German Chocolate Cake Day: Part II

Today is National German Chocolate Cake Day, and in my last post, I gave a bit of history and the 'original' recipe for German Chocolate Cake.

Last night Bobby Flay had a Throwdown: German Chocolate Cake. (Season 6: Episode 8) He challenged a baker from Harlem, New York's Make My Cake, to put her family's German Chocolate Cake to the test. Don't want to tell you who won in case you haven't seen this episode yet, but here's Aliyyah Baylor's recipe. I did notice that the extra chocolate chips that she put in the cake for the TV challenge are omitted in this recipe. The chocolate chips gave her cake an extra bit of crunch.

Ingredients Cake Layers:
* 4 ounces baker's chocolate (recommend: Baker's German Sweet Chocolate)
* 1/2 cup water
* 2 cups cake flour
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
* 1/2 pound unsalted butter, room temperature
* 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
* 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
* 1/2 cup brown sugar
* 4 eggs, separated
* 1 cup buttermilk
* Frosting, recipe follows or whatever you prefer

Directions
In a micro-safe bowl, melt chocolate and water together in microwave or over a double boiler. Stir until smooth and set aside. In a separate bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking soda, salt and baking powder. Set aside.

In the bowl of a standing mixer, cream together the butter, vanilla extract, granulated sugar and brown sugar until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add egg yolks 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in melted chocolate. Add the flour mixture and buttermilk, alternating, until everything is combined.

Using an electric mixer beat egg whites, in a small bowl, until stiff peaks form. Gently fold the whites into the batter.

Pour batter into 3 (9-inch) cake pans or 2 (12 capacity) cupcake tins. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove from the oven to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely before filling and frosting.

Yield: 3 (9-inch) cakes or 24 cupcakes

Coconut Pecan Frosting/Filling:
* 1 1/2 cups evaporated milk
* 5 egg yolks, slightly beaten
* 1 cup granulated sugar
* 1 cup brown sugar
* 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1 cup butter
* 2 1/2 cups flaked coconut
* 2 cups toasted pecans

Combine evaporated milk, slightly beaten egg yolks, granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla and butter in a large saucepan or heavy pot over low heat. When butter melts raise the heat to medium, stirring constantly. The mixture will thicken after 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat. Add coconut and pecans and cool before frosting cakes.