Raspberry, lime and coconut poke cake

Prep Cook Serves Cost 10 min 1 hr 8

About 70p a head

For the cake

120g desiccated coconut, plus 1 tbsp extra for the icing 200ml tinned coconut milk

100ml whole milk (or a plant-based alternative)

Juice of ½ lime 300g self-raising flour

250g caster sugar 75ml oil

For the ‘poke’ 200g raspberries 1 tbsp sugar

For the icing

Juice and finely grated zest of ½ lime 15ml tinned coconut milk

100g icing sugar

Poke cake is a brilliantly simple idea: poke a cake with a spoon handle, pour another flavour into the holes, and it eventually infuses the cake.

Heat the oven to 190C (170C fan)/ gas 5, and line a 900g loaf tin or 20cm square or round tin with greaseproof paper. Put the extra tablespoon of desiccated coconut in a small oven dish and toast in the oven – keep an eye on it. Once golden, mix in the lime zest and set aside.

Shake the coconut milk in its tin, measure 200ml into a bowl and whisk in the whole milk and lime juice – it will thicken slightly.

Whisk the flour, 120g desiccated coconut and caster sugar in a large bowl. Mix the oil into the coconut milk bowl. Make a well in the centre of the dry ingredients, then pour in the wet and fold in – don’t overmix. Pour into the tin and bake for 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, put the raspberries, sugar and a couple tablespoons of water in a small pan, cover and cook until the berries collapse and their consistency is like a runny jam. Take off the heat and leave to cool.

When the cake is baked, transfer the tin to a rack and, once it’s cool, prod it all over with the handle of a wooden spoon so it goes halfway through the cake. Pour the raspberry mix evenly over the cake, spreading it out so it goes into the holes, then leave to sit until it’s all been absorbed.

Mix 15ml coconut milk and the lime juice in a bowl, then stir in the icing sugar bit by bit, until the mix takes on a thick, drizzling consistency. Lift the cake out of its tin, zigzag the icing over the top, and finish with a scattering of lime zest and the toasted coconut.

Rosie Sykes is a chef and food writer. Her next book, Every Last Bite: 70 Recipes to Save Time, Money and Resources, will be published in 2024