Wow! I just found out something interesting about German Chocolate Cake. All of my life, I thought it was from Germany, hence the name. But NO, it is not. I found out that the dark, smooth chocolate was developed in 1853 by a fellow named Sam German who worked for Baker’s Chocolate Company. It was sold as “Baker’s German’s Sweet Chocolate”, which lead people to believe it was from Germany. Today it is still labeled “Baker’s German’s Sweet Chocolate”.
The famous German Chocolate Cake that we all know and love is not from Germany, either. It was the creation of a Texas housewife in 1957. The recipe and picture was published in newspapers all across the U.S. and quickly German Chocolate Cake became as American as hot dogs, or hamburgers, (which also make us mistakenly think of Germany!). I have found an older German Chocolate Cake recipe in one of my late grandma’s recipe files.
Enjoy this American treat!
Required Ingredients
For the cake
* 2¼ cups of all-purpose flour
* 1½ cup of granulated sugar
* 1½ teaspoons of baking soda
* ¼ teaspoon of salt
* 1 cup of butter (softened)
* 1 cup of sour cream
* 4 large eggs
* 4 ounces of sweet baking chocolate (melted)
* ½ a cup of milk
* ¾ teaspoon of vanilla extract
For the topping
* ¾ cup of evaporated milk
* ½ a cup of brown sugar
* ½ a cup of butter
* 1 can of coconut (flaked)
* 1 cup of pecans (chopped)
Instructions
To make the cake
* First take a large bowl and combine the flour, sugar, salt, butter, baking soda, sour cream, milk, chocolate and vanilla in it.
* Then beat the ingredients with a mixer until blended.
* Now increase the mixer to high and beat for about 2 minutes longer.
* Once that is done, use a spoon to put the batter into the 8-inch prepared pans.
* Bake this in an oven that has been preheated to 350° for about 35 minutes or until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean.
* Leave the cake out to become cold.
To make the topping
* Take a saucepan with evaporated milk, brown sugar, and butter and place it over a medium flame.
* When it comes to a boil, remove it from the heat.
* Then put in the pecans and coconut.
* Now set this mixture aside to cool at room temperature.
Once the cake is cool, place one layer on a cake platter and spoon half of the coconut mixture onto the layer. Use the remaining topping to top the remaining cake layer.
Photo Credit © Viola Joyner | Dreamstime.com
