Creamy, dreamy and keto! Low carb coconut cream poke cake. This tender, delicious dessert is low carb and grain-free. Here’s to a healthy treat!
This poke cake thing has cast a spell over me, I think. Heretofore, I didn’t care overly much for them and I didn’t really get the appeal. I suppose it’s because my first introduction to them was the kind that used icky sugar-free Jello and was an abnormal shade of pink on the inside. I’ve never been much of a Jello fan, even when I could eat the kind with sugar. I think I was served too many boxed gelatin desserts at the camps I used to attend every summer. Whenever I saw the wobbly blobs of brightly coloured, overly sweetened Jello coming my way, I sighed with disappointment. Offer me anything but Jello, please. Chocolate, cookies, pudding, ice cream, but please, no more Jello!
But poke cakes are so much more than boxed white cake mix with strawberry Jello poured over them these days. Really creative versions started catching my eye on Pinterest, these amazingly moist cakes with mounds of creamy frosting. I’ve seen Cinnamon Roll Poke Cake, Cannoli Poke Cake, Pina Colada Poke Cake, Triple Chocolate Poke Cake, Carrot Cake Poke Cake, Samoa Poke Cake, Apple Pie Poke Cake. Seriously, head to Pinterest and type “poke cake” into the search box and you will be aghast at all the amazing variations. Go on, I dare you. You won’t be able to tear your little eyes away. You may get lost in Poke Cake Land, gazing at all the delicious creations, forever. Well, there could be worse ways to go, I guess.
Many of these creations may indeed still be made with boxed mixes. Boxed cake mix, boxed pudding, boxed Jello, I don’t know. I don’t usually even click through to the recipe because none of these poke cakes are appropriate for a low carb or gluten-free diet. But I can still find plenty of inspiration for making creative and healthy poke cakes. I foresee a whole line of these, my dears. I don’t think I can help myself.
This lovely light cake is based on my low carb Coconut Cream Pie Recipe. Although I did top mine with whipped cream, you could make it completely dairy-free by topping it with some coconut whipped cream.
Also be sure to check out this creamy Dairy-Free Coconut Custard from What the Fork. It should be easy to make low carb with your favourite sweetener and some xanthan gum.
Coconut Cream Poke Cake
Ingredients
Cake:
- 2 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1 cup shredded coconut
- 3/4 cup Swerve Sweetener
- 1/3 cup unflavoured whey protein powder or egg white powder for dairy-free
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup coconut oil melted
- 5 large egg whites
- 1 cup unsweetened almond or coconut milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Coconut Cream:
- 1 cup full fat canned coconut milk
- 1/4 cup powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1/4 tsp coconut extract
- 1/4 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/8 tsp xanthan gum
Topping:
- 1 cup whipping cream
- 3 tbsp powdered Swerve Sweetener
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/3 cup unsweetened shredded coconut lightly toasted
Instructions
Cake:
- Preheat oven to 325F and grease a 9x9 inch square baking pan (if using an 8x8 inch, the cake will need to bake a bit longer).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, shredded coconut, sweetener, protein powder, baking powder and salt. Stir in coconut oil, egg whites, nut milk and vanilla extract until well combined.
- Spread batter in prepared baking pan and bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until set and a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let cool 15 minutes, then poke with a skewer at 1/2 inch intervals all over cake.
Coconut Cream:
- In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut milk and sweetener and bring to just a simmer.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the egg and egg yolk. Slowly stir in about 1/3 of the hot coconut milk, whisking continuously. Then slowly whisk egg mixture back into hot coconut milk.
- Cook another 4 to 5 minutes, whisking continuously, until mixture begins to thicken. Remove from heat and whisk in coconut extract and vanilla extract. Sprinkle surface with xanthan gum and whisk briskly to combine.
- Pour mixture evenly over cooled cake, shaking gently from side to side to get as much mixture into the poke holes as possible.
- Refrigerate 2 hours until completely cooled.
Topping:
- Whip cream with powdered sweetener and vanilla extract until stiff peaks form. Spread over chilled cake and sprinkle with toasted coconut.
- *For a dairy-free version, you can make coconut whipped cream by refrigerating a can of coconut milk overnight and scooping out the thick cream from the top the next day. Whip with sweetener and vanilla extract until firm.
