Decadent chocolate cake, a sweet caramel pecan coconut filling, and rich chocolate buttercream make up this super dreamy Vegan German Chocolate Cake. This cake is incredible and undetectably vegan!
Calling all chocolate, caramel, and coconut lovers! This Vegan German Chocolate Cake is for you.
Every decadent German chocolate cake recipe comes with three delicious layers:
- Moist chocolate cake
- A caramelly coconut pecan filling
- And chocolate frosting
Every slice is loaded with sweetness and just the right amount of chocolate. While Vegan Chocolate Cake is rich and chocolatey, German chocolate cake tastes more like caramel and is always super moist. It’s a real indulgent dessert that would be welcome at any celebration or around the holidays!
German chocolate cake vs. regular chocolate cake
Did you know that German chocolate cake doesn’t actually come from Germany? The recipe was invented in the United States by the baker, Samuel German!
German chocolate cake is moist, sweet, and rich. Sounds like a regular chocolate cake, right? The major difference between the two is that German chocolate cake has a layer of caramel-like coconut pecan filling on the inside and on top. It’s also traditionally made with a little less cocoa powder, allowing more room for the coconut and pecan flavors to shine through.
How to make vegan German chocolate cake
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
To start, bake the two layers of chocolate cake:
- Pour the soy milk and apple cider vinegar together in a bowl. Leave it for a few minutes to curdle (this acts as a substitute for buttermilk).
- Whisk the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Next, add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix until well combined.
- Finish by slowly whisking in the boiling hot water. You’ll know it’s ready when the batter looks runny.
- Pour the batter into your cake pans and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
Prepare the coconut pecan filling and chocolate frosting while you wait for the cakes to cool:
Whisk the coconut milk and cornstarch together in a bowl or measuring cup.
Melt the vegan butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Next, add the sugars and coconut milk mixture. Stir until it’s bubbling and looks like a thin caramel.
Don’t worry that it seems thin; it thickens up considerably as it cools.
Take it off the heat and stir in the vanilla, chopped pecans, and coconut flakes.
Transfer to a bowl and leave it to cool (you can stick it in the refrigerator to speed this up).
Look how thick and caramelly it gets after chilling. Try not to eat it all by the spoonful!
The vegan chocolate frosting is a breeze to make:
To make the frosting, beat the butter in a bowl until it looks creamy. Add the cocoa, powdered sugar, vanilla, and soy milk. Mix until everything is combined and the frosting looks fluffy. Yum!
It’s assembly time! You’re minutes away from enjoying decadent eggless German chocolate cake:
- To the first layer of chocolate cake, add a smooth layer of chocolate frosting on top. Spoon on half of the coconut pecan mixture and spread it into a smooth layer.
- Stack the second cake layer on top. Spread some frosting on top and over the sides of the entire cake. Pipe some frosting around the top of the cake, if desired.
- Spoon the rest of the coconut pecan filling on top, then slice and enjoy! The cake is a little messy when sliced right away. For cleaner pieces, refrigerate the whole cake for at least 30 minutes before slicing.
Can it be made gluten free?
Use my Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Cake as a base layer to turn this into a vegan and gluten free German chocolate cake. The coconut pecan filling and chocolate frosting are both naturally gluten free.
Tips and substitutions
- Is the frosting too thick? Stir in another tablespoon or two of soy milk.
- Is the frosting too thin? Keep adding powdered sugar until you have a spreadable frosting.
- Decorating – To help contain the coconut pecan mixture on top of the cake, use a piping bag to pipe some frosting in a circle around the edge.
- Make it ahead of time – Feel free to bake the cakes, frosting, and filling 1 to 2 weeks ahead of serving. Wrap the cakes in plastic and refrigerate or freeze. Store the frosting and filling in covered containers in the fridge.
Freezing chocolate cake
The unfrosted baked cakes freeze very well on their own when wrapped in plastic. Alternatively, you can freeze the assembled slices and enjoy them as a quick freezer dessert later on!
More vegan cakes to try
Vegan German Chocolate Cake
Ingredients
Chocolate Cake
- 1 cup unsweetened soy milk
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 3/4 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup natural cocoa powder
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup neutral flavored oil (I used avocado oil)
- 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup boiling hot water
Coconut Pecan Filling
- 1 cup full fat coconut milk
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 cup vegan butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup chopped pecans
- 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut
Chocolate Frosting
- 1 cup vegan butter, softened
- 3/4 cup natural cocoa powder
- 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 2-4 tablespoons unsweetened soy milk, as needed
Instructions
For the chocolate cake
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and spray two 8-inch round cake pans with oil. I also line them with a circle of parchment paper for easy removal.
- Measure 1 cup of soy milk and add the tablespoon of apple cider vinegar to it. Stir and set aside to curdle.
- In a large bowl (I use my stand mixer with whisk attachment), add the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Whisk well to combine.
