German Chocolate Cookies

User Reviews

5.0

12 reviews
Excellent
  • Prep Time

    20 mins

  • Cook Time

    20 mins

  • Total Time

    40 mins

  • Servings

    28 cookies

  • Calories

    256 kcal

  • Cuisine

    American

German Chocolate Cookies

German chocolate cookies have all the elements of the classic cake, but in cookie form! The coconut and pecan filling works perfectly as a topping for chewy chocolate cookies. Recipe includes a how-to video!

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Ingredients

Servings

Topping

  • 3 large egg yolks
  • ¾ cup evaporated milk
  • 6 Tablespoons unsalted butter cut into 6 pieces
  • ½ cup light brown sugar firmly packed
  • ¼ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ teaspoon table salt
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup toasted pecans chopped (see note)
  • 1 ½ cups sweetened shredded coconut

Cookies

  • 1 cup unsalted butter softened
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • ¾ cup light brown sugar firmly packed
  • ½ cup natural cocoa powder
  • 1 large egg + 1 egg yolk room temperature preferred
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 ½ cups cake flour (see note)
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon baking soda
  • ¾ teaspoon table salt
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Instructions

Topping

  1. Prepare the topping first as it will need a fair bit of time to cool before you can top your cookies with it!
  2. In a medium-sized saucepan, combine egg yolks and evaporated milk and whisk together until eggs are lightly beaten.
  3. Add butter, sugars, and salt and heat over medium/low heat, stirring to combine. Be sure to keep your heat low so you do not cook your eggs. Stir continuously until mixture is light golden brown and has thickened (it should coat the back of a spoon, I demonstrate this in the video), this should take around 10 minutes but may take longer.
  4. Remove pan from heat and stir in vanilla, pecans, and coconut.
  5. Allow topping to cool completely at room temperature before spreading over cookies. Meanwhile, prepare your cookies.

Cookies

  1. Preheat oven to 350F (175C) and line baking sheets with parchment paper, set aside.
  2. In a large mixing bowl (or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment), combine butter and sugar and use an electric mixer to beat together until creamed, light, and fluffy (at least 2 minutes on high speed)
  3. Add cocoa powder and stir on low-speed until completely combined.
  4. Add egg, egg yolk, and vanilla extract and stir again until completely combined and uniform.
  5. In a separate, medium-sized mixing bowl whisk together cake flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
  6. Gradually stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients in several parts, mixing after each addition until completely combined.
  7. Scoop cookie dough by the level 1 ½ Tablespoon-sized scoop (32g) and roll gently between your palms to make a smooth ball. Transfer to prepared baking sheets, spacing cookies at least 2” (5cm) apart.
  8. Transfer baking sheet to center rack of 350F (175C) preheated oven and bake for 8-9 minutes. Within a minute of removing from the oven, use a flat surface (such as the clean bottom of a measuring cup) to lightly press down to gently flatten the top of each cookie (so the surface is flat and smooth). Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for at least 5-10 minutes before carefully transferring to cooling rack to cool completely (or at least mostly cooled) before covering with topping.
  9. Once the topping and cookies have both cooled, scoop topping by 1 Tablespoon-sized scoop and use a spoon to gently spread over the surface of the cookie, nudging it toward the edges. Serve and enjoy.

Notes

  • If you don’t want to waste your egg whites, save them for macarons, meringues, white cupcakes, Swiss meringue buttercream, or candied pecans! 
  • If you don’t already have toasted pecans, you can follow my simple tutorial on how to toast pecans. Toast them, let them cool a bit, and then chop them for best results.
  • Cake flour is best for this cookie for a lighter, tender texture reminiscent of a German chocolate cake. However, if all-purpose flour is all you have, you can substitute 2 ¼ cup (280g) of all-purpose flour + 1 Tablespoon of cornstarch.
  • Because of the coconut topping, these cookies should be refrigerated if you’re keeping them longer than 24 hours. To store them, keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you don’t like them cold, it’s fine to pull a few out and bring to room temperature before enjoying!

Nutrition Information

Show Details
Serving 1cookie Calories 256kcal (13%) Carbohydrates 31g (10%) Protein 3g (6%) Fat 14g (22%) Saturated Fat 8g (40%) Polyunsaturated Fat 1g Monounsaturated Fat 4g Trans Fat 0.4g Cholesterol 53mg (18%) Sodium 132mg (6%) Potassium 103mg (3%) Fiber 1g (4%) Sugar 21g (42%) Vitamin A 332IU (7%) Vitamin C 0.2mg (0%) Calcium 49mg (5%) Iron 1mg (6%)

Nutrition Facts

Serving: 28cookies

Amount Per Serving

Calories 256 kcal

% Daily Value*

Serving 1cookie
Calories 256kcal 13%
Carbohydrates 31g 10%
Protein 3g 6%
Fat 14g 22%
Saturated Fat 8g 40%
Polyunsaturated Fat 1g 6%
Monounsaturated Fat 4g 20%
Trans Fat 0.4g 20%
Cholesterol 53mg 18%
Sodium 132mg 6%
Potassium 103mg 2%
Fiber 1g 4%
Sugar 21g 42%
Vitamin A 332IU 7%
Vitamin C 0.2mg 0%
Calcium 49mg 5%
Iron 1mg 6%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

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5.0

12 reviews
Excellent

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