This Marble Pound Cake is tasty and beautiful! Moist chocolate cake marbled with vanilla cake batter, an easy marble cake baked in just 60 minutes.
Even easier than my Chocolate Cake, with all the richness of my Vanilla Pound Cake recipe, this marbled loaf is a show stopper. Another quick and delicious Cake Recipe perfect for any occasion.
MARBLE CAKE RECIPE
The debate between chocolate or vanilla is finally over thanks to this delicious cake. Okay, that may be a little dramatic, but this marble cake means you no longer have to choose! You get both chocolate and vanilla in every bite.
Marble Pound Cake is a dessert that is sure to make everyone happy. Just enough chocolate for my fellow chocoholics, with a buttery vanilla cake for those who like a little less. I did equal parts chocolate and vanilla batter for my cake, but you can always do more or less of the flavor you like best.
This Marble Cake is so easy to make, why not try making it as an upgraded homemade birthday cake? With some chocolate frosting or a vanilla glaze, this becomes an even more beautiful and yummy dessert. Marble Pound cake can easily be made into cupcakes or small loaves too.
My marble cake recipe starts with a simple vanilla batter, divided in half. I fold in a butter cocoa powder mixture into half of my cake batter to make it rich and chocolatey. Then I add the remaining vanilla mix in spoonfuls and swirl gently with a knife until a marbling pattern appears.
Not only is this Marble Pound Cake is so easy to make, it’s easy to adjust to how you like it. Using different flavor extracts in the vanilla batter, mixing in bits of chocolate, or adding nuts are just a few quick ways to change your cake. I’ve got even more ideas below.
MORE BEAUTIFUL, TASTY CAKES
Easy Chocolate Cake
Cherry Chocolate Cream Cheese Bundt Cake
Classic Carrot Cake
Red Velvet Cake
Can you make this in a regular cake pan?
This cake can be made as a sheet cake, bundt cake, or a beautiful layer cake for a special occasion. This recipe will make enough batter for two round cake pans. Once they are cooled, use a chocolate frosting between cake layers and cover with a Chocolate Ganache.
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VARIATIONS FOR MARBLE CAKE
- Cake Batter: Marble with other flavors, adding peppermint or almond extract to one of the batters. Try stirring in peanut butter powder, give it a chocolate swirl and frost with Peanut Butter Frosting.
- Cupcakes: Make these Marble Cupcakes by filling your lined muffin tin 1/2 way with chocolate batter and a spoonful of vanilla batter. Swirl with a knife and bake for 18-20 minutes at 350 degrees.
- Chocolate Buttercream: Top this marble cake with delicious chocolate buttercream. Use my Buttercream Frosting recipe and substitute 1/4 cup powdered sugar with 1/4 cup cocoa powder.
- Chocolate Chips: Give each bite bursts of chocolatey goodness by stirring in semisweet chocolate chips, dark chocolate chips, or bring out the vanilla flavor with white chocolate chips.
- Cream Cheese: Add a cream cheese layer to your marble cake before swirling in the vanilla batter. Fill the loaf pan with 2/3 of the chocolate cake batter and then add cream cheese filling. Top with the remaining chocolate batter before marbling in the vanilla cake batter.
- Sour Cream: Give your cake a richer flavor by replacing 1/4 cup of milk with sour cream. You can also use buttermilk or greek yogurt.
SOME DELICIOUS TOPPING IDEAS:
Easy Chocolate Ganache (Just 2 Ingredients!)
Easy Whipped Cream
Easy Strawberry Topping
Easy Pineapple Topping
HOW TO STORE MARBLE CAKE
- Serve: Wrap your cake tightly in plastic wrap and keep at room temperature for up 5 days.
- Store: Your cake will stay fresh in the fridge for up to 2 weeks in a sealed container.
- Freeze: This cake will freeze well for up to 3 months. Cool completely, cover in plastic wrap, and store in a freezer bag.
Marble Pound Cake
This Marble Pound Cake is tasty and beautiful! Moist chocolate cake swirled with vanilla cake batter, an easy marble cake baked in just 60 minutes.
Ingredients
- 2 cups flour
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 15 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened and divided
- 4 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 1/3 cups sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup whole milk
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Grease a 9 inch by 5 inch loaf pan and line it with parchment paper; grease the parchment paper as well.
Melt 3 tablespoons of butter in the microwave, using 30 second increments until fully melted. Mix the cocoa powder into the melted butter until well combined.
- Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a separate bowl.
- Using a mixer, combine the remaining 12 tablespoons of softened butter with the sugar. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix well.
- Gradually mix in the flour mixture to the batter.
- Mix the milk into the batter.
- Take half of the batter and mix it into the butter-cocoa mixture until fully combined.
- Pour the cocoa batter into the loaf pan.
- Gently spoon the yellow cake batter into the loaf pan.
- Using a the tip of a knife swirl the batter gently for a few seconds.
Cover the loaf pan with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes.
Uncover and bake for an additional 30 minutes.
- Let cool before removing from loaf pan.
I gave this a try after waffling between a few other recipes. Baked it at 325 since I had something else in the oven that required that temperature but left the loaf in about 35 minutes before uncovering and 35 after. It turned out great, still moist and didn’t sink. One thing I would suggest is moving step 3 to just before step 8 as the cocoa mixture hardened a bit as it sat. Thanks for sharing Sabrina.
Thanks Lo for the great review and for the instruction suggestion, I will go in and look at the recipe a bit closer to see if the order can be improved. Happy Holidays!