Though fruit cake is a vital part of Christmas celebrations, I wasn't a big fan of it during my childhood. It's a practice back home that when somebody visits you during Christmas and New Year time, they bring a cake. There's no prize for guessing which cake, it had to be a fruit cake. Honestly I used to hate it, because it had too many dry fruits in it. Add to that, most of the times, the cake was dry! Every time we used to get a cake at home, I'd wait impatiently for the guests to leave, to open the packet and see which cake it is, though my fate was sealed.
Those days, I just couldn't figure out why all the “grown ups” were making such a fuss about the fruit cake. I don't know whether it can be called an irony… that years later as I grew up, I started liking the fruit cake and find myself fussing about the whole soaking of dry fruits n all ;) But… (there has to be a but, right?) Some people used to bring Marble cake. On seeing the Marble cake I felt like I won the lottery! I'd mark it as my territory and keep a close watch on it's stock level ;) That's how much I loved it those days. I was really crazy about Ann's Bakery's Marble cake.
So, this time I wanted to bake a marble cake also. I've posted a Marble cake recipe before, but I wanted to try something new. Thanks to FB, I landed on this recipe. I remember seeing a beautiful Marble Cake pic on my friend Rosemary's profile. I should say, this cake here is the result of her Marble cake pic… I loved the pic of her cake and so I mailed her asking for the recipe. She was so sweet that she typed the whole recipe and mailed me immediately. Thanks a bunch Rosemary!
Did I tell you… I actually felt the ‘joy of baking' once I saw the baked version of this cake. I absolutely loved everything about this cake, not to mention the bundt shape :) The fine-rich-melt-in-mouth buttery crumbs, doubled my happiness! If you like these kind of cakes, I strongly recommend you to try this. This recipe is a sure keeper! I'm sure I'll bake it again n again n again n…
Btw, did you notice that cute little ornaments in the first pic? Those are handmade by my dear friend and neighbour Sonia's mom, Ida aunty. I borrowed it shamelessly for the pic. Thanks aunty and Sonia :)
Recipe adapted from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours
Step by step pics…
Butter a 9 – 10 inch (12 cup) Bundt pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess.Whisk together the flour, ground walnuts, baking powder and salt…
Melt 2 tbsp of butter cut in to 4 pieces, along with the chocolate, coffee and instant coffee (double boiler method). Heat the mixture, stirring often, until the butter and chocolate are melted and everything is smooth and creamy – keep the heat low so that the butter and chocolate don't separate. Remove the bowl from the heat…
Beat the remaining 2 sticks butter and the sugar at medium speed for about 3 minutes – you'll have a thick paste, this wont be light and fluffy…
Beat in the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition. The mixture should look smooth and satiny. Beat in the vanilla essence…
Add the dry ingredients and the milk alternately, adding the dry mixture in 3 portions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with dry ingredients)…
Scrape a little less than half the batter into the bowl with the melted chocolate and using a rubber spatula, stir to blend thoroughly…
Place half of the vanilla batter in the tin first, top it with the whole of chocolate batter. Top the chocolate batter with the rest of the vanilla batter…
Bake for 65-70 minutes, or until a think knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the Bundt pan to a rack and let cool for 10 mins before unmoulding, then cool the cake completely on the rack…
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups All Purpose Flour
- 1/2 cup Finely ground walnuts (I used Almond powder)
- 1 tsp Baking powder
- 1 tsp Salt
- 2 sticks Unsalted butter (227gms + 2 tbsp (28 gms) @ room temp)
- 3 ounces Bittersweet chocolate (85 gms, approx coarsely chopped (I used Lindt Swiss Dark chocolate))
- 1/4 cup Coffee hot or cold
- 1 tsp Finely ground instant coffee or instant espresso powder
- 1 3/4 cups Sugar
- 4 large Eggs (@ room temp)
- 2 tsp Vanilla essence
- 1 cup Whole milk (@ room temp, I used low fat milk)
Instructions
- Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, 10 mins before baking.
- Butter a 9 – 10 inch (12 cup) Bundt pan, dust the inside with flour and tap out the excess.
- Place the baking pan on a wire rack instead of baking sheet,inside the oven. You want the ovens heat to circulate through the Bundt's inner tube.
- Whisk together the flour, ground walnuts, baking powder and salt.
- Set a heatproof bowl over a saucepan of gently simmering water. Put 2 tbsp of butter cut in to 4 pieces, into the bowl along with the chocolate, coffee and instant coffee. Heat the mixture, stirring often, until the butter and chocolate are melted and everything is smooth and creamy – keep the heat low so that the butter and chocolate don't separate. Remove the bowl from the heat.
