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More Sweet Things
Lemon & Coconut Fudge Blondie
Lemon and coconut slice is one of my favourite traybake cake recipes – light, fluffy, and packed with bright lemon flavour. The coconut adds a lovely texture and warmth, while the lemon keeps it fresh and zingy. It’s the kind of bake that works for everything from afternoon tea to school cake stalls. I usually finish it with a simple lemon icing and a sprinkle of extra coconut. Easy to make, easy to love, and perfect for slicing up and sharing… or not.
Ingredients
- 200 g unsalted butter
- 350 g caster sugar
- 4 large eggs
- 250 g plain flour
- 85 g desiccated coconut
- 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- Zest of 1 large lemon
- 1/2 tsp fine salt
- Icing sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C. Grease and line a 20 × 30 cm brownie tin with baking paper.
- Melt the butter gently over low heat or in the microwave, ensuring it does not boil. Allow it to cool slightly.
In a large bowl, whisk the melted butter and caster sugar together until smooth and glossy. - Add the eggs one at a time, whisking well after each addition until fully incorporated.
- Stir in the lemon juice, lemon zest, and salt.
- Sift the flour into the bowl and fold it through the batter until just combined. Do not overmix.
- Add the desiccated coconut and stir until evenly distributed.
- Pour the batter into the prepared tin and smooth the surface.
- Bake for 28 to 32 minutes, until the top is lightly golden and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.
- Allow the blondies to cool completely in the tin before lifting out and slicing.
- Dust lightly with icing sugar before serving.
Notes
- These blondies do not contain baking powder. Blondies should be dense and fudgy rather than light and cakey, so they rely on eggs for structure rather than chemical raising agents.
- Do not overbake. A skewer should come out with a few moist crumbs attached. If it comes out completely clean, the blondies may end up dry.
- Lemon zest provides most of the flavour. Only a small amount of juice is used to avoid adding too much liquid to the batter.
- Allow the blondies to cool fully before slicing. They continue to firm up as they cool, which helps create clean slices.
- A 20 × 30 cm tin produces medium thickness blondies. A smaller tin will create thicker blondies and may require a slightly longer baking time.
What I Cook With
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
per pieceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 281Total Fat: 15.6gSaturated Fat: 10.2gCholesterol: 71mgSodium: 164mgCarbohydrates: 34.4gFiber: 1.1gSugar: 24.2gProtein: 3.2g
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Lemon & Coconut Slice Recipe
A Bite of Nostalgia
One of the unspoken rules growing up was that you never visited someone without bringing something sweet. Whether it was Nan, a school friend, or one of mum’s many cousins, the kitchen routine was always the same: heat the oven, tie on an apron, and get something into the tin before heading out the door. This Lemon and Coconut Slice was our go-to traybake for decades, made so often we could whip it up without even glancing at a recipe. It was tart and sweet, chewy and moist, with just enough coconut to feel summery and a whisper of nostalgia in every bite. Somewhere along the way though, that original family recipe was lost – like so many things we never think to write down until it’s too late.
Losing the recipe didn’t mean losing the memories. I can still picture us kids standing around the bench, bickering over who got to zest the lemon or whether the coconut needed to be toasted (it didn’t). It was simple, honest baking. Years later, now living in Scotland, I started craving that traybake again – not just the taste, but what it meant. I had lemons in the fridge, desiccated coconut in the pantry, and a desire to show up with something thoughtful whenever I visited friends. So I recreated it. And let me tell you – this new Lemon and Coconut Slice might even be better than the original. Moist, dense, and just the right amount of fudge-y. It’s always a hit, whether for a weekend cuppa or as a quick thank you gift.
This version holds its shape beautifully when sliced, travels like a dream, and lasts well in the fridge for a few days (if it lasts that long). And if you’re anything like me, you’ll appreciate how easy it is to make. I never want a bake that requires a sink full of bowls and an hour of clean-up. This slice is quick, fuss-free, and absolutely delicious. Just make sure to let it cool before dusting it with icing sugar, otherwise it melts straight in – which, let’s be honest, I have done more than once when impatient.
