Kendra's Treats

Have you every tried The Cheesecake Factory’s Chris’ Outrageous Cheesecake? I’ve only had it once (and that was like a year ago!), but it’s pretty outrageous ;). I’ve tried to recreate a version at home a couple times now. The first few attempts were pretty good but didn’t really look or taste much like what I was trying to recreate. The problem is that the original version has cake, brownie, coconut-pecan frosting, cheesecake, and chocolate frosting. That’s a lot of steps – even for someone who likes baking – so I trimmed it down to chocolate cake, cheesecake, and coconut-pecan frosting. Does it taste exactly like a copy-cat? No….but it’s delicious in its own right! Enjoy!

German Chocolate Cheesecake Cake

for the cake:
2 oz semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 tbsp dutch-processed cocoa powdered
1/4 cup boiling water
1 cup all-purpose flour
3/8 tsp baking soda
6 tbsp butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
1/4 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup + 2 tbsp greek yogurt (or sour cream)

for the cheesecake layer:
8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/8 tsp coconut extract (optional)

for the frosting:
2 egg yolks
6 oz evaporated milk
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp light brown sugar, packed
3 tbsp butter
dash of salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1-1/4 cup sweetened shredded coconut
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans, toasted

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 2 (6 inch) round cake pans with nonstick spray and line with parchment paper.
2. In small bowl, combine chocolate, cocoa powder, and boiling water. Stir until chocolate is melted. Set aside to cool.
3. In bowl of stand mixer with paddle attachment, beat butter and sugars on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3-4 minutes. Add eggs one at a time and beat another minute. Add in vanilla and salt until combined.
4. With mixer on low speed, add in cooled chocolate mixture. (At this point, batter may appear slightly curdled. This is okay.)
5. Add in 1/2 cup flour and baking soda and mix on low speed just until combined. Add in yogurt and continue to mix on low speed. Add in remaining flour and mix on low speed just until you no longer see any streaks of flour. Be careful not to overmix.
6. Divide the batter between the prepared cake pans. Bake in preheated oven for 20-25 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center comes out with only a few moist crumbs. Let cool completely on wire rack.
7. In bowl of stand mixer, combine cream cheese and sugar and mix with paddle attachment on low speed until smooth. Add in egg. Stir in vanilla and coconut extract. Scrape down sides of bowl and mix until smooth.
8. Line 6 inch round pan with parchment paper and spray with nonstick spray. Bake at 325 for 25 minutes or until center is set. Cool completely. Remove from pan.
9. While cake is cooling, prepare the frosting. In medium saucepan, combine the egg yolks, butter, sugars, salt, and evaporated milk. Whisk to combine. Bring to boil over medium-high heat, whisking constantly until mixture is frothy and slightly thickened, about 6 minutes. Remove from heat and add vanilla and coconut. Transfer mixture to bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place in refrigerator until cool, at least 2 hours. Once frosting is chilled, stir in pecans. (Don’t add the pecans while the frosting is hot or they will become soggy!)
10. Once cakes have completely cooled, level tops with knife. Place first cake layer on serving dish, top with thin layer of frosting and cheesecake layer. Add thin layer of frosting to cheesecake layer and add remaining cake layer. Cover top with remaining frosting. Drizzle with additional melted chocolate, if desired. Chill in refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.