- To the bowl with the dry ingredients, add the oil, applesauce, vanilla and milk/vinegar mixture. Mix on medium speed, either with a hand mixer or a stand mixer, until well combined. Scrape down the sides as needed.
- Lower the speed and slowly pour in the boiling hot water, continuing to mix until combined. The batter will seem runny, which is correct.
- Divide the batter evenly between the pans and bake for 35-37 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. After 10 minutes of cooling in the pans, carefully invert the cakes onto a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
For the coconut pecan filling
- In a glass measuring cup or bowl, whisk together the coconut milk and cornstarch until the cornstarch is dissolved.
- In a medium saucepan, melt the vegan butter over medium heat, then add the brown sugar, granulated sugar and coconut milk/cornstarch mixture and stir to combine. Stir for 5 minutes. It should be bubbling and look like thin caramel. It will thicken as it cools.
- Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla, chopped pecans and coconut flakes. Allow it to cool completely before layering.
For the chocolate frosting
- Make sure your vegan butter is softened but not at all melted. If it's melted the frosting will be runny and not work.
- Add the vegan butter to a large bowl, and beat with an electric mixer (or stand mixer with whisk attachment) for about 2 minutes, until creamy.
- Sift in the cocoa powder if clumpy and add the powdered sugar, vanilla and 2 tablespoons of soy milk. Beat on low speed until the powdered sugar starts to incorporate, then increase the speed and beat for 3-4 minutes, until well combined and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl as needed.
- If the frosting is too thick, add another tablespoon or two of soy milk. If it's too thin, add additional powdered sugar until you have a spreadable frosting.
Cake assembly
- Place one cake layer on your cake stand or plate. Smooth a thin layer of chocolate frosting over the cake layer, then spoon half of the coconut pecan mixture on top, spreading it into a smooth layer. Leave 1/2 inch between the filling and the edge of the cake.
- Stack the second cake layer on top, then spread chocolate frosting over and on the sides of the whole cake. I also piped some frosting in a circle on top, which helps contain the coconut pecan mixture.
- Spoon the rest of the coconut pecan filling on top of the cake. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
-
Freeze – This cake freezes well if needed, though I prefer to cut slices, wrap them well and freeze for a quick freezer dessert!
-
Make Ahead – Feel free to bake the cakes and make each frosting ahead of time, up to 1-2 weeks ahead of when you plan to serve it. For the cakes, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate or freeze. Store the frosting and filling in covered containers.
-
Gluten free – Make my Gluten Free Vegan Chocolate Cake as the base layer to make this recipe gluten free.
Nora, this is amazing! My family could not get enough.
Thank you for sharing your glowing 5 star review, Lynette! I’m thrilled your family loved the cake! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
Subbed king Arthur gluten free measure for measure flour, otherwise followed the recipe as written. It is AMAZING.
Could something else be used other than coconut milk? If the people I would be making this for don’t really like coconut. Could some other plant cream be used like oat or soy cream?
You could try another vegan cream, it might work though it could be runnier. I haven’t tested it with anything else so I can’t really say for sure. If it’s any help, I can’t taste the coconut at all and I’m pretty sensitive to it.
Is it canned coconut milk or from a carton?
Hi Margaret. For the pecan filling, it is the canned coconut milk. Use both the white part on top and the liquid when measuring the cup. I hope this helps. Happy baking!
Thank you, it does.
Excellent recipe! It was a huge hit. I made the following adjustments:
1. Substitute 1 cup of boiling hot water with 1 cup of hot coffee (drip coffee, medium roast)
2. Covered half of the top of the cake in frosting, and the other half with the ganache filling. I was catering for a crowd that didn’t like a lot of sugar, and the thin layer of frosting between the layers was enough. Did not cover sides in frosting. We will use the leftover frosting for cupcakes, but you could halve the frosting recipe instead.
The batter was really runny, but it still turned out excellent! I had just one cake tin so I had to bake the layers separately, but the second layer turned out just fine. I was worried that the vinegar + baking powder/soda reaction would be affected but it wasn’t noticeable.
Hi Roumen. I’m so glad to read that you loved the cake! Thanks for sharing your glowing 5 star review, as well as your recipe experience and ideas! The cake batter is definitely runny, and I’m glad you trusted the process! That’s how you know the batter is ready, when it looks runny! Wishing you lots of happy baking!
Nora, you are my go to blogger, I have tried pound cake, copy cat lemon cake, chocolate cake, grape jelly meatballs, brownies,ceaser salad, red lasagna, white lasagna, chocolate sheet cake, coconut one bowl cake, carrot cake, Mac and cheese and the German chocolate that I will be baking soon.
I can say every single thing has been a hit in my group! All thanks to you! I am a HUGE fan of your blog!
Today’s recipe variations for German chocolate cake:
I had only coconut cream in my pantry so I decided to go with it for the pecan coconut filling. I added half measure of coconut cream and half measure of water and half measure of the corn starch than what the recipe called for. I did this change because coconut cream is already thick.
