World’s Best German Chocolate Cake

World’s Best German Chocolate Cake Recipe

Adapted from DavidLebovitz.com

Makes one 9-inch two-layer cake – 12 servings.

For the cake:

• 2 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate chopped
• 2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
• 6 tablespoons water
• 8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1-1/4 cup + 1/4 cup sugar
• 4 large eggs, separated
• 2 cups gluten free flour mix
• 3/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1/4 cup almond flour, ground to super fine
• 1 teaspoon gluten free baking powder
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1-1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the filling:

• 1-1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1-1/4 cup sugar
• 4 large egg yolks
• 4 ounces butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1-1/2 cup pecans, toasted and finely chopped
• 1-3/4 cups unsweetened coconut, toasted

For the syrup:

• 1 cup water
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 2 tablespoons dark rum

For the chocolate icing:

• 8 ounces bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
• 2 tablespoons light corn syrup
• 1-1/4 ounces unsalted butter
• 2/3 cup heavy cream

1. Butter two 9-inch cake pans, lining the bottoms with rounds of parchment or wax paper (trust me, this will make your life much easier). Preheat the oven to 350°F for at least half an hour to regulate temperature.
2. Over a double boiler, melt both kinds of chocolates together with the 6 tablespoons of water. Stir until smooth, then set aside until room temperature.
3. With an electric mixer, beat the butter and 1-1/4 cup of the sugar until light and fluffy, which should take about 5 minutes. Beat in the melted chocolate, following with the egg yolks one at a time.
4. Sift together the flour, xanthan gum, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
5. Mix half of the sifted dry ingredients into the creamed butter, then add the buttermilk and vanilla. Follow with the rest of the dry ingredients.
6. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until they hold soft peaks. Add the 1/4 cup of sugar and continue beating until stiff peaks form.
7. Fold a third of the egg whites into the cake batter to lighten it up a bit, then fold in the rest of the whites, stopping just when there’s no trace of egg white visible. Do not overbeat or you will flatten your batter.
8. Divide the German chocolate cake batter into the two prepared cake pans with parchment rounds in the bottom. Smooth the tops of the batter with your finger and bake for about 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
9. Cool cake layers completely.
10. While the cakes are baking and cooling, prepare the filling, syrup and icing portions of the recipe.

To make the filling:
1. Mix the cream, sugar and egg yolks in a medium saucepan.
2. Add the 3 ounces of butter, salt, toasted coconut and pecan pieces to a separate large bowl.
3. Heat the cream mixture and cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture begins to thicken and coats your spoon. It should be heated to 170°F if you are measuring with a thermometer.
4. Pour the hot liquid immediately into the bowl with the pecans and coconut, stirring until the butter is completely melted. Cool to room temperature, allowing it to thicken as it cools.

To make the syrup:
1. In a small saucepan, heat the sugar and water until the sugar has melted.
2. Remove from heat and quickly stir in the rum.

To make the icing:
1. Place the 8 ounces of chopped chocolate in a bowl along with the corn syrup and 1-1/2 ounces of butter.
2. Heat the cream until it just begins to boil, stirring constantly and making sure not to let it scorch.
3. Remove from heat and pour over the chocolate. Let stand one minute, then stir until completely smooth.
4. Let sit until room temperature.

To assemble the cake:
1. Once they are cool, remove the cake layers from the pans and cut both cake layers in half horizontally. You can use a serrated bread knife or a cake leveler (which is a handy tool for even slicing!).
2. Set the first cake layer on a cake plate and brush the top well with syrup, making sure to get the entire top. Spread 3/4 cup of the coconut filling over the cake layer, making sure to reach all the way to the edges. Set another cake layer on top.
3. Repeat, using the syrup to brush and soak each cake layer, then spreading 3/4 cup of the coconut filling over each layer. Include the top of the cake.
4. Ice the sides of your German chocolate cake recipe with the chocolate icing, then pipe a decorative border of chocolate icing around the top, encircling the coconut topping. (David’s note: this may seem like a lot of chocolate icing, but use it all. Trust me.)