Normally, German chocolate isn't at the top of my list, but these German chocolate cake cookies definitely changed my mind. They are by far one of my favorite cookies of all time. I decided to make these for my mom's birthday--she and my Grandpa shared a love for German chocolate cake, and I'm beginning to understand why. The rich German chocolate combined with a creamy coconut topping is absolutely incredible!
However, if German chocolate isn't your jam, try one of my other favorite cookie recipes below:
Original Chocolate Chip Cookies
Chewy Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Frosted Chocolate Oreo Cookies
What makes these German Chocolate Cake Cookies so good?
The cookie dough is made with Dutch process cocoa powder rather than normal cocoa powder, which gives the chocolate a soft and smooth taste (I like to use Ghirardelli's Dutch process cocoa powder). Plus, the added milk chocolate chips and the melted milk chocolate on top don't hurt! The topping is made from toasted coconut and pecans, which adds even more richness to the flavor. It's the perfect complement to the sweet chocolate!
Some tips for success...
First off, make sure not to overmix the cookie dough after mixing in the dry ingredients. This will add too much air to the cookies, making them fall flat in the oven. On the other hand, make sure to press down the balls of cookie dough before baking, otherwise you will end up with a dome-shaped cookie that will be hard to put topping on.
When making the topping, toasting the coconut and pecans adds a ton of flavor. However, be careful not to burn them! There's a fine line between toasting and burning, and it may be hard to realize at first. If a little bit of the coconut burns, that's okay--just make sure to remove it from the pan ASAP and remove as many burnt pieces as you can.
Also, don't rush cooking the rest of the topping. Egg yolk tends to cook fast, so you want all the ingredients whisked together well and cooked slowly, otherwise you'll have chunks of egg yolk in the topping. Nobody wants that.
If you try out these German chocolate cake cookies or any of my other recipes, I’d LOVE to hear about it. You can leave a comment below the recipe, or if you post a picture on Instagram, be sure to tag me! Getting any feedback on my recipes is both rewarding AND helpful as I write and edit recipes in the future.
Now get baking, and enjoy!
AMAZING German Chocolate Cake Cookies
Ingredients
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
- ½ cup cane sugar
- 2 ½ cup all purpose flour
- ½ cup dutch process cocoa powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ½ teaspoon cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 2 large eggs
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ cup milk chocolate chips (Ghirardelli)
Topping
- 1 cup milk chocolate melting wafers
- 1 cup chopped pecans, plus a handful of whole pecans
- 1 ¼ cup shredded coconut, sweetened
- 1 cup evaporated milk
- ½ cup unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 egg yolks
- ½ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ½ cup cane sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F. Spray cooking spray on two cookie sheets and set aside. In a standing mixer, mix together the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar on high until creamy (about 3-4 minutes). Halfway through mixing, scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure it's completely mixed.
- To a separate bowl, add the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, cornstarch, and salt. Whisk together and set aside.
- Add vanilla extract and eggs to the standing mixer, and mix on medium until well combined. Make sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add flour mixture to the standing mixer and mix on the lowest setting until just combined. Add chocolate chips while flour is still mixing in–this minimizes the risk of overworking the cookie dough.
- Roll the cookie dough into 12 large balls and spread out 6 on each pan. Press down on each cookie with two fingers to flatten slightly, otherwise they won't flatten enough while baking. Bake for 9-10 minutes, or until they start cracking on the edges.
- Flatten cookies slightly more with a spatula if not flat enough to put on topping. You can also use a large round cookie cutter to perfectly round out the cookies. Just make sure that the cutter is larger than the cookie, and move in a circular motion on the pan around the cookie immediately after taking them out of the oven.
- While the cookies are cooling, make the coconut topping. Start by heating a frying pan on medium heat. Add the coconut and the chopped pecans, and stir until the coconut starts to brown. Be careful not to burn it! You want the pecans and the coconut to be toasted for the topping. Set aside and allow to cool.
- In a sauce pan, melt the butter on low heat. Once melted, whisk in the egg yolks, evaporated milk, salt, brown sugar, and white sugar. Keep on low heat, you don't want the egg yolks to cook before everything has been heated. Make sure to keep whisking together, and gradually increase temperature to medium-low heat. Cook for about 5 minutes after the liquid comes to a low boil, until it starts to thicken. Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract. Mix in toasted pecans and coconut. Set aside and allow to cool completely.
- Melt 1 cup of melting chocolate in the microwave. Stir after every 30 seconds to make sure it doesn't burn. Once melted (it should only take 1 minute), spread about a tablespoon on top of each cookie (make sure the cookies are completely cooled). Once you've allowed the chocolate to solidify, top each cookie with the pecan-coconut topping.
- If you want, add a few whole pecans on top of each cookie for decoration. Enjoy!
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