Help With German Chocolate Icing, Please!
Decorating By crisseyann Updated 21 Dec 2006 , 12:50am by crisseyann
My teenaged daughter has been making cakes for some of her classes at school. She has gotten four PAID cake requests from some teachers. One of the orders is for a German chocolate cake with the standard pecan-coconut icing. Her schedule is really tight, what with it being the last week of school before the holidays and her job. She has this AND another cake due tomorrow.
Well, Mom here, stepped in and offered to bake the cakes and make the icings so she can just throw them both together after work tonight and decorate them for Thursday. I made the icing off of this site, using the one with whipping cream, butter, sugar, egg yolk, nuts and coconut.
This mixture never really thickened, even after 45 minutes of cooking and stirring in a double-boiler. I figured, maybe this sets up as it cools. Well, it did, somewhat, after putting it in the fridge all night.. It still seems too runny to stay on the cake.
Is there something I can try to salvage this? Not a cheap icing to make, by any means. Personally, I like the canned version of German chocolate icing, but since this is a paid cake, I thought we'd try a homemade version. She is using this just an an icing for the top of a sheet cake, the sides will be covered in chocolate buttercream. Any idea???
TIA
Coconut Pecan Frosting and Filling
3/4 cup evaporated milk
1/2 cup light brown sugar, firmly packed
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 egg yolks, slightly beaten
1 1/3 cups Baker's Angel Flake coconut (3-ounce can)
1 cup chopped pecans
In a saucepan over medium heat, combine milk, sugars, butter, and vanilla. Bring to a full boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat (mixture might appear a bit curdled). Quickly stir a small amount of the hot liquid into the beaten egg yolks; return egg yolk mixture to the hot mixture in saucepan and blend well. Return to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and stir in coconut and pecans. Cool to spreading consistency, beating occasionally.
I haven't tried the recipe from this site but I use the one on the box of Bakers German Chocolate. It's really good.
For the icing you have already made I suggest making a fairly stiff chocolate buttercream and make a shell border about an inch into the top of the cake. Then fill that with the coconut icing. Hopefully it will act like a dam and be pretty.
Betty Crocker makes an exceptionally good tasting ready to use Coconut Pecan icing. I have used it many times (not always), and nobody has ever been able to tell that it is from a can. She may need two cans, as it does not spread easily.
I have not tried the Duncan Hines, so I cannot vouch for the taste or quality of that brand.
Theresa 
Thank you for the recipes and tips. DH went to the store and got me some evaporated milk. I had everything else on hand to make it. I was hoping to salvage my first try, but it just wasn't looking possible. I have NO problem whatsoever with the canned German Chocolate icing. I just didn't think this should be used on a paid cake, since we already used doctored cake mixes. Thanks again, everyone! Happy holidays.
Tell your daughter I say Congratulations on having the opportunity to do these cakes, and that I wish her many more such opportunities in the future.
Theresa
Thank you, Theresa. What a nice thing to say! You bet I'll tell her. I've had ONE paid cake so far, and she's on her 3rd and 4th! We went through the Wilton classes together and I swear, she did better than our instructor! Thanks again.
Cris
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