This low carb, AMAZING Keto German Chocolate Cake features tender, dark chocolate cake paired with the most luscious coconut pecan frosting, seriously, what’s not to love? This amazing creation is actually American in origin, despite its name!
HISTORY OF GERMAN CHOCOLATE CAKE
Okay, I’m not going to give a full history lesson, there’s wikipedia for that, but you can impress people at your next zoom happy hour (written during the pandemic of 2020) with the knowledge that this cake gets its name from its creator, Samuel German! Thus – German Chocolate Cake! If you want a German Chocolate Cake originating from Germany, try your hand at a Black Forest Cake (recipe coming soon!).
This dark and light chocolate cake is the perfect vehicle for getting THIS FROSTING into your mouth! Yes, the cake is awesome, and who doesn’t love chocolate cake, but German Chocolate Cake is all about the frosting!
KEY INGREDIENTS: THE FROSTING
When executed perfectly, this frosting is like the ultimate butterscotch sauce-meets-pecan-pie, crossed with toasted coconut. Here are some of the key ingredients:
EGG YOLKS
This frosting is actually a custard base; egg yolks give it that thick creamy, pecan pie kind of element. Egg yolks warm up to the idea of becoming frosting slowly and have to be cajoled into icing. Do. Not. Rush. Them. No one wants scrambled eggs for frosting. No one!
ALLULOSE
Magical sweetener of my dreams. This rare sugar behaves so much like sugar that it allows this recipe to have a wonderful butterscotch flavor and no aftertaste. It browns up like sugar and also thickens as it cooks. If you can only try one new ingredient, let this be the one.
Check out more keto recipes with allulose.
BLACKSTRAP MOLASSES
*looks around sheepishly* Okay, so this comes from sugar – THE sugar, the real sugar, the one from the canes, yes, the evil sugar. It kind of looks like tar in a jar. It’s pungent and not something that would inspire you to lick the spoon. Blackstrap molasses is from the final pressing of sugar and it’s super pungent. I’m guessing there’s some crazy umami in there. What it does for this recipe – besides add carbs, which it does – is give it some true depth of flavor. There’s a richness to it – again, think like the amber base of pecan pie – that is tough to replicate. You do NOT have to add it, and you also just add the tiniest splash possible but it will contribute to the depth of your frosting.
COCONUT 🥥 & PECANS
Okay, coconut and pecans ARE the frosting; they give this frosting its iconic look and taste. I’m writing about them to give you some options.
The first option involves the coconut. I grew up loving the coconut pecan frosting that comes in the can, right next to the boxed cakes. I’m sure it’s filled with hydrogenated oils and all kinds of awful stuff but it’s thick, spreadable and the coconuts and pecans have a soft texture. My preference for this frosting is more of a creamy, homogeneous texture. So, for the coconut I like to cook it for a bit in my custard base. Cooking softens up the coconut and also lends a bit more coconut flavor to the frosting.
My second off-script change on this frosting is using roasted, salted pecans. The roasted nuts have a bit more flavor than their raw counterparts and the salt, is… salty! That slight salt oomph is a nice complement to the butterscotch flavors of the frosting. Think, salted caramel. You get the gist. These are both options – but I think they are both worth it!
TECHNIQUE
These Amazing Keto German Chocolate Cupcakes have a coconut pecan frosting. This frosting has a custard base and is actually cooked in a skillet. The process of making it is a bit like making pudding. It requires slowly cooking it and stirring constantly. Finally, make sure it does reach a caramel color and thickens up to coat the back of a spoon. This is a frosting, not caramel sauce and you’ll need that thickness if you want it to sit on top of your cupcakes and look all shiny and gorgeous.
TOP TIP: The main take away is – do not make scrambled eggs! This happens when you rush too much. Don’t try to speed through it and hurry things along. Slowly warm up the mixture and give the eggs a little patience.
TROUBLESHOOTING
There can be a few issues along the way. Let’s try to make sure that doesn’t happen or, worse case scenario, find a fix!
Why is my coconut pecan frosting not thickening?
We’re counting on the milk evaporating some and the egg yolks adding some body and thickness. Both can take a little time and patience so just keep stirring as the heat does its thing.
Why are the egg yolks in my coconut pecan frosting separating?
Okay, I won’t lie. This is fairly bad news. The eggs are scrambling at this point instead of integrating. It likely means the temperature is too high and/or the mixture isn’t combined well enough. You can TRY to use a strainer and see if the set egg can be separated out but it’s likely you might need to start again.
SERVING
How should I serve Keto German Chocolate Cake?
- This makes a great birthday or anniversary cake
- Great for a decadent date night dinner following a great steak dinner
- Perfect to take to a gathering or potluck 🧁
What should I drink with Keto German Chocolate Cake?
Coffee would be awesome with this. ☕️ An almond or coconut milk latte would be an amazing match. Tea is always nice with cake, as is milk! Could also be paired with a lighter red wine like pinot noir.
STORING
With a custard frosting, these are best stored in the fridge. Bring to room temperature before serving or microwave for a few seconds on defrost to take the chill off.
❤️ MORE RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
- Keto Chocolate Marshmallow Cloud Cake is as beautiful as it is delicious!
- Keto Whoppie Pies AKA Gobs are also a really fun take on chocolate cakes. 🍫
- Enjoy your favorite ice cream with Keto Chocolate Ice Cream Sandwiches!
