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Home » Dessert » German Chocolate Cake | Decadent and Dense

German Chocolate Cake | Decadent and Dense

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This German Chocolate Cake recipe is no joke. Perfectly dense, moist and rich. It’ll make your knees weak and have you asking for seconds. I’ve included some unusual tips to getting this cake perfectly dense.

Perfectly dense German Chocolate Cake. Made with chocolate chips, plenty of coconut and pecans. Perfect for a birthday or any celebration!

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Perfectly dense German Chocolate Cake. Made with chocolate chips, plenty of coconut and pecans. Perfect for a birthday or any celebration! #germanchocolate #cake #chocolate

You’re better than boxed cake mix

I was never really a fan of German Chocolate Cake until recently. It’s my husbands favorite kind of cake, and every year on his birthday he asks for it. Originally I just bought the box mix and frosting and called it a day. It was always “meh”.

Then one year, after being less than thrilled with the idea of making and eating yet another sub-par cake, I decided I could do better. Although my first homemade attempt was better than the box version, it still needed plenty of help.

Perfectly dense German Chocolate Cake. Made with chocolate chips, plenty of coconut and pecans. Perfect for a birthday or any celebration!

Achieving maximum density

My husbands requirements for cake is that it is delicious and DENSE. The man wants his slice of cake so heavy that you need to work out just to hold the plate up.

The only problem is, no matter how many alterations I made to various recipes, I could not get it anywhere close to dense enough. So this year I made four different variations of the same cake to see which one would work.

Turns out I needed to do ALL the things together to achieve my (his) desired result. So stick with me on this one I know it’s quite a few steps but its not difficult, just takes some time.  

I modified this recipe from Through Her Looking Glass. The original recipe is for a Bundt cake but I split it up and put it into 4 9-inch cake pans. Feel free to half the recipe to make a simple double layer cake but I think if I’m going to all the trouble to make a cake I want to have extra.  

Perfectly dense German Chocolate Cake. Made with chocolate chips, plenty of coconut and pecans. Perfect for a birthday or any celebration!

Also feel free to make any frosting that tickles your fancy, but don’t skip the glaze, that is what sets this cake apart from any other version and gives it the fudgy denseness that will make your knees weak.

Loving this German Chocolate Cake? Need more decadent desserts? Try these!

  • Rocky Road Brownies - Oh so chewy and not overly sweet. The perfect combination of chewy, soft, with a nutty crunch. YUM!
    Decadent Rocky Road Brownies
  • Butterscotch Bundt Cake - Amazing bundt cake for spring or fall. Perfect for Easter. Eat it for breakfast or dessert!
    Butterscotch Bundt Cake

If you decide to give this recipe a try, be sure to snap a photo to share, tagging @theovenlight and #theovenlight on Instagram or Facebook!

Perfectly dense German Chocolate Cake. Made with chocolate chips, plenty of coconut and pecans. Perfect for a birthday or any celebration!
Print Recipe
5 from 2 votes

Dense German Chocolate Cake

Fluffy cake is for the birds. Indulge in a decadently dense cake. Be sure to read the whole recipe before starting. 
Prep Time30 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Total Time1 hr
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American, German
Servings: 8 large slices
Author: Amy

Ingredients

Cake

  • 2 C sugar
  • 1 C unsalted butter room temp
  • 1 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 6 eggs room temperature
  • 2 1/2 C cake flour
  • 1 C unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 2 pkg chocolate pudding mix
  • 2 1/4 C buttermilk
  • 1 C chocolate chips

Glaze

  • 1 C sugar
  • 1/2 C buttermilk
  • 1/2 C butter
  • 1 Tbsp light corn syrup
  • 1 tsp vanilla

Frosting

  • 2 C evaporated milk room temp
  • 2 Tbsp corn starch
  • 2 C sugar
  • 6 egg yolks (beaten) room temp
  • 1 C butter room temp
  • 2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 C chopped pecans lightly toasted
  • 2 C toasted coconut

Instructions

Frosting

  • Start with the frosting, so it has time to cool. 
  • Preheat oven to 350°. Place chopped pecans on a baking sheet and toast in the oven until fragrant. About 5-7 minutes. If you’re coconut did not come toasted, place it on the same sheet and allow to toast for the same time. 
  • Combine all other frosting ingredients (not nuts and coconut) in a large pot and bring to a slow boil. Once boiling, stir continuously for 10 minutes. Remove from heat and add nuts and coconut. Frosting will thicken as it cools. 

Cake

  • Preheat oven to 350°. Grease and flour 4 cake pans. (Coconut oil or butter work best – just don’t use non-stick spray, it doesn’t work.) 
  • In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine sugar, butter and vanilla. Add eggs, mixing after each one. 
  • In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients. Alternating between dry ingredients and buttermilk, add to the wet ingredients, mixing well after each addition. 
  • Add chocolate chips and mix. Bake for 25-30 minutes until center bounces back when touched lightly.

