German Chocolate cake in Tales from the kitchen witch

And you all thought the cheesecake was hard.
The german chocolate cake is the hardest thing ive made so far. Its dirtied ALL my baking dishes lmao. I actually made my frostings while my cake was baking seeing it has to bake and cool before It can be frosted.

Coconut Pecan frosting.

6 large egg yolks
12 oz can evaporated milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups (310g) sugar
3/4 cup (168g) unsalted butter, cubed
3 cups (255g) sweetened shredded coconut
1 1/4 cups (133g) chopped pecans, toasted
Pinch of salt

Chop pecans finely.
In a sauce pan mix egg yolks, evaporated milk and vanilla with a fork.
Turn on medium heat
Add in butter and sugar.
Cook whisking constantly until thickened similar to pudding. ( Roughly 10 minutes on medium heat)

Remove from heat and pour into a heat safe bowl. Mis in coconut and chopped pecans. Stir well and put in the fridge to cool set.

Chocolate Mousse Frosting.
2 cups whipping cream
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 cup baking cocoa powder.

Mix ingredients and whisk until stiff peaks form. You will know when this one is ready!
Put in a bowl and set in the fridge.

OR
German Chocolate Frosting
1 1/2 cups (336g) unsalted butter, room temperature
5 tbsp (35g) natural unsweetened cocoa powder
5 cups (575g) powdered sugar
12 oz German chocolate, chopped and melted
1/2 tsp salt
6–8 tbsp (90-120ml) heavy whipping cream

The main event.
The German Chocolate cake.
Get ACTUAL German chocolate. Walmart has three levels of sweet. Dark bitter, dark medium and dark sweet. I got sweet because. YUM! I read a lot of recipes that called for baking cocoa and it just did NOT taste the same was this German chocolate. Even the dark ones were sweet enough to nom on.

1/4 cup (60ml) water
8 oz (226g) German chocolate, chopped
2 1/4 cups (293g) all-purpose flour (measured accurately)
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup (168g) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups (310g) sugar
4 large eggs, divided
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup (58g) sour cream, room temperature
1 cup (240ml) buttermilk, room temperature

Prepare three 9-inch cake pans with parchment paper circles in the bottom and grease the sides. Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C).
Heat the water in the microwave just until it begins to boil. Pour the hot water over the chopped chocolate. Let it sit for 2-3 minutes, then stir until melted and smooth. If it doesn’t melt completely, heat in the microwave for another 10-15 seconds, then stir until smooth. Set aside. It will not harden back up like other chocolates. It stays liquidly when cold. Im never using another type of chocolate for baking again.
Combine flour, baking soda and salt in a medium sized bowl. Set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light in color and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Do not skimp on the amount of creaming time.
Add the egg yolks one a time, mixing until well combined after each. Add the vanilla extract and sour cream and mix until well combined.
Add the melted chocolate mixture from above and mix until well combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl a time or two to make sure things are well incorporated.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the batter and mix until well combined. Add the buttermilk and mix until well combined. Add remaining dry ingredients and mix just until well combined. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed to be sure all ingredients are well incorporated. Set aside.
Add the egg whites to a large mixer bowl and whip on high speed until stiff peaks form.
Gently fold about half of the whipped egg whites into the rest of the cake batter until mostly combined, then add the remaining egg whites and gently fold until well combined.
Divide the batter evenly between the prepared cake pans and bake for 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cakes comes out clean.
Remove the cakes from the oven and allow to cool for 2-3 minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to finish cooling.

When the cake and filling have cooled completely, make the frosting and finish the cake. Add the butter to a large mixer bowl and beat until smooth.
Add the cocoa powder and half of the powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
Add the melted chocolate in 2-3 batches and mix until well combined and smooth.
Add the salt and 3 tablespoons of heavy cream and mix until well combined and smooth.
Add the remaining powdered sugar and mix until well combined and smooth.
Add the remaining heavy cream, as needed, to get the right consistency of frosting.

For traditional German chocolate cake topping/look.

To build the cake, first use a large serrated knife to remove the domes from the tops of the cakes so they are flat. See my tips on how to level a cake and how to stack a cake.
Place the first cake layer on a serving plate or on a cardboard cake circle.
Pipe a dam of chocolate frosting around the outside of the cake layer. Spread about 1/3 of the coconut pecan filling evenly on top of the cake, in the center of the dam.
Add the second layer of cake, another dam of frosting and add another 1/3 of the coconut pecan filling.
Add the third layer of cake on top, then frost the outside of the cake with the remaining chocolate frosting.
Pipe a shell border around the top outer edge of the cake. I used Ateco tip 847. Fill in the border with the remaining 1/3 of the coconut pecan filling. Decorate the bottom of the cake with pecans, if desired.
Refrigerate until ready to serve. This cake is best served cool, but not super cold. Store in an air-tight container or well covered. Best if eaten within 4-5 days.

Or you can be like me. Slather on coconut pecan frosting in the middle of the layers. Run chocolate fronting around the sides of the cake. Top with the remaining coconut pecan. Im not fancy. I just want it to taste amazing!!
Pictures later :)