- Working with a stand mixer, preferably with a paddle attachment, or with a hand mixer in a large bowl, beat the remaining 2 sticks butter and the sugar at medium speed for about 3 minutes – you'll have a thick paste, this wont be light and fluffy. beat in the eggs one by one, beating well after each addition. The mixture should look smooth and satiny. Beat in the vanilla essence. Reduce the mixer speed to low and add the dry ingredients and the milk alternately, adding the dry mixture in 3 portions and the milk in 2 (begin and end with dry ingredients)
- Scrape a little less than half the batter into the bowl with the melted chocolate and using a rubber spatula, stir to blend thoroughly.
- If you want to go for the gingko pattern, scrape all of the white batter into the pan and top with chocolate. If you want a more marbled pattern, alternate spoonfuls of light and dark batter in the pan. when all the batter is in the pan swirl a table knife sparingly through the batter to marble them.
- Bake for 65-70 minutes, or until a think knife inserted deep into the center of the cake comes out clean. Transfer the Bundt pan to a rack and let cool for 10 mins before unmolding, then cool the cake completely on the rack.
Hi Maria,
The cake looks gorgeous. Going to try it soon. What pan have u used. It’s come out so clean.
Hi maria.can i used a lot of ground wallnuts to this recipe ?
Hi Anet,
It’s better to use the qty mentioned in the recipe.
Dear Maria
I just looked at this recipe and it looks delish!
I want to use whole wheat flour for this instead of all purpose flour. Will the quantity still be the same – 2.5 cups?
Thanks
Zeena
Hi Zeena,
Thank you! I havent tried baking this cake with whole wheat flour, so I’m not sure about the substitution. However, i dont think it will be a good idea to use just whole wheat flour, it may be better if you use a combination of whole wheat and plain flour.
Cheers
Maria
! Tried this ca!e its just supeeeeerb
Thanks Alice :)
Can this be baked as cupcakes Maria?
Smitha
Hi Smitha,
First of all my apologies for the delayed reply. I was away on holiday for more than a month.
I’ve seen people making marble cupcakes, so I guess you can make it as cupcakes..
Hope it comes out well for you.. Happy baking!
Cheers
Maria
Thanks Roshni :) Glad that you liked the cake. Yep, I’m a Teresian :)
Please say my thanks to Ambika for recommending the blog.
Cheers
Maria
Thanks a bunch Chris for your comment :)
Please check out the below link for conversions:
http://allrecipes.com/howto/cup-to-gram-conversions/
This is a LOVELY recipe Maria… I have made this cake 3 times till now – each better than the last! Never have i re-done the same recipe these many times!! :) :) Thanks a ton for sharing this recipe :)
Thanks a lot Seena chechy for the comment :) I’m really excited to know that you made it 3 times already!
Cheers
Maria
This is a LOVELY recipe Maria… I have made this cake 3 times till now – each better than the last! Never have i re-done the same recipe these many times!! :) :) Thanks a ton for sharing this recipe :)
Beautiful colours on the cake!
http://www.myweekendfoodexperiments.wordpress.com
Hi Maria thanks for the recipe I baked this cake for NewYear and everyone liked it
Thanks Anu :) great to know that this cake turned out well for you.
wish you a very happy new year!
Cheers
Maria
Happy Holidays maria! Love the colours on the cake.
http://www.myweekendfoodexperiments.wordpress.com
Thanks Preveena :) Wish you too a beautiful new year!
Cheers
Maria
hi maria…
i hv been going through your website since few months,and nowadays if i have any doubt regarding any recipe ,first i will give a search on mariasmenu… :) itried ur pepper chicken recipe for the first time nd its was a super hit :) nd 2 days back it was x-mas fruit cake ,nd my husband who is not a big fan of cake njoyed the yummy cake :) and to my surprise he was asking for more ..
this cake looks absolutely yumm..nd perfect finishing :) but one doubt i have is can we use almonds or cashews instead of walnut??
Hi Vinitha,
Thank you so much for your lovely comment. Thrilled to know that you’ve tried recipes from here and liked them too :)
I used almond flour for this cake instead of walnuts. So you can use that. I’m not sure about cashews, since I havent tried it.
Hope you get to make this and like them too.
Wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Cheers
Maria
Hi Nisha,
Thank you so much for your comment. It’s a pleasure to know that this space helped you with cooking.
I do hope and pray that your Premachechi recovers soon.
Thanks again for your wishes and for taking time to leave a comment here :)
wish you and your family a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New year!
Cheers
Maria
Hey Maria, I didn’t understand what ‘coffee nd instant coffee’ means. Do I boil coffee powder in water and keep it ready? Or do I use 1/4th cup coffee powder?
Hi Rini,
The recipe calls for 1/4 cup coffee and not coffee powder. Instead of using 1/4 cup coffee, i used a total of 2 tsp instant coffee powder and 1/4 cup water while melting the chocolate.
