I’m posting this delicious German Chocolate Cake recipe that I made for my Dad’s Birthday. He absolutely LOVES German Chocolate Cake… we have it every year for his birthday.
My family usually buys a cake from a local grocery store, but this year my Mom and I decided to be courageous and make our own!
I came upon this cake on another blog and decided to give it a try. This cake was definitely one of the best German Chocolates that I’ve ever had! My Dad was ecstatic that this cake has extra “gooey coconut icing/topping” (he loves to eat that like cookie dough.. spoonfuls!)
Needless to say this cake was a HIT with the whole family!
German Chocolate Cake
Adapted from David Lebovitz/ Makes one huge 9-inch layer cake—enough for several days (or servings) of deliciousness!
For the cake:
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
6 tablespoons water
2 sticks of unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 ¼ cup + ¼ cup sugar
4 large eggs, separated
2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature (can be replaced with 1 cup whole milk mixed with 1 tbsp vinegar)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the filling:
2 cups heavy cream
1.5 cups sugar
6 large egg yolks
6 ounces butter, cut into small pieces
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped pecans (optional—can replace with 1 cup coconut if you don’t want nuts in your cake)
1 1/3 cups unsweetened coconut, toasted
For the syrup:
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons dark rum, vodka, or coffee or coconut liqueur
For the chocolate icing:
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
4 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 ½ ounces unsalted butter
1 cup heavy cream
To make the cake:
Butter two 9-inch cake pans and line bottoms with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Melt chocolate w/ the water in the microwave (30 seconds at a time). Stir until smooth and let cool.
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat butter and 1 ¼ cup of the sugar until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in melted chocolate, then the egg yolks, allowing each one to incorporate.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
Mix in half of the dry ingredients, then the buttermilk and the vanilla extract, then the rest of the dry ingredients.
In a separate metal or glass bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold soft, droopy peaks. Beat in the ¼ cup of sugar until stiff.
Fold about one-third of the egg whites into the cake batter to lighten it, then fold in the remaining egg whites just until there’s no trace of egg white visible.
Divide the batter into the 2 prepared cake pans, smooth the tops, and bake for about 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Cool cake layers completely.
While the cakes are baking and cooling, make the filling, syrup, and icing.
To make the filling:
Mix the cream, sugar, and egg yolks in a medium saucepan. Put the butter, salt, toasted coconut, and pecan (if using) pieces in a large bowl.
Heat the cream mixture and cook, stirring constantly (scraping the bottom as you stir) until the mixture begins to thicken and coats the spoon
Pour the hot custard immediately into the coconut mixture and stir until the butter is melted. Cool completely to room temperature. (It will thicken.)
To make the syrup:
In a small saucepan, heat the sugar and water until the sugar has melted. Remove from heat and stir in the rum or alcohol of your choice.
To make the icing:
Place the 8 ounces of chopped chocolate in a bowl with 1 ½ ounces of butter. Heat the cream until it just begins to boil. Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate. Let stand one minute, then stir until smooth. Let sit until room temperature.
To assemble the cake:
Remove the cake layers from the pans and cut both cake layers in half horizontally, using a serrated bread knife. Set the first cake layer on a cake plate. Brush with the syrup. Spread ¼ of the coconut filling over the cake layer, making sure to reach to the edges. Set another cake layer on top. Repeat until you’ve used all the layers and all the filling (include a layer of filling on top). Ice the sides with the chocolate frosting and sprinkle coconut over and around the top edges.
Crêpes are made by pouring a wheat batter onto a frying pan or flat circular hot plate, often with a trace of butter or vegetable oil on the pan’s surface. The batter is spread evenly over the cooking surface of the pan or plate either by tilting the pan or by distributing the batter with an offset spatula or trowel.
Le Dessert au Chocolat 