German Chocolate Cake

John's Birthday cake of choice varies slightly from year to year (he's actually more of a pie guy) but German Chocolate is always in the running. His mom passed down a fantastic recipe for moist and tender mild chocolate cake with an AMAZING coconut pecan icing. The icing of course is the star of the show so we cheat a little bit and start the cake from a boxed mix. You can use a German Chocolate mix or you can doctor up a yellow cake mix per below. Ingredients: 1 package yellow cake mix 1-4 ounce package vanilla instant pudding 4 ounces German sweet chocolate, melted and cooled 4 eggs 1 and 1/4 cup buttermilk 1/4 cup of vegetable oil Combine ingredients and beat in a standing or with a hand held mixer for four minutes at medium speed. Pour into two or three* greased and floured 9 inch cake pans. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. *I only have two 9 inch cake pans so I cut each cake in half (using a large serrated/bread knife) to create four layers versus three.

Coconut Pecan Filling/Icing: 1- 12 ounce can of evaporated milk 1 and 1/2 cups sugar 3/4 cup butter 4 egg yolks 1 and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla 1- 7 ounce package of shredded coconut (sweetened) 1 and 1/2 cups chopped pecans Whisk the first four ingredients together in a saucepan until combined. Cook the mixture over medium heat for 12-14 minutes or until thick. Stir constantly to avoid burning/sticking to the bottom of the sauce pan. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, coconut and pecans. Cool completely before frosting the cake. I transfer the mixture to a glass bowl and refrigerate to speed up the process.

When ready to assemble, I start with the first layer on my cake stand. I tuck rectangular pieces of parchment paper under the edges (just half an inch under the cake) to protect my cake stand. Once you're finished, you simply pull the paper out gently and your cake stand is mess free.

I put a modest amount of filling in between each layer, just enough to "glue" it together-saving lots for the outside of the cake. I'm not a pro at cake decorating by any stretch and I'm pleased to say that the coconut pecan icing is very forgiving. I start with a big mound on the top and gently spread outwards toward the edges. Then I go around the outside using a knife to apply and smooth the icing. It will be lumpy and rustic looking regardless so it takes some of the presentation pressure off.

(Apologies for the bad lighting in the below picture.) Store the cake in the refrigerator until you're close to ready to serve. I like to give it 8 hours or even overnight to set up in the fridge-the icing seeps into the cake a bit more. Set it out for 30 minutes or so at room temperature before slicing.

The icing is absolutely heavenly but also quite rich so a small slice will do you. Therefore this cake can definitely serve a crowd. (16 people or so easily)