Hope it’s clear now. Happy baking :)
Cheers
Maria
Thanks Maria! Sorry for replying late…. But i used exactly that much instant coffee and water, and the cake was YUM! thanks for the recipe :D
Thanks Maria! Sorry for replying late…. But i used exactly that much instant coffee and water, and the cake was YUM! thanks for the recipe :D
Thanks Maria! Sorry for replying late…. But i used exactly that much instant coffee and water, and the cake was YUM! thanks for the recipe :D
Thanks Rini for your comment! I’m happy to know that you liked the cake :)
Cheers
Maria
Thanks Rini for your comment! I’m happy to know that you liked the cake :)
Cheers
Maria
Hi Maria,
I have tried many of your recipes…One issue i have when i bake any cake for that matter is that though the cake is cooked, the upper portion remains kind of sticky.. i use only the lower heating rods to bake. Could this be an issue. When i use the upper and the lower ones, i have seen the cake almost burnt from both sides but uncooked in the center.
Please advice??
Hi MT,
It’s always better to use the top and bottom option for baking. But from your comment I assume, its getting heated fast, so may be you can reduce the temperature and try baking. Also try wrapping the cake tin with a wet towel during baking.
Cheers
Maria
Hi MT,
It’s always better to use the top and bottom option for baking. But from your comment I assume, its getting heated fast, so may be you can reduce the temperature and try baking. Also try wrapping the cake tin with a wet towel during baking.
Cheers
Maria
Hi,
can this be baked in an ordinary cake pan ? will that change the temp or timings? pls do reply. thanks
Hi,
I think you can bake it an ordinary pan. The temp doesn’t change, but the time varies depending on the size of tin you are using. But I guess, for the qty mentioned in the recipe, you will need a min of 40 mins baking.
Hope you get to try this and like it too..
Cheers
Maria
Very well explained maria dear..Espcially icture wise explanation.Thank you so much for the effort and the recipe.Merry Christmas Maria :)
You are welcome dear. Hope you are doing good. How’s your lil one?
Thanks for your wishes and wish you too a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year!
Cheers
Maria
I absolutely love Dorie’s book,it truly is my baking bible!Love the marbling effect and the perfect Bundt shape!
Divs, I think this is the second recipe I’ve tried from that book and now I’m almost convinced to buy that book :)
Cheers
Maria
Oh my gosh Maria I hate fruitcake too! I just sent in a blog post about my dislike of fruit cake! glad to see I have company! But Marble cake oh yes :) yours is absolutely perfect and I LOVE those cute ornaments too!
Thank you Rose :) Though I’m a convert now, still not a big fan of fruit cake..
Wish you a Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year dear!
Take care n enjoy your holidays!
Love,
Maria
Dear Maria,
Merry Christmas in advance!!!
Unfortunately, I found ur blog just yesterday. But, I am already a big fan!!!
U do a great job!!
I am just a beginner in baking, but I lov the art.
I am a journalist by profession, stays in Dubai and mother of a 1 yr old girl.
It is my husband’s birthday on friday.
I wish to bake him a non-chocolate cake with non-greasy icing.
Last time I tried to ice a cake, it turnt out to be miserable…
The butter icing was runny and not pipeable. (it wouldnt stay on the cake)
Can u suggest a recipe for cake with icing, preferably fruit falavored.
The cake has to serve 4-6 adults.
Hi Aparna,
Thanks a lot for your wishes and wish you too the same.
If I’m not mistaken, I got another comment from you asking the same and I’ve replied to that just now. If you are not the same person, please do let me know :)
Cheers
Maria
Dear
Maria,
Thanks for the reply :)
But I still couldnt decide on what to bake. Finally I left the decision to the
birthday boy, showed him some of ur posts.
The moment he saw the snap in ur butter cake post, he said, “enikku ithu
polathey vella cake venam”. :)
So, I am planning to follow ur butter cake recipe.
Now, a few doubts—-
1 Will substituting self raising flour with all purpose(according to ur directions)
give the same result?
2 Can I half the recipe? In that case,
how long should I bake it?
Also, I want to make red velvet cakes for xmas. I bought foster clark red rouge
liquid food color? Have u used that brand? Will it leave a bad taste? Recipe
calls for 1 tablespoon color.
Hoping to hear frm u soon…
Regards,
Aparna
Dear Aparna,
I’m not sure whether I replied to this comment before. Since I’m away on vacation, I think there was some confusion with the comments :((
If I’ve already replied, please ignore this, otherwise…
You can use all purpose flour instead of self raising flour, it works well. Yes, you can half the recipe, the baking time depends on the size of the pan you are using, roughly 20-30 mins.
You can use foster clarks red rouge, it gives that bright red color. I used the qty mentioned in the recipe and I didnt feel any bad taste.
Cheers
Maria