German chocolate cake

5 from 16 votes

This German chocolate cake recipe is the most delicious, moist, flavourful cake ever! It features a super moist chocolate cake but the real star is the butterscotch frosting loaded with pecan and coconut. Beyond how beautifully the flavors bond together it is also a super easy recipe you can literally make in no time without any special equipment.

Prep Time30

Cook Time30

Total Time1

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 743kcal

Author: Katalin Nagy

Equipment

Ingredients

Chocolate Sponge for 3 x 15 cm ( 6 inches)

170 g All purpose flour sifted
45 g Cocoa powder unsweetened dutch processed, sifted
120 g Granulated sugar
120 g Brown sugar
1 teaspoon Baking soda
1 teaspoon Baking powder
90 g Vegetable oil
2 Eggs room temp
165 g Milk room temp
120 g Coffee freshly brewed, room temo

Butterscotch coconut pecan frosting

120 g Unsalted butter
4 Egg yolk
120 g Whole milk
120 g Heavy Cream 36% fat
150 g Brown sugar
120 g Coconut unsweetened shredded
120 g Pecan toasted, chopped

Decoration

Pecan few pieces

Metric - US Customary

Instructions

Chocolate sponge

Heat oven to 180 C / 356°F (no fan)
Prepare 3 x 15 cm (6 inch) round cake pan with parchment paper
With an Electric hand mixer , whip together the wet ingredients: room temperature egg, oil, milk, sugars and coffee for 2-3 minutes
Sift dry ingredients; flour, baking powder, baking soda, cocoa, and salt
Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients then fold just until combined
Divide batter equally into 3 cake pans with the help of a Digital scale
Bake for 25 min or until skewer inserted in the middle of the cakes comes out clean
Before assembling, cool the chocolate sponges on Cooling rack

Butterscotch coconut pecan glaze

Cook all ingredients (except pecan and coconut) in as saucepan over medium heat until slightly thickens, this will take about 10 minutes. Pay attention to the consistency and remove it from the stove as soon as it thickens. Stir constantly while cooking to avoid egg yolk curdling
Let the cream cool down to approx. room temperature, it will thicken as it cools. Fold coconut and toasted chopped pecans in and let it rest in the fridge for 30-60 minutes until sets

Assemble

Once chocolate sponges are on room temperature and frosting sets in the fridge start assembling the cake
Divide the frosting into 3 equal portions and spread it over the sponges with the help of an Offset spatula or spoon. Decorate with some more toasted pecans.
Let the cake set in the fridge for 30-60 minutes. Store in the fridge

Notes

INGREDIENT NOTES:

Measure your ingredients with a Digital scale for accuracy
All ingredients for the chocolate cake must be at room temperature to properly emulsify: eggs, milk, coffee, etc.
Do not skip salt that will balance the sweetness of this cake

TECHNIQUE NOTES:

Make sure you read my Expert tips section above to maximize your success. A short recipe alone is not able to cover all the necessary details, and science behind baking.
Chill the chocolate sponges before assembling
Assemble the cake on the serving tray you are planning to serve as at a later stage you won´t be able to move the cake easily
Cook the butterscotch sauce on medium heat only to avoid curdling

Nutrition