I am somewhat ashamed to say that there were not a lot of homemade . . . made from scratch . . . cakes that didn't come from a mix in my life prior to coming over here to the UK. I did some psuedo homemade cakes . . . you know the kind I mean. You use a cake mix and a few other ingredients to make a type of cake . . . but there's not really any science or skill involved in that is there. I did make my mom's hot milk cake from time to time and the odd gumdrop cake, and maybe a fruit cake now and again, but mostly . . . my cakes came from a mix. They were quick, easy, convenient and didn't taste all that bad.
That all changed when I moved over here to the UK however. Cake mixes were not really done over here when I arrived, although admittedly they are being seen with a bit more frequency these days, which is a shame really . . . because nothing on earth can compare the experience of baking your own cakes from scratch. I bake ALL of my cakes from scratch now. There are no mixes in my house and I'm happy to say I would never settle for a mix now except in a real pinch. Not when you can have a delicious Victoria Sponge on the table in less than half an hour. Well, a seven inch one at any rate!
Today I baked my first ever Chocolate Marble Cake that didn't come from a mix! Yay me! And it was so simple and quick to make also. I got the recipe from this lovely book I have had a while, Vintage Cakes by Jane Brocket. It's a fab book filled with good solid recipes for the types of cakes you might have imagined reading about as a child . . . the midnight feast cakes drooled over in Enid Blyton novels.
This marble cake is absolutely gorgeous. It's light and buttery with just the right mix of chocolate and vanilla cake batters. It was very simple to make . . . as simple as making one batter, flavouring half of it with chocolate and then alternating spoonfuls into a cake tin.
It's a basic one bowl sponge that goes together lickety split. Everything is just bunged into a bowl and beaten together. It bakes up light and beautiful. It's also very, VERY moreish. In short . . . we loved it. Each slice is different. I like that. It's like a box of chocolates . . . you never know what you're going to get . . . mostly chocolate cake, or mostly vanilla cake, or a happy mix of both. ☺
*Chocolate Marble Cake*Makes one medium cake
serving 8 to 10Printable Recipe
With delicious moist swirls of vanilla and dark chocolate sponge, this cake can be the highlight of an afternoon tea. You can of course bake it ain any large cake tin, however I love the look that a Bundt tin gives to this beautiful cake.
250g of butter, softened (1 cup)250g of caster sugar (1 1/3 cups)250g of plain flour (1 3/4 cups)2 tsp baking powder4 large free range eggs1/2 tsp vanilla2 TBS milk
For the chocolate batter you will also need:2 TBS cocoa powder, whisked together with 2 tsp warm milkIcing sugar to dust.
Preheat the oven to 180*C/350*F/ gas mark 4. Butter a non stick bundt pan really well or spray with cake release spray.
Put the butter, sugar, flour, baking powder, eggs and vanilla into a large mixing bowl. Mix well together with an electric whisk or a wooden spoon. When well mixed, fold in the 2 TBS of milk. You should have a smooth batter with a good dropping consistency. Remove half of the batter to another bowl. Stir the chocolate mixture into this, mixing it in well.
Drop the batter by dessert spoonfuls into the prepared cake tin, alternating batters. I like to go around twice, alternating the batters. You want it to look somewhat haphazard and unpredictable. Bake in the heated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top springs back when lightly touched. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 to 10 minutes before tipping out onto a wire rack to finish cooling. Dust with icing sugar. Cut into slices to serve. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.