Glaze

  • Make glaze while cakes are baking.
  • Bring all ingredients, except vanilla, to a boil over medium heat. Once boiling, stir for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla. 
  • Pour glaze over cakes in the pan right out of the oven. Allow cakes to rest and soak up the glaze for 10 minutes. 
  • When you pop the cakes out of the pan, place between layers of wax paper. Place a cutting board (or other heavy, flat object) on top of cakes and smush them for 1 hour. This keeps the cakes extra dense!
  • Assemble the cake with frosting between each layer and all over top and sides. OR wrap each layer in plastic wrap and freeze until ready to use.

Notes

This is I bit time consuming so I made this 2 days ahead of time and stored the cake and frosting in the fridge. On the day of my husband’s birthday, I took the frosting out in the morning so it could come to room temp. Then at party time I took the cake layers out of the fridge and frosted 3 layers for the perfect cake to frosting ratio. You can do a 4 layer cake and go a little lighter on the frosting or just keep it as a bonus cake. Enjoy!
Perfectly dense German Chocolate Cake. Made with chocolate chips, plenty of coconut and pecans. Perfect for a birthday or any celebration! #germanchocolate #cake #chocolate

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Comments

  1. Cheryl Davis

    July 11, 2019 at 9:01 am

    I followed this recipe to the letter, and while it was time consuming, it was well worth EVERY SECOND. WOW. I think this cake weighs about 6 pounds finished and it is absolutely marvelous. Great job with the instructions. My daughter wanted this for her 18th birthday and was beyond impressed!!!!

    Reply
    • Amy

      July 13, 2019 at 11:25 am

      Hi Cheryl! I’m so glad you loved it! It was a labor of love so I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! And Happy Birthday to your daughter!

      Reply
    • Sharon

      October 29, 2020 at 6:02 pm

      Is the pudding Inst or cook

      Reply
      • Amy

        October 29, 2020 at 7:14 pm

        For this recipe we used instant, but either should work just fine! I hope you enjoy!

        Reply
  2. Janice G

    April 11, 2020 at 10:47 pm

    I’m doing this for Easter tomorrow! It’s my hubby & kids favorite cake. I’m excited to try your version.

    Reply
    • Amy

      April 13, 2020 at 12:24 pm

      Ooh, I hope you love it! Please let me know what you think! I really need to take new photos, since they really don’t do this cake justice.

      Reply
  3. Brian

    June 12, 2020 at 12:01 pm

    Excellent! Another fantastic post. I really enjoy reading this and the other content on here.

    Reply
  4. Hayley

    June 27, 2020 at 8:41 am

    I am so excited to try this recipe and my mouth is already watering!
    What size of pudding do you use in this? I’ve got 4.3 or 3.9oz. Does it make a difference?
    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Amy

      July 1, 2020 at 9:01 pm

      Hi Hayley! Great question. The packets seem to come in all sorts of different ounces. It should not make a difference, but I’d get something close to 3.5-4 ounces. You’ll love this recipe! Enjoy!

      Reply
  5. Elli Friesen

    September 7, 2020 at 8:52 am

    Is the pudding instant or regular? Am more than ready to make this cake(for me)!

    Reply
    • Amy

      October 18, 2020 at 2:09 pm

      We use instant, but either will work great in this recipe!

      Reply
  6. Maria

    October 15, 2020 at 1:06 pm

    5 stars
    So, I’ve got to be honest….. I’ve never left a review, until now! I made this cake for my Dad’s birthday as German Chocolate is “his” favorite but it was my Mom who fell head over heels in love! She not only ate the majority of the cake but she told every person she could tell. This cake has taken on a life story of its own and when I told her that I’m making it for her birthday, which is this weekend, she became emotional and started clapping her hands while “whooping” it up! hahaha. I cannot say enough about this cake, it is perfection. it literally weighs 6lbs, yes, the weight of a baby and it seems to bring as much joy, as well. Thanks for this recipe. I will not have to make it twice a year, my mom’s birthday and my parents anniversary!

    Reply
    • Amy

      October 18, 2020 at 2:06 pm

      Well, you’ve done it! You made me cry over a recipe. I’m so thrilled you and your parents have enjoyed this recipe so much. I hope it becomes a family recipe you make for years to come, as it has for us. Happy Birthday to your mom!!!

      Reply
  7. goioa garrett

    November 9, 2020 at 9:56 pm

    5 stars
    This cake is absolutely decadent!!! I followed the directions exactly but bumped it up with 3 high quality chocolates to ensure I got the flavor I wanted. German chocolate has always been one of my favorites and this one does not disappoint. If you have a recipe for an old fashioned coconut cake I’ll follow you forever!!!

    Reply
    • Amy

      November 12, 2020 at 3:21 pm

      I’m so glad you loved it! And I love a good challenge, so I’ll get to work on that coconut cake so we can be friends forever!

      Reply

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