GERMAN CHOCOLATE CAKE

1 pkg German sweet chocolate
1/2 cup boiling water
1 cup butter or margarine
2 cups sugar
4 egg yolks, unbeaten
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups sifted cake flour
1 cup buttermilk
4 egg whites, stiffly beaten
Preheat oven to 350°.
Melt 1 pkg German sweet chocolate in 1/2 cup boiling water. Cool.
Cream 1 cup butter or margarine and 2 cups sugar until light and fluffy. Add 4 egg yolks, one at a time, and beat well after each. Add melted chocolate and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Mix well.
Sift together 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon baking soda and 2 1/2 cups flour. Add alternately with 1 cup buttermilk to chocolate mixture, beating well. Beat until batter is smooth.
Gently fold 4 stiffly beaten egg whites into batter.
Pour into three 8- or 9-inch cake pans, lined on bottom with paper.
Bake at 350° for 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven and cool.
Frost tops only with Coconut-Pecan Frosting. (Coconut-Pecan Frosting recipe included with other frostings in this chapter.)