There's nothing the least bit German about Sprinkles' newest cupcake, which is as it should be, since the “German” chocolate cake is largely a British/American concoction.

Sprinkles' German chocolate cupcake (which officially debuts January 14th but may be available sooner) hews closely to the bakery's template. It's still too big, too dense and too rich for solo eating.

The cake is a milky, medium-bodied chocolate, moist as always. But instead of the traditional layer of frosting crowned with a minimalist dot, it's topped with a mass of goopy caramel-esque paste, shredded coconut and generous chunks of pecan.

The frosting has a bland, overwhelming sweetness, recalling nearly every German chocolate cake in the history of the genre and putting Sprinkles' version squarely in the mainstream. No shame but no glory, either.

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