Description

Traditional Australian lamingtons are light, fluffy sponge cake cubes coated in a glossy chocolate icing and rolled in shredded coconut. This recipe produces 32 perfectly sized lamingtons, ideal for parties or teatime, with a rich chocolate coating and soft interior. The cake is baked to a tender crumb, then dipped in a luscious chocolate glaze made with dark chocolate and butter, and finally rolled in desiccated coconut for the classic texture and flavor.

Ingredients

Scale

Cake

200 g unsalted butter, softened
230 g caster sugar (superfine sugar)
185 g plain flour (all-purpose flour)
10 g baking powder
40 g cornflour (cornstarch)
3 eggs
125 ml milk
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Chocolate Icing

200 g dark chocolate (60-70% cocoa)
15 g unsalted butter
500 g icing sugar (powdered sugar), sifted
125 ml milk, plus more as needed

Coating

325 g desiccated coconut (shredded coconut)

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Instructions

Prepare Ingredients: Ensure the butter, eggs, and milk are at room temperature to prevent curdling of the batter, which can cause a dense cake. You can make the cake the night before for best results.
Preheat Oven and Prepare Pan: Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F) without fan. Butter a baking pan approximately 17 x 27 x 4 cm (7 x 11 x 1.5 inches) and line the bottom with greaseproof paper.
Make the Cake Batter Using Food Processor: Place all cake ingredients into a food processor and blitz until combined. If batter looks curdled, blitz a bit longer until smooth.
Make the Cake Batter by Hand or Stand Mixer: Cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy (2-3 minutes on low speed). Add flour, baking powder, and cornflour and mix to combine. Whisk eggs, milk and vanilla in a jug, and slowly add the liquids to the batter. Mix until combined without over-mixing.
Bake the Cake: Pour the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 30-35 minutes until a skewer comes out clean. If browning too fast, cover with foil after 20 minutes.
Cool the Cake: Let the cake cool in the pan for 5 minutes. Turn it out onto a wire rack with the bottom facing up to flatten the top while cooling. Remove baking paper.
Make Chocolate Icing: Melt butter and chocolate gently over a bain-marie. Add sifted icing sugar and whisk in milk to create a thick but slightly runny glaze. Keep warm over low heat.
Trim and Cut Sponge: Using a serrated knife, trim edges of the sponge as a treat for the cook. Cut into 32 equal squares, remembering they will enlarge when coated.
Coat Lamingtons: Pour desiccated coconut on a large plate. Dip each sponge piece into chocolate icing using forks to coat all sides, letting excess drip off, then roll in coconut. Place on wire rack to dry.
Finish and Set: Repeat dipping and coating for all pieces. If the icing thickens, whisk in a little more milk to thin. Allow lamingtons to set on the wire rack for 30-60 minutes before serving.

Notes

Using room temperature ingredients prevents batter curdling and ensures a lighter cake texture.
Make the cake a day ahead to save time and allow it to set perfectly before coating.
If you don’t have a food processor, stand mixer or mixing by hand works well.
Keep the chocolate icing warm and fluid over a bain-marie while dipping the lamingtons to make coating easier.
The coconut coating adds the traditional texture and flavor and prevents the cake from being overly sticky.
Store lamingtons in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days; best eaten fresh.