German Chocolate Cake

Written By: Shantel Whitford

Ingredients

• Cake Ingredients:
• 4 oz sweet baking chocolate
• ½ cup of water
• 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 1 cup butter room temperature
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 1 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup buttermilk
• Cooking spray to grease pans
• Coconut-Pecan Filling and Topping Ingredients:
• 3 egg yolks
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• ½ cup butter
• 1 cup evaporated milk
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 1/3 cups flaked coconut
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Instructions

Heat the oven to 350°F. Spray the bottoms and sides of three 8-inch or two 9-inch round cake pans with the cooking spray. Cut three 8-inch or two 9-inch rounds of cooking parchment paper. Line bottoms of pans with the paper.

Coarsely chop the chocolate. In a 1-quart saucepan, heat the chocolate and water over low heat, stirring frequently, until chocolate is completely melted; remove from heat and cool.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, stir the flour, baking soda, and salt until mixed; set aside. In another medium bowl, beat 2 cups sugar and 1 cup butter with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy; set aside.

On medium speed, beat 1 egg yolk at a time into the sugar mixture until mixed. On low speed, beat in the melted chocolate and 1 teaspoon vanilla. On low speed, beat in 1/2 of the flour mixture just until smooth, then beat in 1/2 of the buttermilk just until smooth. Repeat beating in flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk just until smooth.

Wash and dry mixer beaters. In a small bowl, beat the eggs whites on high speed until beaten eggs whites form stiff peaks when beaters are lifted. Add egg whites to the batter; to fold in, use a rubber spatula to cut down vertically through the batter, then slide the spatula across the bottom of the bowl and up the side, turning batter over. Rotate the bowl 1/4 turn, and repeat this down-across-up motion. Continue folding until batter and egg whites are blended.

Pour batter into pans; use a rubber spatula to scrape batter from the bowl, spread batter evenly in pans and smooth top of batter. (If the batter is not divided evenly, spoon batter from one pan to another.) Refrigerate batter in the third pan if not all pans will fit in the oven at one time; bake the third pan separately.

Bake 8-inch pans 35 to 40 minutes, 9-inch pans 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.

Cool cakes in pans 10 minutes. To remove the cake from pan, invert onto a cooling rack, then invert right side up on the second cooling rack. Cool completely, about 1 hour.

For the coconut-pecan filling and topping:

In a 2-quart saucepan, stir the 3 egg yolks, 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup butter, the evaporated milk, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until well mixed. Cook over medium heat about 12 minutes, stirring frequently, until thick and bubbly. Stir in the coconut and pecans. Cool about 30 minutes, beating occasionally with a spoon, until mixture is spreadable.

Place 1 cake layer, rounded side down, on a cake plate; using a metal spatula, spread 1/3 of the filling over the layer. Add the second layer, rounded side down; spread with 1/3 of the filling. Add the third layer, rounded side up; spread with remaining filling, leaving the side of cake unfrosted, or top cover the sides, double this recipe. Store cake covered in the refrigerator.