- For coconut 🥥 lovers, Keto Coconut and Cheese Flan is another gorgeous must try!
Keto German Chocolate Cupcakes
Ingredients
CAKE
dry ingredients
- 1/2 cup oat fiber specifically LifeSource brand
- 1/2 cup allulose
- 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup casein protein
- 1/4 cup whey protein
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/8 teaspoon baking powder
wet ingredients
- 1 egg
- 3/4 cup almond milk unsweetened
- 1/4 cup avocado oil can substitute melted coconut oil or vegetable oil
- 2 tablespoons Greek yogurt sour cream also works
- 2 tablespoons coffee optional
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
COCONUT PECAN FROSTING
ingredients
- 1 cup almond milk unsweetened
- 1 cup allulose
- 6 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon blackstrap molasses can be reduced or omitted
- 3 egg yolks
- 1 cup shredded coconut unsweetened use the medium cut for nice long strands
- 1 cup pecans I used roasted salted for flavor
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract optional
- ½ teaspoon salt optional, omit if using salted pecans
Instructions
instructions cake
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- In one bowl, mix all dry ingredients. Cocoa and protein powders can clump so be very thorough.
- In a separate bowl, combine wet ingredients. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients until the mixture is well incorporated. The texture should be pudding like. If it’s too stiff, add another tablespoon of almond milk.
- Fill cupcakes no more that 2/3 full to allow for room to expand.
- Bake at 325 F and begin checking for doneness at 15 minutes. Cake is done when set and a knife inserted at the thickest part comes out clean.
- Place on a rack and allow to cool completely before frosting.
instructions frosting
- Combine milk, allulose, blackstrap molasses and egg yolks, mix well until yolks are completely incorporated.
- Add this mix and the butter to a nonstick saucepan turned to low. Stir constantly as the butter melts.
- Slowly turn the mixture up until it begins to bubble, and keep stirring! The mixture will begin to thicken and turn darker. Continue to cook until the mixture is a caramel color and has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- OPTIONAL – add coconut while cooking, This will soften the coconut some and add a little more coconut flavor as the coconut infuses the milk mixture. Yum!
- Remove from heat and mix in vanilla, salt, coconut and pecans. Allow frosting to cool.
- Frost your cake and enjoy!
Oh my! German Chocolate is my favorite!
Thank you! The frosting really gets me. I like it on lots of cake flavors (strangely)! I’m so glad you like this one – thank you for leaving a note!
looks sumptuous! interesting recipe especially some of the ingredients you use. would love to try this cupcake and know more about the background.
Thanks for checking it out, Jeannie! Keto baking seems to draw from all kinds of interesting ingredients! The oat fiber gives it some of the sponge texture and the proteins seem to give it some of the structure. I hope you’ll give it a shot sometime and let me know what you thing!
I’ve never heard of Allulose…I’ll have to search that.
This looks yummy!
Thank you so much, Rachel! Allulose is my favorite sweetener, hands down! I hope you give it a try; I think you’ll love it!
German chocolate cake is so good. Excited to see a Keto recipe! I’ll have to share with my friends who are living a Keto lifestyle. Thanks
Thank so much, Cindy! I hope they’ll love it! Thanks so much for sharing!
This German chocolate cake looks amazing. Can’t wait to give it a try.
Thank you, Kalu! I appreciate you checking it out – I can’t wait to see a picture of your cake!
Oh, my world! I have a feeling that if I turn keto I’ll actually eat a lot more sweets than I eat now:)))) But seriously, dark chocolate cake and pecan nuts? LOVE them! By the way, I can’t wait for your Dark Forest. I wanted to make one last weekend for a birthday party, but the beneficiary decided to be picky and ask for a vanilla something. Argh! I still want Dark Forest!
You are too funny! And sweet! Okay, I’ll take that as a special request and get to work on it! xo
I am drooling just looking a your pictures. I am a frosting kind of gal and the pecans… oh! my! Total yum!
I know, Gina! The cake is great but there’s just something amazing about coconut pecan frosting!
This looks absolutely delicious and so moist. Loved the little trivia about the chocolate cake being named after a man rather than where it’s from! I’m doing lots of research atm about the keto diet so it’s good to know I don’t have to give everything up!
Thanks so much, Amy! I was really surprised to learn that as well! Keto is such a great diet, you just have to figure out your work arounds! If I can be of any help with your research, please feel free to reach out! I know I had tons of questions when I was starting out. xo
Oh myyy! That topping is calling my name. I love German cakes and you just reminded me it is time for one. I wanted to bake so thanks for helping make up my mind with this great choice.
Ha ha! I know, I love chocolate cake but this one does feel like it’s all about the frosting! Thanks, Ramona!
Love German Chocolate and these cakes are fantastic, made these for my partner as he is on a high protein diet and he loved them 🙂
Will be making more for Christmas, thanks for sharing!!
Thanks so much, Kay, I’m so glad to hear that you enjoyed it! I appreciate you taking the time to leave a review – happy holidays!
They look so luscious, the moist is making me salivate. Great job on the photos.
Thanks so much – I’m so glad you like them!
Excellent treat. Wonderful recipe to have when you need something rich and decadent and still keto! THank you.
Thanks so much, Debra! This one definitely hits the spot!