German Chocolate Cake
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The best German Chocolate Cake features layers of moist chocolate cake topped with coconut pecan frosting. This cake is delightful and worthy of any special occasion.
German Chocolate Cake is not a fully frosted cake. There is a sweet coconut creamy filling in between the layers and on the top of the chocolate cake – but no traditional frosting here. The sides of the cake are “naked.” It’s soft and pillowy with a richly sweet frosting. You’ll love it too – I promise.
When I first heard the name German Chocolate Cake, I thought that it was a dessert that originated in Germany. My not-super-in-depth research into this on the internet told me this was not the case.
Apparently, Sam German was an employee of the Baker’s chocolate company and he came up with sweet baking chocolate bars. So German chocolate cake is actually named for him. German chocolate cake originally got its chocolate flavor from melted chocolate. I add a little cocoa powder for extra flavor, but the real chocolate flavor here comes from melted chocolate.
The rest of the cake ingredients are fairly typical: eggs, milk, flour, baking soda, and salt. I add some sour cream to the batter to add a bit of tang and a lot of moisture.
The frosting is more of a filling than a frosting. It’s a buttery cooked frosting that uses egg yolks for richness, evaporated milk for thickness, and sugar, coconut, and pecans for decadent flavor. There is so much flavor in each bite of frosting – you don’t need much of it!
Try this cake and let me know what you think!
Recipe Snapshot
- TASTE: Rich chocolate with sweet coconut.
- TEXTURE: Soft pillowy cake!
- EASE: Both the cake and frosting are beginner-friendly.
- TIME: Just a little over 2 hours. The frosting requires chilling.
What You’ll Need
Ingredients
- Eggs: Egg yolks are needed for the filling while whole eggs are used in the cake. Save the whites for macaroons or macarons.
- Evaporated milk: Needed for the rich flavor of the frosting.
- Sugar: Both white and light brown sugar are used.
- Butter: Use unsalted sweet cream butter for the best flavor.
- Vanilla: Look for pure vanilla extract and not the imitation kind.
- Shredded coconut: Make sure to use sweetened shredded coconut.
- Pecans: I like to add pecans to my frosting but this is optional.
- Chocolate: The recipe requires both semisweet bar chocolate and Dutch-processed cocoa powder.
- Milk: Whole milk works best.
- Flour: Use all-purpose flour.
- Baking soda: Used for leavening.
- Salt: Balances the sweet flavor and enhances the chocolate.
- Sour cream: Gives the cake a moist crumb. Be sure to use full-fat sour cream for the best results.
Recommended Tools
How to Make German Chocolate Cake
This German Chocolate cake is not difficult to make. It’s a typical cake recipe with the addition of melted chocolate. To begin, preheat the oven to 350. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper, grease the parchment paper, and flour the pans.
Be sure to check out the full recipe and ingredient list below
Make the Cake
- Melt the chocolate. Add the chocolate and cocoa powder to a bowl. Warm the milk over medium heat and pour it over the chocolate. Stir until melted and smooth.
- Combine the dry ingredients. Whisk the flour and baking soda in a small bowl.
- Cream the butter and sugar. In a separate large bowl, beat the salt, butter and sugars until light and fluffy.
- Add eggs and vanilla. Beat in the eggs, one at a time followed by the vanilla.
- Add the chocolate. Add the melted chocolate mixture and mix on low speed until incorporated.
- Add flour mixture and sour cream. Mix in half the flour mixture followed by all the sour cream, then the remaining flour mixture. Mix just until combined.
- Bake. Divide the batter between two 9-inch prepared pans and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool completely before frosting.
Make the Frosting
- Combine egg yolks with evaporated milk. Whisk egg yolks, then slowly whisk in the evaporated milk.
- Add the sugar. Whisk in the sugars, butter, and salt.
- Cook. Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture is boiling, frothy, and slightly thickened, about 6 minutes.
- Add the vanilla. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla followed by the coconut and pecans.
