German Chocolate Cake

Oh my, how I love this cake! It is so moist and the icing is scrumptious! It's one of my favorite cakes.

German Chocolate Cake
source- slightly adapted from American Profile Hometown Cookbook page 267

¼ cup cocoa powder

½ cup boiling water

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)

2 ¼ cups sugar

4 eggs

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup buttermilk

1 cup evaporated milk

1 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

½ cup unsalted butter (1 stick)

a good pinch of kosher salt

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/3 cup flaked coconut

1 cup chopped toasted pecans

Preheat oven to 350. Grease and flour 2 (9-inch) square cake pans. Mix the cocoa and boiling water in a measuring cup. When cool, add vanilla to cocoa mixture. Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour, baking soda and salt. Alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk to the creamed mixture. Pour batter into cake pans and bake for 38-40 minutes. Cool on wire racks while making frosting.

For the frosting, cook the milk, sugar, egg, butter and salt in sauce pan over medium heat. Stir constantly until thickened, about 12 minutes. It will become a light amber color. Remove from heat, add vanilla, coconut and pecans. Allow the cake to cool before frosting. Frost the top of each layer.