Why I Always Weigh My Ingredients
One of the things I learned over the years, particularly with baking, is that cups and tablespoons can be wildly inconsistent. Especially when it comes to dry ingredients like flour and coconut. You scoop a cup of flour in July and you might get a completely different weight than if you do it in January. And don’t even get me started on how much coconut you can cram into a tablespoon depending on your mood. That’s why for this Lemon and Coconut Slice, I always weigh everything. It makes the process more predictable, which is ideal when you’re baking something to take to someone else’s house and need it to actually work.
Now, I know not everyone owns a kitchen scale, but they’re affordable and truly worth the investment if you do even a modest amount of baking. It takes the guesswork out of it, and gives you the kind of consistency that makes a recipe worth keeping. Especially with this slice, where you want the perfect balance of sweetness, lemon, and that chewy coconut texture. It’s not overly fancy – just the right kind of homely, like something your mum would wrap in foil and tuck into your schoolbag.
Even though I’ve made this slice dozens of times now, I still weigh each ingredient. It’s not about being precise in a snooty way – it’s about getting it right so that every tray is as good as the last. Because when you’re sharing something from your kitchen, you want it to taste like a hug in cake form. And this does exactly that.
The Lemon and Coconut Combo
There’s something about the mix of lemon and coconut that just sings. It’s bright, zesty, and reminds me of long weekends, Tupperware picnics, and those Sydney-sunny-but-not-hot spring days that feel like a reward for surviving winter. I always have lemons on hand, mostly because I put lemon juice in everything – from salad dressings to hot water in the morning – but it also means that a lemon-based bake is never far away.
For this recipe, I use fresh lemon juice because I always have it. But if you’re in a pinch and only have bottled, don’t stress – it works too. Just don’t skip the zest. That’s what gives this slice its real zing. That top note of lemon oil from the zest is what makes people take a second bite and ask, “Did you make this yourself?” And yes. Yes you did. You legend.
As for the coconut, make sure you’re using desiccated coconut rather than shredded or flaked. Desiccated blends better into the batter and gives that even texture we’re after. It also gives the slice a bit of body without turning it into something dry or crumbly. The result is something a little chewy, a little fudgy, and very hard to resist. Honestly, it’s one of those recipes where I cut myself a square and then go back five minutes later and even up the edges. Every. Single. Time.
Ingredients Breakdown
This recipe for Lemon and Coconut Slice uses pantry staples, which is exactly what makes it such a gem. Nothing fancy, nothing hard to find. The hero ingredients are, of course, lemons and desiccated coconut. The lemon provides both fresh juice and zest, bringing brightness and that signature citrus tang. It’s essential for balancing the sweetness and making the slice feel light and refreshing, even though it’s quite rich in texture.
The desiccated coconut gives the slice its structure and chewy body. It pairs beautifully with the lemon, creating a balance that is comforting without being cloying. Eggs are used to bind the slice and add richness, while caster sugar sweetens things up without overpowering. Flour adds bulk and ensures the texture is more cake than pudding, while melted salted butter (always salted!!) brings everything together and adds that slightly fudgy density.
Icing sugar is the final flourish, but make sure to wait until the slice has cooled completely before you dust it on. Otherwise, it just melts into the top like it never existed, and you miss out on that pretty snowy finish. Altogether, it’s a slice that looks lovely, tastes even better, and travels like a dream – which is probably why I’m always asked to bring it wherever I go.
This recipe was fabulous! It was super easy and so delicious. My whole family enjoyed and I’ll definitely be making again!
Hi Kim, may I ask if you used a whisk to mix all ingredients or do it by hand? Thanks
Hi Edel – for this recipe, I have used both electric, hand-held beaters, or a wooden spoon! As long as everything is well incorporated it’s entirely up to you and won’t change the texture of the lemon slice at all either way 🙂 xx
Thank you so much, sorry for late reply, a firm family favourite!!
I am so glad you all enjoy it!!
Lemon and coconut is one of my favorite flavor combinations. This cake is both gorgeous and delicious! The texture from the shredded coconut is one of my favorite parts.
They do look like white brownies, I can’t wait to try! Never thought of lemony brownies… Thank you for this lovely recipe!
No problem – I hope you enjoy them!!