Mom’s Best Layer Cakes- German Chocolate Cake

German Chocolate Cake may be my absolute favorite cake, and trust me, I was exposed to a lot of homemade cakes growing up. This cake has beautiful pale chocolate layers, but tastes decadently chocolate. The frosting is a thick creamy concoction of coconut and pecans.

My mother has a gigantic sweet tooth, and constantly baked delicious cakes throughout my childhood. Where other moms were baking cookies for the kids, Mom baked cakes and pies, because she loved them. No complaints though. We had occasional homemade cookies, but I think the cakes were definitely better than cookies.

Mom used to make an array of sweets and goodies every holiday season. One year she declared, “I’m tired of you and your dad complaining about your weight and eating too much. You each pick one dessert or sweet, and that’s all I’m cooking.” Panic! Only one choice?! German Chocolate Cake was my choice.

Mom uses the Baker’s German Chocolate package recipe. I have tasted German Chocolate Cake from others who said they used this recipe, but it didn’t measure up in taste. Not even close. Their layers were dark where Mom’s layers are pale chocolate colored. I think they cheated and used a cake mix for the layers! Only one exception. I went home for Thanksgiving with my friend Marsha one year. Her mom, Mary Sue made German Chocolate Cake. When I tasted it, I pronounced it tasted “just like mom’s”. Mary Sue came over and hugged me. She said, “That’s the best compliment I could have hoped for.”

This cake has fairly thick layers and therefore makes a relatively large cake.

1 4-oz package Baker’s German’s Sweet Chocolate

½ c boiling water

1 c butter

2 c sugar

1 c buttermilk

4 egg whites, stiffly beaten

2 ½ c sifted Swan’s Down Cake flour

4 egg yolks

1 tsp vanilla

½ tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1. Melt Baker’s chocolate over low heat. Mom uses a double boiler. Set aside to cool.

2. With electric mixer, cream sugar into butter until fluffy.

3. Add 1 egg yolk at a time, until all 4 are added. Beat mixture well after the addition of each egg yolk.

4. Add melted chocolate and vanilla to butter, sugar, and egg yolk mixture. Mix well.

5. Measure flour, salt, and soda, into a bowl. Sift these ingredients together. (Mom does not use a special cake flour, and her cake turns out just fine. If it were any more delicious, it would be dangerous to your health.)

6. Add dry ingredients (flour mixture) alternating with buttermilk to chocolate mixture, beating after each addition until smooth.

7. Fold in the egg whites which have been stiffly beaten.

8. Pour even amounts into three 9-inch layer cake pans, which have been greased and floured (or sprayed with Baker’s Joy).

9. “Bump” the cake pans, by lifting them an inch or so, and letting them drop down. Do this several times for each layer, to even out mixture and release any air bubbles. My mom is religious about doing this with layer cakes.

10. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until layers are done, at 350 degrees.

11. Cool cake layers. Frost tops only.

1. Combine 1 cup evaporated milk, 1 cup sugar, 3 egg yolks, ½ cup butter, and 1 teaspoon vanilla.

2. Heat about 12 minutes in saucepan over medium heat until thickened, stirring constantly.

3. Add 1 1/3 cup Baker’s Angel Flake coconut (Mom swears by this brand, but prefers frozen) and 1 cup chopped pecans.

4. Beat until frosting mixture is thick enough to spread. Apply to tops of cooled cake layers.