- Cool. Allow the frosting to cool slightly then refrigerate for 2 hours.
Handy tip:
Use room temperature ingredients for the cake. This allows all the ingredients to easily emulsify leaving you with a luscious batter.
Tips For Success
- Properly measure the ingredients. I highly recommend using a scale to weigh the ingredients.
- Don’t overmix the cake batter. Over-mixing can cause a tough, dense cake texture.
- Use bake even cake strips for level cakes.
- Make the frosting first! You can make the cake layers and allow them to cool while the frosting is refrigerating.
- Let the cake sit on a wire rack to cool completely (about 30 minutes or so) before frosting – the frosting will melt if the cake is too warm.
Storage & Freezing
- Store the cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Cake layers can be stored at room temperature for up to 24 hours or frozen for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature before using.
- The frosting can be made up to 3 days in advance. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.
German Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
For the Coconut Frosting
- 4 large egg yolks
- 12 ounce (340 g) evaporated milk
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ⅓ cup (67 g) light brown sugar, packed
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 ¼ cups (254 g) sweetened shredded coconut
- 1 ½ cups (170 g) chopped pecans
For the Cake
- 4 ounces (113 g) semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
- ⅓ cup (28 g) Dutch-processed cocoa powder
- ½ cup (120 ml) whole milk
- 2 cups (260 g) all-purpose flour
- ¾ teaspoon baking soda
- ¾ cup (170 g) unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup (200 g) granulated sugar
- ¾ cup (150 g) light brown sugar, packed
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ cup (170 g) sour cream, at room temperature
Instructions
Make the Coconut Frosting
- Whisk the eggs in a medium saucepan, then gradually whisk in the evaporated milk.
- Whisk in the sugars, butter, and salt.
- Cook over medium-high heat, whisking constantly, until the mixture is boiling, frothy, and slightly thickened, about 6 minutes.
- Transfer the mixture to a bowl and whisk in the vanilla. Stir in the coconut and pecans.
- Let cool until just warm, then refrigerate until cool, about 2 hours.
Make the Cake
- Adjust the oven rack to the lower third, just below the center of the oven, and heat to 350°F. Grease two 9-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper, grease the parchment paper, and flour the pans. Tap out any excess flour.
- Add chopped chocolate and cocoa to a bowl. Bring the milk to a simmer in a small saucepan, take care not to boil. Pour the hot milk over the chocolate and cocoa and let sit for 5 minutes. Whisk until the mixture is melted and smooth. Let cool completely.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the flour and baking soda together; set aside.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or a handheld electric mixer, beat the butter, both sugars and salt on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
- Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition.
- Add the vanilla, increase the speed to medium-high, and beat until light and fluffy, about 45 seconds.
- Reduce the speed to low and add the cooled chocolate mixture. Then increase the speed to medium and beat until combined, about 30 seconds. Stop to scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. The batter may look curdled at this point, this is normal.
- Add half the flour mixture and mix on low speed until almost fully incorporated. Add the sour cream and mix until well combined. Then add the remaining flour mixture and mix just until combined.
- Scrape down the sides of the bowl and give the batter a final stir. The batter will be thick.
- Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans and smooth the tops with an offset spatula. Gently tap the pans on the counter to settle the batter.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
- Cool the cakes in the pans for 10 minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Assemble the Cake
- Level the tops of each cake layer. Place one cake layer on a cake stand or large serving plate and top with half of the frosting. Spread the frosting into one even layer.
- Place the second cake layer on top of the frosting, add the remaining frosting on top, and spread it into an even layer.
- Spread the chocolate frosting over the sides of the cake and pipe swirls on the outer edge of the top.
Notes
- Use room temperature ingredients. Allow all the cold ingredients to sit on the counter for 30-45 minutes before using them. It really makes a difference!
- Store the cake in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Cake layers can be stored at room temperature for up to 24 hours or frozen for up to 1 month. Thaw at room temperature before using.
- The frosting can be made up to 3 days in advance. Keep refrigerated until ready to use.