German Chocolate Cookies

This is, hands down, one of the most requested cookie recipes from readers. I've been asked if I have a recipe for German chocolate cookies for years and I have finally made one that everyone in the family loves and is so easy for the kids to help with too.

We start with a super soft chocolate thumbprint cookie that is easy to work with and tastes kind of like a brownie. I wanted a cookie that was deeply chocolaty without being crumbly and held its shape when baked. After extensive recipe testing, I finally found the perfect chocolate cookie base. 

The cookie base stays soft, but doesn't get so soft it can't hold its structure or the filling inside. It's just chocolaty enough without overpowering the filling and when paired together tastes almost exactly like you are having German chocolate cake in cookie form.

​They are then filled with something that resembled the filling and frosting of a german chocolate cake. It is sweet, slightly sticky, with lots of coconut and pecans. It is then finished with a melted chocolate drizzle. 

Making these German chocolate cake cookies require a few important ingredients beyond the pantry staples (don't worry, you can still find everything at your local grocery store) that we need to review as to why they are important to making these delicious cookies and if there are any substitutions. Use the recipe card below for the measurements and full ingredient list. 

• Cocoa powder - I like to use Dutch-processed cocoa powder for its smoother, yet more bold chocolate flavor. You can use unsweetened natural cocoa powder also. We are able to interchange the type of cocoa powder we use because there is no leavening agent in the cookie base to affect the cocoa powder. 
• Sugar - I like using a mix of granulated and brown sugar to make these chewy chocolate cookies perfectly sweetened. 
• Evaporated milk - We use this to add that creaminess we associate with our favorite cake. I do not recommend using regular milk as it won't be thick enough or rich enough. Sweetened condensed milk is too thick and we cannot control the amount of sweetness. 
• Coconut - You should use unsweetened shredded coconut flakes, but if all you can find is sweetened coconut, that will work, too. 
• Pecans - It is important to use chopped pecans so they aren't too big. You want them to blend beautifully with everything else in the filling. I recommend quickly toasting your pecans for added texture and to amplify their flavor. 
• Eggs - We need both whole eggs and egg yolks to make this cookie. The yolks are used in the filling to help bring everything together and add richness. You can save the egg whites for other recipes. 

Make sure all your ingredients are at room temperature. This is important to ensure everything combines well together. 

When the cookies bake, the indentation may puff a bit, but you can push it back down again while the cookie is still warm, but not hot.

If you are filling the chocolate thumbprint cookies during the baking process, add the filling the last 5 minutes of baking. These German chocolate thumbprint cookies do not require the filling to be baked, so you add it in after the cookies are finished baking.

The filling gets made on the stove. It is a matter of simply mixing the ingredients in a saucepan and bringing it to a boil for a few minutes until thickened. It will seem pretty thin still, but it will thicken as it cools.

You will have some extra filling, but it is so good, you won't have any issues using it up in other ways! I recommend stirring it into oatmeal, adding to ice cream, or even spreading on a bagel for a quick and easy treat!