Easy German Chocolate Cookies Recipe
These German chocolate cookies are reminiscent of a classic German chocolate cake, but recreated in cookie form complete with fudgy chocolate cookie base, a nutty-coconut German chocolate topping, and dotted with drizzled melted chocolate. There’s a trifecta of goodness going on! The base cookie recipe comes from my Quadruple Fudgy Chocolate Cookies. I love this cookie base because it’s packed with chocolate so the cookies are ultra fudgy without being overly sweet. The texture is soft and chewy, but also perfectly light and not too dense which is a good thing since the topping, or German chocolate frosting, is just that. If you’re a Crumbl Cookies fan, also check out my Confetti Cake Cookies and Honey Bun Cookies. And these Mrs. Fields Copycat Chocolate Chip Cookies are also a fan-favorite if that’s more your speed. The frosting is a classic German chocolate cake frosting made with sweetened shredded coconut and chopped pecans. It’s a boiled frosting recipe that’s made on the stovetop — and yes, you have to boil the frosting since it contains egg yolks. It’s more labor intensive than my typical cookie frostings, but the rich and creamy results are worth it! See my Tip below for a shortcut. And because I can’t resist a little extra chocolate, I whisked together a quick chocolate ganache drizzle to top the cookies with. The drizzle is optional but it’s a lovely touch. German chocolate cake cookies are the perfect “anytime” cookie when you have a chocolate craving. Make them whenever you need a fast yet impressive cookie recipe like Valentine’s Day or for Christmas cookies. Actually, the coconut in the frosting makes me think of Easter and springtime, but German chocolate cookies also make an unexpected addition to holiday cookie trays!
Ingredients in German Chocolate Cookies
If you’re a regular baker, I bet you already have most of the ingredients on hand already. This is a very straightforward recipe with no specialty items required. Gather the following ingredients to make German chocolate cookies with coconut pecan frosting:
For the cookies:
Unsalted butter Light brown sugar Granulated sugar Eggs Vanilla extract Instant chocolate pudding mix Unsweetened cocoa powder All-purpose flour Baking soda Salt Semi-sweet chocolate chips
For the German chocolate frosting:
Evaporated milk Granulated sugar Egg yolks Unsalted butter Sweetened shredded coconut Chopped pecans Vanilla extract
For the optional chocolate drizzle:
Semi-sweet chocolate chips Heavy cream
Note: Scroll down to the recipe card section of the post for the ingredients with amounts included and for more complete directions.
How to Make German Chocolate Cookies
The coconut pecan frosting adds extra prep time to these German chocolate cake cookies, but if you make it while the cookies are baking you can pop it into the fridge until you’re ready to frost the cookies. This way, you can frost the cookies later in the day if you’re short on time right now! Sweetened condensed milk is very sweet, almost like a thick syrup, and doesn’t resemble regular milk at all. Use evaporated milk!
Make the cookies:
Make the German chocolate frosting:
Frost and garnish the cookies:
More Cookie Baking Recipe Tips
Chilling the dough: Don’t skip this step because the cookies will bake thinner, flatter, and be more prone to spreading. Individual mounds: Chill the dough in individual mounds of dough and not in the bowl. It’s too hard later on to chisel out rock hard, crumbly dough. Save yourself the headache and chill as I am directing you to do. Bake time: Take the cookies out of the oven as soon as the edges are set and the centers are just barely set. You want the cookies to be soft and fudgy, so try not to overbake them. Watch the cookies, not the clock! Depending on the exact size of your cookies, how cold they were going into the oven, and your oven, baking time will range. It’s up to YOU to decide when they’re done! Cooling the cookies: You MUST let the cookies cool to room temperature before adding the frosting. If you try to frost warm cookies, the frosting will melt! Frosting shortcut: If you only want to make the chocolate cookies from scratch and don’t have time to make a scratch frosting as well, buy your favorite store-bought German chocolate cake frosting instead. This Betty Crocker is my go-to.
Make-Ahead Instructions
You have three options for making this recipe in advance. You can make just the raw cookie dough in advance, make both the baked cookies and frosting, or fully assemble the cookies and store them for later. Raw cookie dough: The raw cookie dough can be made up to 48-72 hours in advance and chilled until ready to bake. Or, scoop the cookie dough into balls and freeze for up to 3 months before baking. Partially assembled: You can also bake the cookies and store them at room temp, and make the frosting and store it separately in the fridge. Then, frost the cookies just before serving them. Fully assembled: You can also bake and frost the cookies and store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days. I’m comfortable storing frosted items at room temperature, but if you’re not, place the cookies in the fridge instead, noting that they’ll dry out quicker.
Storage Instructions
In the Refrigerator: These cookies will keep airtight in the fridge for up to 5 days, noting that they’ll dry out over time. I’m fine keeping them at room temp, but choose whichever method is best for you. In the Freezer: These cookies will keep airtight in the freezer for up to 3 months. You can freeze the fully assembled cookies, or freeze the raw cookie dough, baked cookies, and / or frosting separately.
More Easy Chocolate Cookie Recipes:
Quadruple Chocolate Pudding Cookies — These pudding cookies are packed with cocoa powder, chocolate chips and chunks, and chocolate pudding mix to deliver seriously chocolatey flavor! Tried this recipe? Leave a review! Consider leaving a 5 star rating if you’ve made and loved one of my recipes! Devil’s Food Cake Cookies — Foolproof cookies made with just 5 ingredients!! If you’re craving chocolate and want to make super EASY cookies that are soft, FUDGY, and delicious, this is the recipe to make!! Chocolate Crinkle Cookies — These chocolate crinkle cookies are slightly chewy around the edges with a very fudgy interior and perfectly crinkly seams! Soft and Chewy Nutella White Chocolate Chip Cookies – Thick, rich, chocolaty cookies that are so soft you won’t be able to resist them! Quadruple Chocolate Soft Fudgy Pudding Cookies – For true chocolate lovers, these super soft cookies are loaded with chocolate! Softbatch Cream Cheese Chocolate-Chocolate Chip Cookies — Cream cheese keeps them super soft! Say hello to your new favorite chocolate cookie! Caramel-Stuffed Quadruple Chocolate Cookies – Soft and chewy cookies with four kinds of chocolate and so much gooey caramel! Andes Mint Chip Soft Fudgy Chocolate Cookies – Big, thick, fudgy chocolate cookies with a hint of mint and loads of chocolate in every bite! Dark Chocolate Chunk and Peanut Butter Chip Chocolate Cookies – Rich, soft chocolate cookies with chocolate chunks and peanut butter chips! Hot Chocolate Cookies — These gooey hot chocolate cookies are complete with big gooey marshmallows and chunks of melted dark chocolate. This is the perfect holiday cookie recipe! Mexican Chocolate Shortbread Cookies – These buttery shortbread cookies are full of chocolate, cinnamon-and-sugar, and a bit of spice thanks to a couple unique ingredients! Chocolate Ganache Chocolate Cookies — There are chocolate chips and cocoa powder in the cookie dough and the cookies are topped with a rich, cream, fudgy chocolate ganache.