I did not have sweetened coconut shreds, so I added unsweetened ones. It turned out perfect!
I am adding this in the comment because I love reading all the comments for a recipe to see how’s everyone’s cake turned out and what were the modifications! I can say I love it when a recipe has many many comments lol.
SO GOOD! I subbed a few things for allergy reasons and it came out perfectly. Thought I’d share in case anyone is in the same boat:
Tapioca starch instead of corn
Baking powder made with cream of tartar instead of cornstarch
Oat milk instead of soy
(we have a corn/soy allergy in the family)
I’m so grateful for your recipes!!
Hi Stevi. I am glad you are enjoying my recipes! I appreciate you using them! How awesome the cake turned out wonderful for you! Thanks for sharing your baking experience! Wishing yo happy cooking!
Exceptional!! So easy to follow and an incredible cake!!
High altitude and oat milk? Haven’t tried this yet as I have had so many failures with baking at 8000 feet! I have a general range for adjustments for high altitude but what would you recommend? Also, can I sub oat milk or flax mile for the soy?
This is my daughter’s FAVORITE cake but the one vegan friendly bakery in our area has closed. So I’m hoping to surprise her with this for her birthday on 12/23!
Hi Nora- I love all your recipes but lately I’m having difficulty with cakes. Do you always use a scale to measure your ingredients? Would that help with a better end product because I feel that the cake’s failure is the result of me adding too much sugar. Any help would be appreciated!
I don’t use a scale primarily to bake; it’s just not the way I bake. If I was a professional baker, I’m sure I’d use a scale, but I’m just a home cook/baker and this is how I learned. Plenty of other food websites use primarily a scale to measure; perhaps you’ll find some recipes like that if you search around. Are you adding too much sugar? I’m not sure why you would if you measure (or weigh).
I love this recipe honestly i can’t get enough of it. So much thanks, this recipe is to die for.
I’m so thrilled you loved the cake, Maryam! You are very welcome! I appreciate you taking time to share your awesome review!
Hi!! I’m excited to make this! Would lite coconut milk work with this? What mods would I need to make if needed? Thank you!
You could try it but I’m not sure the coconut pecan filling will thicken up as well, it might be quite runny. I’ve never tried it myself so it’s hard to say. I hope you enjoy the cake!
Hi Lauren, I just made the filling with lite coconut milk and added a couple extra tbsp of cornstarch. I heated up the mixture in my sauce pan before adding the butter and sugar until it thickened a bit. The filling turned out great and not runny at all!
I made this cake yesterday. First time doing a vegan cake for a friend. Fantastic! Highly recommended.
Holy sugar rush Batman! That was by FAR the best German Chocolate Cake *ever*. I made it for my love’s bday and he couldn’t believe how special it was. Thanks for this perfect recipe. Oh, I did have to add a bit more cornstarch to thicken the coconut sauce but I think that was my fault, mine was quite old so maybe less effective? No big deal. Totally worth it.
Hi Heather! I’m thrilled you loved the cake! Happy birthday to your love! I appreciate your awesome review and feedback! Happy cooking!
This is, without a doubt, the best cake I’ve ever had. I usually use box cake mixes but this was not more difficult, just took a tiny bit longer.
I skipped the chocolate frosting and accidentally used a whole stick of butter in the coconut pecan frosting, but it was still incredible. Very rich, very moist, and would be liked by anyone who likes chocolate cake.
I’ll definitely be making this cake again when I need to take a cake for potlucks!
I’ve yet to make a Nora Cooks recipe I haven’t absolutely loved.
Hi Julie. Your wonderful words are such an encouragement! Thanks for taking your time to share this great review and feedback! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
This is the best German Chocolate cake I’ve ever had in my life!
Hi Nora;
I love your recipes! In order to make this in a 9×13 cake pan; what changes are needed to accomplish this?
Hi Lisa. The only change required to bake in a 9×13 pan is that it will require longer in the oven, probably around 40 minutes. Enjoy and happy baking!
This cake got me in trouble. I just got a call requesting another one after making the first for my friends vegan boyfriends birthday. Apparently he hasn’t stopped talking about it and the birthday party was a month ago! They said I’m gonna have to start a bakery hahaha. Phenomenal recipe, thank you!
UH OH! Sounds like a fun kind of trouble! I’m thrilled the cake was a hit! Thanks for sharing your fun feedback and fabulous review! Wishing you lots of happy baking!
This was absolutely phenomenal Nora! I will definitely keep this in rotation in my house.
Thank you so much for your delicious recipes.
You are welcome, Jessica! I appreciate you using my recipes and am glad you are enjoying them! Thanks for sharing your fabulous review! Happy cooking!
Hello Nora!
I love all your recipes. I really want to make this one but in cupcakes. Would I change anything in the recipe? Or how would I go about making this into cupcakes?
Thanks:)
These would work as cupcakes! No recipe changes are needed. Just bake in a cupcake pan at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. You can frost them as desired. Enjoy!