Soft, fluffy, moist marble cake, made with vanilla and chocolate cake swirled together. This cake is easy to make with my step-by-step instructions, and is frosted with my favorite silky chocolate buttercream frosting.
It’s been a whirlwind of a weekend here, complete with plenty of baking fails (which you’ve seen if you’ve been following my Instagram stories… yikes, did you see that scary looking lemon loaf!?), and some exciting new things as well, but for now let’s talk cake.
Specifically this completely from scratch, very easy to make, vanilla and chocolate marble cake. It took a few tries to get right, but here we are and I am really excited to share the recipe with you today.
I’ve been wanting to make a marble cake for a while, but it required a really good vanilla cake recipe as its base. If you remember from my recent pineapple upside down cake recipe, I finally developed a vanilla cake recipe that worked perfectly for my upside down cake, but when I tried it in this marble cake I was a little disappointed that it came out drier than I’d hoped… the extra butter, brown sugar, and fruit juice in the original recipe made it perfect for that one, but some tweaks were definitely in order for a nice, moist marble cake.
In the end, a simple switch from regular milk to buttermilk worked perfectly, but it’s also very important to not over-mix the batter, and definitely to not over-bake your cakes!
I always use the toothpick test to check if my baked goods are done — for cakes that means looking for moist crumbs — you do not want the toothpick to come out completely dry or it’s already overdone, so watch it carefully!
The chocolate portion of the cake is very easy to make. I’d toyed with the idea of making two entirely separate batters at first, and then combining them, but ultimately decided that it would be way easier if I could just take a vanilla cake batter and make half of it chocolate.
Adding cocoa powder didn’t give me the true chocolate flavor that I was looking for, unfortunately (that’s because we weren’t adding any hot water or hot cocoa to bloom it, like we do in my favorite chocolate cake recipe), but adding real, melted semisweet chocolate did the trick just fine.
You’ll want to melt the chocolate first and then set it aside, stirring occasionally while you prepare your cake batter. You don’t want it to be too hot when you add it, but you also don’t want it to have re-solidified when you need it.
For the frosting, I used my favorite silky chocolate buttercream, which at this point just needs its own stand-alone post because I make it and refer to it so often. It’s that good, though, trust me.
Smooth, silky, and so chocolaty (made with real, melted chocolate and not cocoa powder — just like the chocolate part of our cake!). Unlike many buttercream frostings, it’s not overly sweet, and I could almost eat it by the spoonful. I could totally eat it by the spoonful. I had a few too many spoonfuls, honestly.
Enjoy!
Marble Cake
Ingredients
- 4 oz semisweet chocolate finely chopped
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter softened (113g)
- 1/2 cup canola oil (120ml)
- 1 1/2 cup sugar (300g)
- 4 large eggs room temperature
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 3 cups all-purpose flour (390g)
- 1 Tablespoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/4 cup buttermilk room temperature (300ml)
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips (170g)
- 1 cup unsalted butter softened to room temperature (226g)
- 2 cups powdered sugar (320g)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons heavy cream
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and generously grease and flour two 8" round cake pans. Set aside.
- Place chopped chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds. Stir well, and then return to microwave and heat in 15-second increments, stirring well in between, until chocolate is completely melted and smooth. Set aside.
- Using an electric or stand mixer, cream together butter, oil, and sugar until light and fluffy (about 30 seconds on high speed).
- Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Pause as needed to scrape down sides and bottom of bowl.
- Stir in vanilla extract.
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Using a spatula and gently hand-mixing, alternate adding flour mixture and buttermilk, starting and ending with flour mixture and mixing until just combined after each addition. Do not overmix!
- Pour 1/3-1/2 of the batter into a separate bowl and add chocolate mixture. Stir until completely combined and batter is evenly chocolate.
- Alternate adding vanilla and chocolate batter to each pan, evenly distributing batter into each pan. Use a knife to swirl for marbled appearance.
- Bake on 350F (175C) for 30 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out mostly clean but with a few moist crumbs (do not over-bake or the cake will be dry, you want there to be a few crumbs).
- Allow cake to cool for 15 minutes before carefully inverting onto cooling rack to cool completely before frosting.
Chocolate Buttercream Frosting
- In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave chocolate chips at 15 second intervals, stirring between intervals, until chips are completely melted. Set aside and allow to cool slightly (about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally).
- Cream room temperature butter with an electric mixer. Stir in slightly cooled chocolate and beat well.
- Gradually add sugar, scraping down the sides and bottom of bowl occasionally.
- Sprinkle in salt and vanilla extract, stir well.
- Gradually add heavy cream, increase speed to high and beat for 1 minute.
- Spread a thick layer of frosting over the top of one cake round and sprinkle with mini chocolate chips. Top with second cake round and evenly frost cake. Slice and serve.
Nutrition
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Paige says
After making this cake do I leave it at room temperature on a cake stand with lid or does it need to be refrigerated? I don’t bake a lot and marble cake is my boyfriends favorite and I’d like to try my hand at this on Wednesday for his birthday while he’s at work. Thanks!
Sugar Spun Run says
Hi, Paige! You will be fine to leave this at room temperature on a cake stand covered. I hope that your boyfriend loves his special birthday cake and that he has a wonderful birthday! 🙂
Paige says
Thank you so much!
