This Oatmeal Cake with Broiled Coconut Topping has to be one of the best cakes I have ever eaten! The addition of old-fashioned oats make it a super moist and delicious cake. But the best part is that you don’t have to wait too long for it to cool before you can eat it.
After baking, you prepare the topping while the cake cools slightly. Spread the warm topping over the cake, pop it under the broiler for a few minutes, and voilà, in a relatively short amount of time you are eating cake!
The topping is reminiscent of a thin caramel but enhanced with coconut and pecans. It’s irresistibly tasty!
I usually have most of the ingredients for this cake in my pantry. Thankfully, I need to pick up coconut specifically, or I’d make this far too often (and struggle to stick to my 80/20 eating plan). I’m pretty sure Lee and I polished off this whole cake in about 2 days.
There are many versions of old-fashioned oatmeal cake online. This recipe closely resembles the one I enjoyed as a child. Pillsbury’s has a slightly different ratio of ingredients as mine. Southern Living has yet another version. And food.com has a version that has raisins in it.
I combined a cake recipe and a topping recipe from different sources long ago, jotting them down in a notebook. While I can’t recall the original sources, I’m confident this version is perfect.
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Ingredients
See recipe card for exact amounts.
Ingredient Notes
- Oats: Rolled oats work best, though I have not tried them quick oats should also work.
- Coconut: This is a key ingredient in the topping and we use sweetened coconut because it’s what is readily available at the grocery store. You can use unsweetened since brown sugar is added.
- Butter: Unsalted butter is preferred, but salted butter works in a pinch.
- Sugar: A combination of white sugar and light brown sugar create a moist cake. Brown sugar is also used in the topping.
- Eggs: Essential for richness, moisture, and binding the ingredients.
- Milk: Whole milk is ideal, but 2% or low-fat milk will also work.
- Flour: All-purpose flour is best for this recipe.
- Baking Soda: Helps the cake rise.
- Salt: Enhances flavor in baked goods.
- Nuts: Chopped pecans are traditional, but walnuts can be used as an alternative.
- Vanilla: Pure vanilla extract is recommended, though vanilla flavoring works too.
How to make delicious oatmeal cake
Make the cake:
- Pre-heat oven to 350° and spray a 9″ X 13″ pan with nonstick cooking spray.
- Pour boiling water over the oats in a small bowl. Mix the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in another bowl. Set both aside.
- In a large bowl, cream the butter, brown sugar, sugar, and eggs with an electric mixer.
- Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture alternately with the oat mixture.
- Pour the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
Make the topping:
- Combine butter, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in small saucepan over medium heat. Heat to boiling and boil 3 – 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in 1/2 cup coconut and pecans. Spread over the warm cake. Sprinkle with remaining coconut.
- Broil until coconut is toasted, 5 – 7 minutes.
- Let the cake cool for about 15 minutes before cutting.
Tips
- Let eggs come to room temperature for better results.
- If you don’t have a hand or stand mixer, you can mix the batter by hand with a large spoon.
- I add 1/3 flour mixture, then 1/2 the oat mixture, then another 1/3 flour, the other half of the oats, and finally the remaining 1/3 flour mixture.
- Be sure to watch the cake closely when you are browning the coconut. If the cake is closer the to the flame or heating element in the oven it may brown very fast. Check it after 2-3 minutes and very often while it’s under the broiler.
Storage
Store at room temperature in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
How to freeze this cake
The cake freezes beautifully, even with the broiled topping! Wrap individual pieces of baked cake in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container, we use zip top freezer bags.
Defrost in the refrigerator for a couple of hours or on the counter for about 30 minutes.
Make these easy cake recipes next!
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Oatmeal Cake with Broiled Coconut Pecan Topping
Ingredients
Cake Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 cups boiling water
- 1 cup old fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup butter softened
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
Topping Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup butter 1 stick
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup shredded coconut divided
- 1/2 cup chopped pecans
- cooking spray
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Instructions
For the cake:
- Preheat oven to 350° and spray a 13" X 9" pan with cooking spray.cooking spray
- Pour hot water over the oats in a small bowl. Mix the flour, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in another bowl. Set both aside.1 1/2 cups boiling water, 1 cup old fashioned oats, 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 tsp baking soda, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp cinnamon
- Cream butter, brown sugar, sugar, and eggs with an electric mixer.1/2 cup butter, 1 cup brown sugar, 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs
- Add flour mixture to creamed mixture alternately with oat mixture.
- Pour into prepared pan and bake for 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean.
For the topping:
- Combine butter, brown sugar, milk and vanilla in small saucepan over medium heat. Heat to boiling and boil 3 – 4 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in 1/2 cup coconut and pecans. Spread over warm cake. Sprinkle with remaining coconut. Broil until coconut is toasted, 5 – 7 minutes, see note below.1/2 cup butter, 1/2 cup brown sugar, 1/4 cup milk, 1 tsp vanilla, 1 cup shredded coconut, 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Notes
Nutrition Facts
The cake is moist and delicious. However, I didn’t care for the topping. It was too runny and the brown sugar left an almost burnt caramel taste in my mouth. Maybe I was expecting it to taste like the frosting on a German chocolate cake?
Maybe, this is not supposed to be thick like the frosting on a German Chocolate cake but more like a topping that oozes down into the cake.
This looks soooo good!!
Thank you, it is one of my favorites!