2

Servings

Calories 523kcal

Author Becca Heyes

Ingredients

For the lentil layer:

1 medium eggplant (aubergine) (~ 250g / ~ 9 oz)
~ 500g (~ 1 lb) potatoes
1 medium onion (or 1/2 large onion)
2 Tbsp oil
400 g tinned lentils, drained (240g, or ~ 1 1/4 cups, when drained)
400 g tin (~ 1 1/3 cups) chopped tomatoes
1 Tbsp tomato puree
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp dried mint
1/2 tsp dried oregano

For the topping:

60 g (~ 2 oz) butter
60 g (~ 2 oz) plain flour
500 ml (~ 2 cups) milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 large tomato, sliced

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 190°C (Gas Mark 5 / 375°F).
Cut the eggplant, potatoes and onion into 2cm dice (I didn’t bother peeling the potatoes). Toss them in a little oil, and add to a baking dish – mine measured approx. 8 x 8 inches.
Roast the vegetables in the centre of the oven for around 50 minutes, stirring once or twice during cooking, or until the vegetables are fairly soft (the potatoes might still be a bit al dente). If you decide to spread the vegetables out onto a baking tray instead of using the dish, they will cook more quickly.
Add the tinned lentils, tinned tomatoes, tomato puree, garlic, and dried herbs, and mix well to combine.
Return to the oven for a further 30 minutes, until the tomatoes have thickened up into a rich sauce. Mix well.
To make the béchamel topping, melt the butter in a saucepan over a medium-low heat, and add the flour. Mix to create a thick paste (a roux), and cook for a minute or so, stirring constantly. Add the milk a little at a time, stirring until smooth each time before adding more milk. Season to taste with salt. If you need more detailed instructions, check out my white sauce recipe.
Pour the béchamel sauce over the lentil mixture, and top with a few slices of tomato.
Return to the oven for a final 25 minutes, or until the topping is lightly browned.
Allow to stand for a few minutes, then serve.

Nutrition

Recipe FAQs

Can I prepare moussaka in advance?

Absolutely! The casserole can either be cooked entirely and then reheated when needed, or you can assemble it, then do the final bake just before serving.

Can I freeze leftover moussaka?

Moussaka is perfect for batch cooking – just transfer any leftovers to a freezer-safe tub, and freeze. Reheat thoroughly in the microwave.