Sharon says
Hi, thank you for sharing this recipe. Just wondering whether i can use margarine in place of butter for the frosting?
Sugar Spun Run says
Hi, Sharon! I am not sure, I have not tried it with margarine, but I think it should work. 🙂
Sharon says
Thanks for the response
Rhia says
Would this recipe work for a carved cake? Would it be firm enough? Thanks.
Sam says
Hi Rhia, I’ve never carved it before, it is a pretty soft cake so I’m worried it might be too light for carving. Hoping someone else who has tried it can chime in.
Casey says
This recipe was absolutely fabulous! My son wanted a marbled cake for his birthday, but wanted it made in a Wilton dinosaur shaped pan. I was worried about this recipe working for that kind of pan, but it worked beautifully!! Just the right amount of batter and no dome on top when I baked it. I used semi-sweet chips for the chocolate (it was what I already had) and it worked just fine. Everyone loved the taste and I will totally make this again!! Thanks for the wonderful recipe!!
Sam says
I’m so happy to hear it was such a success, Casey! Thank you so much for commenting, I really appreciate it 🙂
Rebecca says
Hi! Looks awesome. Can you clarify step 7? When and how are you combining the flour mixture, buttermilk and the wet ingredients?
I’ve heard different theories of wet-into-dry v. dry-into-wet…
Sugar Spun Run says
Hi, Rebecca! Yes, I am happy to! Using a spatula you want to gently hand-mix in flour and buttermilk. You will add in a little flour, mix until combined, then add a little buttermilk mix until combined…you will alternate flour and buttermilk until all of the two ingredients are mixed into the batter. You always want to start and end with flour mixture and mixing until just combined after each addition. Be careful not to overmix! I hope that helps!
Doreen says
Sam, I love this recipe and want to add this to my holiday baking list. Have you tried freezing this cake before you assemble? Thx. Also, what is your opinion on cooked apples vs raw apples when making apple pie? I have always used raw but reading more recipes that are cooked. Love your website. !!!
Sam says
Hi Doreen! It can be frozen, after baking, cool and then wrap well in plastic wrap. I always use raw apples when making apple pie and prefer them, One of the benefits of using cooked apples is it prevents the filling from shrinking away from the crust as it bakes but since I use a crumble topping rather than a crust that’s never a problem for me. This is my apple pie recipe if you wanted to check that out.
Thank you so much, I”m glad you are enjoying the recipes! 🙂
Shemika says
Step 7 you mention use a spatula and gently hand mixing…. does that mean to mix with a spatula and not a mixer?
Sugar Spun Run says
Hello, Shemika! In Step 3 you will use an electric mixer, but when you get to Step 7 you will want to use a spatula and hand mix the ingredients. Let me know how your cake turns out. I hope that you enjoy it! 🙂
Shemika says
Thank you, I am making this cake tonight and I will be sure to let you know how it comes out.
Julianne says
I made this cake over the weekend for a small birthday party. I used the recipe exactly as written except for subbing milk chocolate chips instead of the semi-sweet chocolate. I got a perfect marbled effect by pouring 4 separate “layers” into each cake pan (vanilla, chocolate, vanilla, chocolate), then pulled a knife through the batter several times. The cake was moist, had a perfect texture, and remained delicious for at least 3 days (that’s about how long a cake lasts in my house!). Everyone agreed the frosting was one the better ones they’d tasted.
Sugar Spun Run says
Thank you so much, Julianne! I am so glad that everyone enjoyed the Marble Cake. I love your method to get the perfect marbled effect. Thanks for commenting. 🙂
Julianne says
And thank you for the recipe, this one’s definitely a keeper!
Sugar Spun Run says
Absolutely! I am glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Noemi Perez says
Hi there, I hope to make this in a 9×13, what would be the temperature and bake time please? Thanks!
Sugar Spun Run says
Hello, Noemi! The temperature would remain the same, however the cake would need to baker longer. I have not baked it in this size pan before so, unfortunately, I do not know how long. I hope this helps. I hope you enjoy the marble cake! 🙂
Tina says
Hello !! I want to make this but for a large sheet cake. Do you think I would need to just double the recipe or triple it??? It’s for a birthday party and will need a large cake.
Sugar Spun Run says
Hello, Tina! It really is dependant on how big of a sheet cake that you are trying to make. The batter should fit well in a 9″ x 13″ baking dish, single layer. I hope that helps. Happy Baking. 🙂
Tina Dunn says
I am making a 12 X 18 sheet cake.
Sugar Spun Run says
Hello, Tina! I have never made one this size, but I think you will be safe if you double the recipe. You may have a little extra batter. I hope that helps. Let me know how it works out. 🙂
Tina Dunn says
Thank you, will be making this in a couple weeks. Will let you know how it works out.
Stephanie Burns says
Hello! I was wondering if I wanted to make two 10″ layers out of this recipe would it be enough it doubled the recipe?
Sugar Spun Run says
Hello, Stephanie! This recipe uses 8″ round cake pans and makes a two-layer cake. You can double the recipe and will have plenty or you can just increase it by 50% and should be fine. I hope that you enjoy the marble cake! 🙂
Stephanie Burns says
Perfect! Thank you so much!