<Tr> <Th> Invented </Th> <Td> 1957 </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Main ingredients </Th> <Td> Chocolate cake, icing (egg yolks, evaporated milk, coconut and pecan) </Td> </Tr> <P> German chocolate cake, originally German's chocolate cake, is a layered chocolate cake from the United States filled and topped with a coconut - pecan frosting . It owes its name to an English - American chocolate maker named Samuel German, who developed a formulation of dark baking chocolate that came to be used in the cake recipe . Sweet baking chocolate is traditionally used for the chocolate flavor in the actual cake, but few recipes call for it today . The filling and / or topping is a custard made with egg yolks and evaporated milk; once the custard is cooked, coconut and pecans are stirred in . Occasionally, a chocolate frosting is spread on the sides of the cake and piped around the circumference of the layers to hold in the filling . Maraschino cherries are occasionally added as a garnish . </P> <P> Its roots can be traced back to 1852 when American baker Samuel German developed a type of dark baking chocolate for the Baker's Chocolate Company . The brand name of the product, Baker's German's Sweet Chocolate, was named in honor of him . </P>

Where did the name german chocolate cake come from