Childhood Birthdays with German Sweet Chocolate Cake

We moved around the country often when I was little. It was not until I was a little older that we settled down on the East coast. All the moving around, spending a year here and a year there made it difficult for my parents to throw a birthday party with a lot of friends. My birthday was always my immediate family and was memorable in different ways. There were still gifts, both for my brother and me. My parents firmly believed no one should be left out of gifts, even if it wasn't your birthday. There were the requisite streamers and balloons as well.

And with each birthday there was always cake. A big, delicious birthday cake that I got to choose specifically for my birthday. One of my brother's favorites was Hummingbird cake, a delightful cake with Southern origins made with banana and pineapple. It's just a little unusual and very delicious. One of my favorites was, and still is, German Sweet Chocolate Cake.

Birthdays for our kids have changed. We are lucky now to have many friends and family to celebrate with. As we tell the kids, people are the gifts. Just as our world has broadened, so has our love for birthday cakes. Every year though, we continue to mark their special day with a big, lovely birthday cake.

German Sweet Chocolate Cake is a classic. It is a three-layer chocolate cake with a custardy pecan coconut frosting. Coconut, pecans, and chocolate, a delicious combination. Baker's German Sweet chocolate was sweet chocolate developed for the Baker's Chocolate Company in the 1800s. Reading the label, it does have quite a bit of sugar. The chocolate became popular after a recipe for German Sweet chocolate cake was published in a Dallas newspaper in the 1950s. The recipe was eventually on every Baker's sweet chocolate box, exactly where my mom found it.

So after many years, I made the original German Sweet chocolate cake. It is indeed, very sweet. I tweaked the recipe a bit to make it more refined and just a little more grown-up. I swapped out the Baker's chocolate for 60 percent bittersweet chocolate. And I cut down the sugar by almost half. The frosting is a custard that has pecans and coconut. I also used less sugar in the frosting. I frosted the sides, as the original recipe calls for only the top being frosted. The final result is a more chocolatey cake with the same delicious coconut pecan frosting. Enjoy it for a birthday, or really who needs a birthday to enjoy cake.

German Sweet Chocolate Cake

An update on the classic three layer chocolate cake with a coconut pecan frosting. Baker's sweet chocolate is swapped out for bittersweet chocolate. I used 60 % bittersweet chocolate, but you could use semi-sweet chocolate as well. Less sugar helps to balance out the cake and the frosting. I doubled the amount of frosting in the original recipe to frost the entire cake. 

Adapted from the recipe inside a Baker's German Sweet Chocolate bar.

Serves 8-10

Makes 3 9-inch round layers

Makes 5 cups of frosting, enough frosting to generously frost the entire cake.

Cake

• 4 ounces bittersweet chocolate (coarsely chopped.)
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 1 1/4 cups sugar
• 4 eggs, separated
• 1 cup buttermilk

Coconut-Pecan Frosting

• 2 cups evaporated milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup unsalted butter
• 6 large egg yolks (lightly beaten)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 3 cups shredded unsweetened coconut
• 2 cup pecans (lightly toasted and finely chopped)

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter three 9-inch round cake pans, line with parchment paper and butter again.

2. In a medium bowl, melt the chocolate. Let cool.

3. Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.

4. Beat in the egg yolks, one at a time.

5. Blend in vanilla and chocolate.

6. Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

7. Add the flour mixture alternately with the buttermilk beginning and ending with the flour, until smooth.

8. In a medium bowl, beat the egg whites beat until they just hold stiff peaks.

9. Fold one fourth of the egg whites into the batter, then fold in the remaining whites.

10. Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the cake springs back when lightly touched, 30 to 35 minutes .

11. Let cool in the pans for 10 minutes, then remove the cakes to wire racks and let cool completely.

To make the frosting

1. In a medium saucepan, combine the evaporated milk, sugar, butter, egg yolks, and salt over medium heat, stirring constantly, until bubbly and thickened about 12 minutes.

2. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla. Stir in the coconut and pecans. Let cool, stirring occasionally, until thick enough to spread.

3. Place a cake layer on a serving plate, spread frosting between the layers and then the top and sides.

To toast pecans, preheat oven to 350 degrees, spread the nuts on a baking sheet and bake about 10 minutes until lightly browned. 

The cake will keep at room temperature for 2-3 days.