Marble Cake

Learn how to make a soft and tender Marble Cake from scratch. This easy recipe uses one cake batter to create beautiful swirls of vanilla and chocolate. The result is a stunning, buttery Marble Pound Cake, perfect for morning or afternoon tea.

Meet my Marble Cake. She’s big, buttery and oh-so-beautiful 💜

This gorgeous loaf cake boasts swirls of both chocolate and vanilla. Made using just one cake batter, it’s surprisingly simple to put together. I’ll show you how to create those mouthwatering swirls and achieve a moist and tender crumb.

Why you will love this cake

• It’s made using everyday ingredients
• You only need to make one cake batter
• It boasts a truly tender and buttery crumb
• You’ll create a beautiful, unique swirl every time!

So, What is marble cake?

My Marble Cake is essentially a pound cake, with a dense, tight crumb. But it’s wonderfully moist and buttery. It’s full of vanilla flavour with a hint of chocolate. It’s lovely cut into thick slices and enjoyed on its own. But hey, we won’t judge if you want to add a little Chocolate Frosting 😉

Recipe testing

This Marble Cake has been a long time coming. I’ve been experimenting with Marble Cakes for a while now, but the results (while still delicious) often lacked that defined marble swirl. The two cake batters would often merge and I couldn’t quite achieve that showstopper finish. Then, one day I realised, it wasn’t my technique that was the problem, it was the type of cake I was using.

Instead of using soft and light cakes, like my favourite Yellow Cake, I needed a cake that offered a tight, more defined crumb. Thankfully, my favourite Vanilla Pound Cake was the perfect place to start. After just two attempts, I finally had the Marble Cake I’d always dreamed of!

how to make Marble Cake

1. Begin by creaming together your butter, sugar and vanilla using an electric mixer. If you watch closely, you’ll see that in just a minute or two, not only will the two ingredients combine but they will change in colour and texture. Your butter mixture will become pale and creamy – almost a little fluffy.
2. Next, add your eggs, one at a time, and continue to mix on low speed. It’s important for your eggs to be at room temperature. Sometimes your mixture will curdle or go a little lumpy at this stage, that’s ok.
3. Add flour, baking powder and salt and start mixing. Pour in the milk. At this stage your cake batter should be smooth and creamy. Don’t over mix or your cake will be dry.
4. Then, take 1 cup of vanilla cake batter and place it in a separate mixing bowl. Add 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder and 1 tablespoon of milk. Stir by hand, just until combined and you have a creamy chocolate cake batter. Now you can make those dreamy layers!

How to make the swirls

Use a dessert spoon to gently dollop spoonfuls of cake batter, alternating between vanilla and chocolate, into your prepared pan. Use a light hand, to simply place the cake batters next to each other, without swirling them together. There’s no perfect way to do this – that’s what makes each cake unique!

Keep going, layering the cake batters side by side and on top of each other. Once you’ve used up both cake batters, gently smooth the top, using the back of your spoon, to ensure an even bake. There’s no need to be exact here either!

What’s the secret to the perfect crumb?

One of the keys to achieving that moist and tender crumb is creaming your butter and sugar correctly! Yes, the very first step in the recipe is crucial in creating that soft and buttery crumb.

Like many Butter Cakes or Vanilla Cakes, this recipe begins by creaming together the butter and sugar. This means using an electric mixer to beat the two ingredients together. However, many people will stop when the two ingredients are simply combined. 

But creaming the butter and sugar means continuing to beat until the butter turns pale, light and fluffy – almost cream-like. This is what will give you a soft and tender cake. If your butter is lovely and soft to begin with, it won’t take long, just a few minutes on medium speed.

Note: Don’t try to rush this step by turning your mixer higher than medium speed. Mixing your butter and sugar too vigorously (known as over creaming) can result in dense, gluey streaks in your cake. No thank you!

Top tips for perfect marble Cake every time

1. Start with softened butter. Take your time when beating together the butter and sugar – and don’t go higher than medium speed.
2. Measure your flour using a baking scale. It’s easy to over measure when using cups and too much flour will result in a dry cake.
3. Don’t over mix your batter. Once you’ve added the dry ingredients, mix only to combine and then stop. When making the chocolate batter, gently fold the batter by hand just until combined.
4. Watch your bake time. This cake takes a while to cook, but you’ll know it’s ready when a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean. If your cake is very brown on top towards the end of cooking, loosely cover the top with aluminium foil and continue to bake.

FreQuently asked questions

more loaf cakes to love

• Lemon Loaf
• Chocolate Banana Bread
• Blueberry Loaf
• Chocolate Bread
• Pumpkin Loaf

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