This Marble Cake recipe uses melted chocolate and vanilla beans to give outstanding flavor, then topped with a crunchy glaze to finish.
Heavenly Marble Pound Cake
When I think of marble pound cake it evokes a sense of nostalgia – cakes that were made with love by our mothers and grandmothers.
This dense and indulgent bakery-style pound cake is perfect for dessert or a coffee break treat. Rich, buttery chocolate swirled cake topped with a sugary crust – what could be better?
Why This Recipe Works
- Greek yogurt gives this glazed Marble Pound Cake a rich, moist texture.
- Using four large eggs gives this cake the denseness you’d expect from a pound cake.
- Vanilla beans and melted chocolate flavor the cake with an extra level of indulgence.
- The cake is baked at a lower temperature, for longer, giving it a beautiful crisp crust.
Fun Fact – Pound cake got its name from the original recipes that called for a pound of butter, a pound of flour, a pound of sugar, and a pound of eggs. That made A LOT of cake!
What is Marble Cake?
Marble Cake is a cake with swirls of two flavors. In this recipe, I used vanilla and chocolate. You might be surprised to find that you don’t need two completely different batters to make it. You just take a portion of the vanilla batter and mix it with melted chocolate. Then you swirl them together in the pan – it’s that simple!
How to Make Marble Cake
Start with melting the chocolate (for more information on how to properly melt chocolate, see my guide on How to Melt Chocolate). Then set adise to cool.
Then beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Then add the eggs.
Followed by the vanilla beans, and yogurt and beat until smooth. Add the dry ingredients.
Mix just until combined.
Transfer 1 cup of the batter to the bowl and mix with the melted chocolate and stir until smooth.
Spoon the batter alternating the vanilla and chocolate batter into the prepared pan. Using a butter knife, cut swirls in the batter.
Bake and allow to cool for 5 minutes before applying the glaze.
While the cake is still warm, transfer to a wire rack and prick the warm cake all over with a skewer and then pour over the glaze – the vanilla flavor will sink into the cake.
The sugar will form a lovely, crisp topping as it sets. Let cool completely before serving.
Variations
- Have fun with this recipe, switch up the chocolate batter with a strawberry batter (see strawberry cupcakes) for a pink and white cake.
- Go one step further and add a third swirl for a Neopolitan cake.
- Split the batter between cupcake cases for mini marble cakes.
Erren’s Top Tips
- It’s all about the butter. Beating the butter and sugar together in the first step is what helps give the structure to the pound cake. Beat them until light and fluffy.
- It’s best to have your ingredients at room temperature before preparing the batter. This will result in a cake with maximum volume.
- Don’t overbeat the batter. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating just until the yellow disappears. Over beating the eggs may cause the batter to overflow the sides of the pan when baked or create a fragile crust that crumbles and separates from the cake as it cools.
- When baking with yogurt, be sure to use full fat. Low-fat yogurt will liquefy when heated and change the cake’s consistency.
- If you feel you’ve over beat the batter, just set it aside for 10 minutes. It will relax so when you bake it, it will be fine.
- To avoid air bubbles, give the pan a tap on the counter before putting it in the oven.
FAQs
Marble Cake can be stored for up to 3 days in an airtight container.
A bread knife works best to cut through the crust and through the dense cake.
Freeze wrapped well for up to three months. Then defrost, reheat, glaze and allow to set before serving.
Other Great Cakes
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Let’s Make Marble Cake
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 6 oz butter (¾ cup/1½ sticks) softened
- 1 cup sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 the beans of one vanilla pod or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- ¾ cup Full fat Greek yogurt
- 2 cups flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 1¼ teaspoons baking powder
- 2 oz semi-sweet chocolate chips
For the glaze:
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons hot water
- splash vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven 325F
- Grease an 8×4 loaf pan
- Place the chocolate in a microwave-safe bowl and cook on high for 30 seconds at a time, stirring after each time. Once the chocolate looks almost melted (a few lumps are ok), just stir the chocolate until it is completely smooth. Set aside to cool.
- Beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the eggs one at a time followed by the vanilla beans, and yogurt and mix until smooth.
- Add the dry ingredients and mix just until combined.
- Transfer 1 cup of the batter to the bowl and mix with the melted chocolate and stir until smooth.
- Spoon the batter alternating the vanilla and chocolate batter into the prepared pan (see photos in post). Using a butter knife, cut swirls in the batter.
- Bake for 50-60 minutes or until lightly browned and a cake tester comes out with moist crumbs attached.
- Leave to cool 5 minutes in the pan.
- While the cake is cooling in the pan, mix together the sugar, hot water, and vanilla to make the glaze.
- While the cake is still warm, transfer to a wire rack and prick the warm cake all over with a skewer and then pour over the glaze – the vanilla flavor will sink into the cake and the sugar will form a lovely, crisp topping.
- Leave to cool completely before serving
Nutrition Information:
Update Notes: This post was originally published as Glazed Marble Pound Cake in February of 2017, but was republished with new photos, step by step instructions, tips, and FAQs in November of 2020.
Linda Sablet says
This was good! I’ve never made pound cake before but this came out great. Didn’t make any changes.
Erren Hart says
So happy to hear it! Thanks for stopping by and sharing!
Katarina says
This cake is absolutely delicious! It has the perfect texture and rises beautifully.
Erren Hart says
Yay! Thanks for stopping by and sharing! 🙂
Miranda says
This recipe is definitely a keeper. A very light an fluffy cake. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
Erren Hart says
I’m so delighted to hear it! 🙂
Viv says
My favorite recipe of your cakes so far! Delicous!
Erren Hart says
So wonderful to hear 🙂
Loddie says
This cake was amazing! Thanks so much for sharing!
Erren Hart says
Oh, that’s great, Loddie! Thanks for the feedback!
Diana says
This cake was so delicious and surprisingly easy to make! I love that it called for chocolate instead of cocoa powder.
Erren's Kitchen says
Thank you Diana, I’m glad you liked it, the chocolate just gives it something special doesn’t it? 🙂
Bernadette says
I would love to try this recipe, but connot find a vanilla bean. What can I use in its place?
Erren's Kitchen says
Hey Bernadette, I would use 1 teaspoon of Vanilla Extract instead!
Samar A Fayed says
Best pound cake eveeeeeeeer 😋😋😋😋😋😋
Erren says
That’s awesome to here! 😀
Cookin Canuck says
What a beautiful pound cake! I love the photo of the swirled raw batter – I’d be tempted to eat it just like that. 🙂
Erren Hart says
I’m so glad to hear that the cake became a new favorite in your house! It’s wonderful to know that the Greek yogurt added that soft, moist texture you enjoyed. The swirls of chocolate and vanilla are indeed meant to give each bite a bit of excitement.
I’m thrilled that the glaze worked well for you. It’s designed to add that extra layer of flavor and texture, so it’s great to hear that it did just that.
Your positive feedback is really encouraging and provides valuable insights for others considering making this cake. Thank you for taking the time to share your experience. Happy baking!