The idea of marbling two different colored batters into a cake originated in nineteenth century Germany. Marble cakes made their way to America with German immigrants before the Civil War. Originally the cakes were marbled with molasses and spices.
One of the first recorded recipes for marble cake appears in an American cookbook called Aunt Babette’s Cook Book: Foreign and Domestic Receipts for the Household, published in 1889. This recipe replaced the traditional molasses and spice batter by marbling melted chocolate into the cake, a reflection of a new American obsession with chocolate.
The cake remained popular throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. According to the Encyclopedia of Jewish Food by Gil Marks, “Many Jewish bakeries in the New York area in the 1950’s through the 1970’s would distinctively add a small amount of almond extract to the chocolate marble cake, creating a version sometimes referred to as a ‘German Marble Cake’ that had a characteristic almond aroma.”
What do you need to make marble cake?
This is my recipe for marble cake, which has become a family favorite over the past few years. I flavor my marble cake with almond extract as a nod to the classic German Jewish recipes. It’s a fairly simple recipe.
All you need for this traditional version is vanilla cake batter, chocolate cake batter, a mixing bowl (no need for separate bowls – I have a trick for avoiding extra dishes), and a loaf pan!
How do you make a marble cake from scratch moist?
In a slightly modern twist, I add dry instant vanilla pudding mix to my batter. This little trick is a fantastic way to add moisture and flavor to your cakes; it also helps to thicken the batter, which provides the perfect texture for marbling.
Be sure to use instant pudding mix, not cook-and-serve; just sift the dry mix in with the dry ingredients. It creates a wonderful texture and locks in moisture so the cake doesn’t dry out as quickly. It also gives a lovely vanilla essence to the batter, which blends nicely with the almond extract. They certainly weren’t doing it this way in Germany 150 years ago, but sometimes it’s fun to improve on tradition. Try it!
For instructions on how to marble a cake, click here.
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Marble Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups cake flour
- 1/2 cup dry instant vanilla pudding mix (about one small 3.4 oz package)
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup sugar
- 3 large eggs, room temperature
- 1 1/2 teaspoons almond extract
- 3/4 cup milk, room temperature
- 1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup very hot water
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a medium mixing bowl, sift together the cake flour, vanilla pudding mix (in dry powdered form), baking powder, and salt.
- In a larger mixing bowl, use an electric mixer to whip together the butter, sugar, eggs and almond extract for a few minutes till the mixture turns light yellow.
- Beat in half of the milk and half of the sifted flour mixture, then beat in the remaining milk and flour mixture. Whip until the batter is smooth and creamy and be sure to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Rinse and dry the medium mixing bowl that you used for the sifted flour; you’ll need it again soon. In a small bowl, whisk together the cocoa powder and 1/3 cup of very hot water till smooth.
- Pour a little less than half of the cake batter into the medium mixing bowl that you rinsed out. Whisk in the cocoa powder/water mixture till fully combined and smooth. This is your chocolate marbling batter.Reserve the rest of the batter—this is your light cake marbling batter.
- Generously grease your loaf pan using butter or cooking spray. Pour the light and dark cake batters into your loaf pan and marble them. If you don't know how, check out this post with printable instructions: How to Marble a Cake
- Bake the marble cake at 350 degrees for 45-55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and cool in the pan on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes.
- Carefully remove the cake from the pan and let it cool completely on the rack.This cake will keep at room temperature for 3-4 days; wrap in plastic wrap or foil to seal in the moisture.
NOTES
Nutrition
tried this recipe?
Let us know in the comments!
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I really love your Mabel cake recipe, I have never made it before, I wish to try it now but I don’t understand your measurement in cups, can you please explain to me in grm and ml.
Hi Esther, here you go:
Marble Cake
Ingredients
130 grm cake flour
55 grm dry instant vanilla pudding mix (make sure it is INSTANT pudding!)
10 grm baking powder
3 grms salt
110 grms unsalted butter, room temperature
200 grms sugar
3 eggs
7 ml vanilla extract
175 ml milk, room temperature
30 grm unsweetened cocoa powder
80 ml very hot water
Preheat oven to 176 degrees C.
I’m just wondering how many cupcakes this recipe would make!
Hi Carissa– I’m not sure, but it probably won’t make a full dozen.
It was very easy to make, looks beautiful, and tastes
delicious. Thanks for another “keeper”, Tori!
This looks veeerrry loooveellyyy!!!!
Could you please convert to grams as I’d love to make it this weekend?
I’m looking for a good marble recipe but I need to make it in a 1/2 sheet cake pan. Have you ever made this in a larger cake pan?
Followed the recipe exactly and ended up with a lieu if cake batter. Added a load of flour and am hoping for the best…
Ilonka, I’m not sure what you mean by a “lieu if cake batter.” Do you mean the batter was too liquid? If so, it is very likely that you did not use instant pudding in the recipe. If you use any other kind of pudding than instant, this problem can occur.
It came out lovely and moist (although I didn’t marble it as I should have). Besides the cocoa I added a few pieces of 85% chocolate in the choloate mix and orange syrup on top. So it is really chocolatey with a touch of orange. Yummy! I also used raw cane sugar instead of normal one. Perfect with a cup of coffee. Posted a photo of it on facebook, link provided.
Thank you Tory for the recipe and the photos provided.
Sounds like a lovely variation Laura!
Made this last night! I had to substitute vanilla for the almond extract (not a big fan of almonds). The cake was rich and moist…and scrumptious! Can’t wait to try your other recipes!!
I grew up in Brooklyn, New York. All my adult life I’ve been trying to find Ebinger’s Bakery Marble Cake recipe (Their famous Chocolate Blackout Cake is in a few cookbooks and online) . I’ve tried dozens of marble cake recipes. I can still smell it when my mom would bring it home. It was definitely the almond extract that made it so unique. I made yours and it was “oh-so-close”. Made it again and doubled the pure almond extract to 1 Tablespoon. Viola, almost a home run! Your marbling directions also helped me to marble correctly. Thanks so much for bringing the delicious the memories to life.
Just took two out of the oven; they look and smell wonderful. Can’t wait to try. Thanks for the great recipe.
Hi Tori!
Love your recipes! Do you have a recipe for a sweet challah using about 8-9 cups flour?
Is it necessary to use high-gluten flour only?
Thanks!
Can I omit the almond extract? Can I substitute vanilla instead?
Yes!
Looks delicious, and can substitute the products and make it to our eating habits. I will use the milk due to your comment…..so I go into the kitchen to measure the sub products, so tomorrow I can make the cake,,,,,,,,and I am out of almond extract 0-)
be good with ..coffee
your marble cake will have a spot at the shabbat table tonight….smells heavenly!
Please do and make enough for all of us Lindseys HURRY.
I wanted a marble cake recipe, perfect!
Purple covered Lubavitch Cookbook has a great Parve Marble Pound cake recipe
byrd´s custard should work
I will definitely give this one a try