German Chocolate Cake Recipe

Prepare and bake

Preheat oven to 350°F (175°C). Grease and line three 9-inch round cake pans with parchment; lightly flour or spray with baking spray. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt until uniform. In another bowl whisk eggs, whole milk, buttermilk, vegetable oil and vanilla until combined. With mixer on low, add wet ingredients to dry and mix until just combined. Slowly pour in hot brewed coffee while mixing on low — batter will be thin. Divide batter evenly between prepared pans. Bake 25–30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into centers comes out with a few moist crumbs and cakes spring back lightly. Cool in pans 10 minutes, then invert onto wire racks and cool completely.

Leveling

When cool, trim dome tops to level the three layers if necessary. If desired, brush layers with cake simple syrup to keep them moist.

Make ganache-style fudge

Place chopped dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat heavy cream with corn syrup just to a simmer, then pour over chocolate and let sit 1 minute. Stir gently until smooth and glossy. Stir in butter and salt until incorporated. Cool to spreadable but slightly warm consistency (about 20–30 minutes). If too soft, chill briefly and re-whisk before using.

Prepare coconut-pecan topping

In a medium saucepan combine butter and brown sugar over medium heat. Cook, stirring, until sugar dissolves and mixture bubbles. Whisk together egg yolks and sweetened condensed milk in a bowl. Temper the egg yolk mixture by whisking a ladle of the hot butter-sugar mixture into yolks, then return tempered yolk mix to the saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thickened to a spreadable custard (about 5–7 minutes, do not boil). Remove from heat and stir in shredded coconut, toasted pecans and vanilla. Cool to room temperature; it will thicken further.

Make ganache

Place chopped chocolate in a bowl. Heat heavy cream until it just begins to simmer, then pour over chocolate and let sit 1 minute. Stir until smooth; add butter if using for extra sheen and stir until melted. Let ganache cool until slightly thickened but still pourable (about 15–20 minutes). Reserve about 1/3 cup for piping drips if you want thicker drips; keep remainder warm-ish for glazing the top.

Candy the pecans

Line a baking sheet with parchment. In a skillet over medium heat melt butter, add sugar and stir until sugar melts and begins to caramelize slightly. Add pecans and salt, stirring to coat evenly. Spread pecans on parchment and let cool; break any clusters as desired. Cool completely before using.

Make curls

Chill the dark chocolate bar until firm but workable (or warm slightly, depending on chocolate temper). Use a vegetable peeler or an offset spatula to scrape the side of the bar to produce curls. Place curls on a cool plate and refrigerate briefly to set. Handle gently to avoid breakage.

Cook custard base

In a saucepan combine milk, cream and brown sugar; warm until sugar dissolves and mixture is hot but not boiling. Whisk egg yolks in a bowl. Slowly temper the yolks by adding a ladle of hot milk mixture while whisking, then return yolk mixture to the saucepan. Cook over medium-low, stirring constantly with a spatula, until the custard coats the back of a spoon (170–175°F / 77–80°C). Remove from heat and stir in dark rum, salt and vanilla. Chill the custard quickly in an ice bath, then refrigerate until cold (at least 4 hours or overnight). Churn in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer instructions; transfer to freezer to firm. If you prefer, use high-quality store-bought brown sugar rum or dark rum gelato.

Assemble cake

Place first cake layer on a cake board or serving plate. Spread a thin layer (about 1/2 cup) of the dark chocolate fudge over the layer. Add the second cake layer and repeat with another thin fudgy layer. Place third layer on top. Use a crumb coat of any leftover fudge or a thin smear of ganache to seal crumbs; chill 15 minutes to set.

Apply coconut-pecan frosting

Spoon the cooled coconut-pecan frosting generously on top of the cake (do not cover sides). Spread to an even layer, allowing some coconut and pecans to fall slightly over the edge if desired — this is the classic presentation.

Add ganache drip and top glaze

Warm ganache slightly if needed so it is pourable but not thin. Using a spoon or a squeeze bottle, apply ganache drips around the edge so it cascades down the sides. Pour remaining ganache onto the center of the top (over coconut-pecan frosting) and smooth with an offset spatula to meet the drip ring.

Garnish

Decorate the top with candied pecans strategically placed, and arrange dark chocolate curls on top of the ganache and coconut-pecan frosting. Dust lightly with powdered sugar if desired. Chill cake at least 30 minutes to set the ganache before slicing.

Serve

Serve slices with scoops of brown sugar rum gelato on the side. Bring gelato out of the freezer 5 minutes before serving for optimal scoopability.