Lidey Heuck is the author of Cooking in Real Life: Delicious & Doable Recipes for Every Day . The Pittsburgh native began her career in food working as Ina Garten’s assistant, a job she got as a college senior after cold-emailing the Barefoot Contessa. Since then, she has carved out a delicious space of her own, contributing to New York Times Cooking and sharing everything from recipes to ideas on home decor, entertaining, and travel on her Lidey Likes blog and Instagram. Heuck grew up in Pittsburgh, where her uncles owned four restaurants and her grandfather entertained the family with big Italian dinners, reports the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. While Heuck helped bus tables at the restaurants and cooked for fun in high school, occasionally trying new dishes at restaurants around town after she got her driver’s license, her interest in food was mostly casual. She’d watch the Food Network, look through her mom’s cookbooks, and eat lots of spaghetti and roast chicken. “I’m a cook, writer, and creator based in New York’s Hudson Valley. I’m a recipe contributor to New York Times Cooking and the creator of this very website. I began my career in East Hampton, working as Ina Garten’s assistant. In 2020, after seven years with the Barefoot Contessa family, I was ready for my next adventure and spent a summer season working for Erin French at The Lost Kitchen in Maine, where I appeared on The Lost Kitchen Show on Magnolia Network.” “The idea for this cake came to me when I was thinking about Easter desserts. I associate lemon and coconut (and jelly beans) with Easter — especially big towering cakes covered in shredded coconut. Big deal cakes. I wanted to create a cake that incorporated my favorite Easter flavors but was a little more casual. The kind of cake you can keep on the counter and cut little pieces off throughout the day. The kind of cake you can tell yourself counts as breakfast food.” “This is a hearty cake that travels and keeps really well. Wrap it with plastic wrap and store at room temperature or in the refrigerator, but bring the cake to room temperature before serving for optimal flavor. It is dangerously good with a cup of hot coffee or tea. And while this is meant to be a casual cake, it would still make a great Easter or holiday dessert. Serve it with whipped cream and fresh raspberries and no one will mind that you didn’t spend all weekend constructing a four-layer cake with an ornate coconut birds’ nest on top. Maybe next year.” “This cake has been a consistently popular recipe on my site. But it’s always bothered me that the center of the cake sunk. So, as a January baking project, I decided to see if I could fix that once and for all. Five cakes later, and I figured it out. The cake is as moist, fluffy, and lemony as ever, it just stands a little taller. I updated the recipe below, but wanted to list the changes I made to avoid any confusion,” says Lidey. I increased the baking powder from 1/2 teaspoon to 1 teaspoon. I decreased the eggs from 3 to 2. I increased the flour from 1 1/4 cups to 1 1/2 cups. I added one extra tablespoon lemon juice and one extra tablespoon coconut milk to the soak. Whether you’ve made this cake before, or it’s your first time trying it, you’re in for a treat. Ingredients: For the cake: 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1/4 cup + 1 tablespoon unsweetened shredded coconut, such as Bob’s Red Mill, divided 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/3 cup shelled unsalted pistachios 1/2 cup full-fat coconut milk (See Note) 1 tablespoon lemon zest (2 lemons) 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice 1/2 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract 1 cup granulated sugar 2 large eggs, at room temperature For the soak (syrup): 1/4 cup granulated sugar 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice 3 tablespoons full-fat coconut milk Preparation: Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Grease a (8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2-inch) loaf pan, then line the bottom with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on 2 sides. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, 1/4 cup of the shredded coconut, the baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Coarsely chop the pistachios, then remove 2 tablespoons and set aside. Finely chop the rest of the pistachios and add them to the bowl with the flour. In a separate, small bowl, whisk together the coconut milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and granulated sugar. Beat on medium speed for 3 to 5 minutes, until light and fluffy. With the mixer on medium speed, add the eggs, one at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. With the mixer on low, add half the flour mixture to the batter, then the coconut milk mixture, then the rest of the flour. Scrape the sides of the bowl with a spatula to make sure the batter is well-mixed. Transfer to the prepared pan and bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the cake is golden brown and a cake tester comes out clean. Set aside to cool for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, make the soak: In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, lemon juice, and coconut milk. Bring to a simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar, then remove from the heat. Pour the syrup evenly over the warm cake, then sprinkle with the reserved pistachios and the remaining 1 tablespoon shredded coconut. Cool completely, then the lift the parchment paper to remove the cake, cut it into slices, and serve. This cake will keep for up to 3 days, wrapped-well and stored at room temperature. Note: When working with canned coconut milk, Lidey likes to pour the can into a bowl and whisk to combine the top cream layer and the milk before measuring. Lidey Heuck (Photos courtesy https://lideylikes.com/lemon-coconut-and-pistachio-cake/) For this recipe, see: https://lideylikes.com/lemon-coconut-and-pistachio-cake/ Other recipes by Lidey Heuck: https://cooking.nytimes.com/author/lidey-heuck Visit her food blog at: https://lideylikes.com/recipes/ Cooking in Real Life is a collection of simple, delicious recipes for all the different reasons we cook – busy weeknights, family holidays, quiet nights in, and every moment in between. To purchase, go to: https://lideylikes.com/ USA Today National Bestseller American Book Association Indie Bestseller Amazon Best Cookbooks of 2024 Food & Wine Best Cookbooks of Spring 2024 Epicurious Best Cookbooks of Spring 2024 Connect at: https://www.facebook.com/LideyLikes/?ref=bookmarks https://www.pinterest.com/lideylikes/ https://www.instagram.com/lideylikes/# https://lidey.substack.com/ Copyright 2026, Lidey Heuck, All Rights Reserved The post Lemon, Coconut, and Pistachio Cake appeared first on The Armenian Mirror-Spectator .