I know, I know. The cupcake thing was so 2014 (2013? 2012?) but let me explain.

My dad loves German chocolate cake. A few years back I posted the tried and true Betty Crocker recipe that my mom has always made but for a recent family get together, I thought I’d put a new spin on the favorite by making German chocolate cupcakes. The recipe is slightly different as, you’ll see in the old post, my attempt at cupcakes that go-around was a colossal fail.

German Chocolate Cupcakes | Bistro OneSixThis way it was easy to send my parents home with the leftovers and not have three layers of temptation sitting on the counter. Plus, no matter if the craze is over or not, cupcake are still – and always will be – fun to eat!

German Chocolate Cupcakes
Serves: 18 cupcakes
 
Ingredients
  • 6 oz semisweet chocolate chips
  • 2 cups cake flour
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • ¾ cup (1½ sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 1½ tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup buttermilk
Frosting
  • 6 Tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1½ cups unsweetened coconut
  • 1¼ cups pecans, coarsely chopped
  • 1 cup heavy cream
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 large egg yolks
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
  2. Place cupcake liners in the muffin tins.
  3. Melt chocolate chips in a double-boiler or a heatproof bowl set over a pot of simmering water; set aside.
  4. Mix cake flour, baking soda and salt together and set aside.
  5. Cream together butter and sugar with a electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing until completely incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
  6. Beat in vanilla and reduce the speed to low. Mix the flour mixture in three additions, alternating with two additions of the buttermilk, beating to combine after each addition.
  7. Add chocolate and mix to combine.
  8. Divide batter evenly among cupcake liners, filling each ¾ full.
  9. Bake 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
  10. Transfer to wire rack to cool 10 minutes and then carefully remove each cupcake from the pan to cool completely.
  11. To make frosting, mix the butter, salt, coconut and pecan pieces in a large bowl and set aside.
  12. Combine the cream, sugar, and egg yolks in a saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture begins to thicken, and coats the back of the spoon (170 to 175°F).
  13. Strain the hot mixture through a sieve over the coconut mixture and stir until the butter is melted.
  14. Cool completely to room temperature. It will thicken as it cools.
  15. Frost cooled cupcakes and serve.


German Chocolate Cupcake | Bistro OneSix