Remember Grandpa Lifferth from my last post? Well, just so you know, he was 100% German. And since my Grandma had some German in her, I'm more than a 1/4 German.
Pretty cool, huh?
Anyhow, my dad's family is super awesome, also, just so you know. They love getting together for any reason they can think of, but it's not complete unless there's gobs of delicious home-cooked food. Can you see why I think they're awesome (trust me, there's a billion more reasons on top of the yummy food)?
One get-together they have every February is the German Dinner. It's a pretty big deal with all my extended family attending. We visit, eat German food (except for the infamous German-Dinner-turned-Mexican year), and talk about our ancestors. It might sound lame, but trust me when I say that everyone looks forward to it every year.
What with me and Ben living in Idaho and trying to save our money, we decided not to attend the German Dinner this year. It just wasn't in the budget. But that didn't mean we couldn't whip up our own German Party.
So, we invited some friends over, threw on the brats, and had us some German food. On the menu:
Bratwursts
Rye Bread
German Potato Salad (it's delicious and I was planning on posting that recipe, but I totally spaced taking pictures after I got the potatoes boiling. Not to worry, I'll make it again sometime and you'll get the recipe).
Rotkohl (a steamed red cabbage recipe straight from Germany, also delish)
And for dessert:
German Chocolate Cake
I personally think everything turned out super yummy. And there weren't any complaints, so I'm assuming everyone else did too.
Here's a picture from our awesome night of fun:
Pretty cool, huh?
Anyhow, my dad's family is super awesome, also, just so you know. They love getting together for any reason they can think of, but it's not complete unless there's gobs of delicious home-cooked food. Can you see why I think they're awesome (trust me, there's a billion more reasons on top of the yummy food)?
One get-together they have every February is the German Dinner. It's a pretty big deal with all my extended family attending. We visit, eat German food (except for the infamous German-Dinner-turned-Mexican year), and talk about our ancestors. It might sound lame, but trust me when I say that everyone looks forward to it every year.
What with me and Ben living in Idaho and trying to save our money, we decided not to attend the German Dinner this year. It just wasn't in the budget. But that didn't mean we couldn't whip up our own German Party.
So, we invited some friends over, threw on the brats, and had us some German food. On the menu:
Bratwursts
Rye Bread
German Potato Salad (it's delicious and I was planning on posting that recipe, but I totally spaced taking pictures after I got the potatoes boiling. Not to worry, I'll make it again sometime and you'll get the recipe).
Rotkohl (a steamed red cabbage recipe straight from Germany, also delish)
And for dessert:
German Chocolate Cake
I personally think everything turned out super yummy. And there weren't any complaints, so I'm assuming everyone else did too.
Here's a picture from our awesome night of fun:
I got myself a fine piece of meat. The brats weren't half bad either. Haha.
...Sorry. I couldn't help myself.
Moving on, here's how I made our cake and frosting:
First you cream your butter and sugar.
...Sorry. I couldn't help myself.
Moving on, here's how I made our cake and frosting:
First you cream your butter and sugar.
Then add eggs, one at a time.
Meanwhile, mix together your cocoa, flour, salt, soda and baking powder.
Then measure out your milk.
The recipe says to add the flour mixture and the milk alternately, so I always put in some flour mixture, then stir...
Then some milk, and stir...
And repeat...
Until everything is combined.
I baked mine in 2 9" cake pans, but a 9"x13" works well too.
For the frosting, beat an egg in a saucepan.
Add sugar, butter and evaporated milk and cook on medium heat.
It takes about 6-8 minutes, but you want it to be getting thicker, and slightly darker in color.
Remove from heat and add your coconut.
And your pecans.
Then let it cool so it can thicken.
Then spread it on your cake.
And I topped mine with a little bit of melted chocolate, just to make it pretty.
The Recipe:
CHOCOLATE CAKE:
3/4 c. butter
2 c. sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. flour
3/4 c. cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. milk
Beat butter in a large mixing bowl. Gradually add sugar, mixing on medium speed. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Stir in vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, soda, baking powder, and salt. Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the butter mixture, beating after each addition. Pour into greased and floured pans. Bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes (depending on what size of pan(s) you choose to use).
GERMAN CHOCOLATE FROSTING**
1 egg
2/3 c. evaporated milk
2/3 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter
1 1/3 c. flaked coconut
1/2 c. chopped pecans
In a medium saucepan, beat egg. Add milk, sugar and butter, and cook over medium heat for 6-8 minutes until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat and add coconut and pecans. Mix. Cool completely before frosting your cake.
**This will cover a 9"x13" size cake, but I would strongly recommend doubling the recipe if you are making a multi-layer cake.
CHOCOLATE CAKE:
3/4 c. butter
2 c. sugar
3 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla
2 c. flour
3/4 c. cocoa powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 c. milk
Beat butter in a large mixing bowl. Gradually add sugar, mixing on medium speed. Add eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition. Stir in vanilla. In a separate bowl, combine flour, cocoa, soda, baking powder, and salt. Alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the butter mixture, beating after each addition. Pour into greased and floured pans. Bake at 350° for 30-40 minutes (depending on what size of pan(s) you choose to use).
GERMAN CHOCOLATE FROSTING**
1 egg
2/3 c. evaporated milk
2/3 c. sugar
1/4 c. butter
1 1/3 c. flaked coconut
1/2 c. chopped pecans
In a medium saucepan, beat egg. Add milk, sugar and butter, and cook over medium heat for 6-8 minutes until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat and add coconut and pecans. Mix. Cool completely before frosting your cake.
**This will cover a 9"x13" size cake, but I would strongly recommend doubling the recipe if you are making a multi-layer cake.