A lovely tender crumbed Marble Cake made extra easy and moist with oil!
Why Use Oil in a Cake?
Oil. Marble Cake with Oil. Yes, I know, I know, that just sounds... meh. Stay with me a minute though. Oil is not as sexy sounding as butter, I know this, but there is a method to this madness!
Not only do oil based cakes turn out very moist, they also have the added advantage of the convenience of oil - no softening required. In an extra bonus oil is also a more frugal choice than butter.
More Cakes with Oil
Easy Lemon Cake
What does this Easy Marble Cake taste like?
This cake reminds me of the bakery cakes of my youth. Those cakes were not dense like a pound cake, they were made inexpensively from accessible ingredients, light cakes perfect for tea time to be paired with that perfect cup of Doodhpatti Chai.
This marble cake recipe with oil results in a cake that is nice and soft, with lightly sweet mellow flavours. The flavours of vanilla and chocolate are distinct, yet not overpowering.
I give the option of ganache on frequent request, but I will be honest and say I prefer it as is.
Quick Visuals
Add the sugar, oil and eggs to a bowl and mix for 2 minutes on high speed. Once the eggs are combined then add the vanilla extract.
Now you will mix your dry ingredients and milk in alternating between the two in batches of 2-3. Mix it until just combined, resist the urge to create a super smooth batter! Pull out a cup of the batter and add in sifted cocoa powder and milk to that mix. This will be the chocolatey part of the cake. Layer the batters in the pan and swirl with a skewer to create a marbled effect.
Bake at 350F till a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean, I usually check in at the 55 minute mark. Let it cool for 10 minutes then invert.
How to Make the Ganache
As I have said before I don't feel the cake needs a ganache, but sometimes an occasion calls for it so here's how to make the easiest one.
Warm ¼ cup cream, pour it over ½ cup of chocolate chips or 4 ounces of the chocolate of your choice. Mix well. If the chips/chocolate doesnt melt then you can put in the microwave for 20 seconds at a time and mix until it's all melted.
Drizzle the ganache over the cake and serve.
Note: I usually like more dark chocolate and here I used a semi sweet, but secretly prefer the cake with a milk chocolate ganache (shhh don't tell anyone).
How to Store this Marble Cake
Now this cake is good the day of, but if you wrap it tightly in foil and eat it the next day - my friends, that is just something else! This cake keeps well for up to 3 days at room temperature. You can wrap it well and freeze for up to 3 months.
4 Must Know Cake Tips
- Room temperature eggs are the way to go! Cold eggs won't incorporate as well into the batter.
- Use a light hand to measure your flour, making sure to aerate the flour before lightly filling the cup measure. ( before you ask, yes I will add grams to the measurements soon!)
- Do not overmix your cake batter - I run the electric beater initially but the last bit of dry ingredients I mix in with a spatula. If you over mix flour it activates the gluten in it leading to a tougher cake.
- ALWAYS check on your cake a few minutes before it's "supposed to" be ready - pans and ovens will lead to variation in bake time.
Please note that this Easy Marble Cake with Oil is substantive because of the eggs, but it is not quite a pound cake. If you are looking for one then two of my favourites are my Nutella Pound Cake and Cream Cheese Pound Cake.
Made this recipe? Rate it below! I love hearing from you guys! If you want to share your baked beauty with me then tag me @flourandspiceblog on Instagram. Can't wait to see your Marble Cake!
Easy Marble Cake with Oil
Equipment
- electric beater
- 9*5 Loaf Pan
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cup all purpose flour 210g
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder 7.5g
- ½ tsp salt 3g
- ½ cup neutral oil (such as corn oil) 112g
- 1 ½ cup sugar 300g
- 4 eggs 53g * 4
- 1 ½ tsp vanilla extract 6g
- ½ cup milk 125g
Chocolate Mix
- 3 tbsp cocoa (sifted) 21 g
- 1 tbsp milk 15g
Ganache (Optional)
- ½ cup chocolate chips (or 4 oz chocolate) 115g
- ¼ cup whipping cream 60g
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350, grease a nonstick loaf tin (9*5)
- Combine the first three ingredients in a bowl, set aside
- Use a mixing bowl to whip the oil, sugar and eggs together on high speed for about two minutes.
- Add the vanilla, beat for 30 seconds to combine.
- Alternately add the flour and milk to the bowl in two batches and mix until just combined. Do the last little bit with a spatula to avoid over mixing.
- Put a cup of the batter into a small bowl, add the 3 tbsp cocoa and 1 tbsp milk and mix until just combined.
- The batter for this cake is thin, so carefully add it to the loaf pan, alternating between dollops of vanilla and chocolate batter
- Use a long skewer or a knife to swirl the batter together
- Bake for an hour or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Wait ten minutes and then remove from the pan.
Ganache (Optional)
- Heat the cream until simmering, pour over the chocolate and mix well. If it doesn't melt the chocolate after a little stirring then microwave for 20 seconds to help the process along.
- Spread the ganache over the cake and serve.
Video
Notes
- I use dutch cocoa because that's what is commonly available in Canada, but this works with regular too
- reducing the sugar will reduce the moisture in the cake so please check on it a little earlier if you choose to do so!
- this cake doesn't need a ganache, but I often get asked for how to make it so I've included that here as optional
Want to try this recipe? Pin it so you don't lose it!
Momina Ali says
This recipe is an absolute treasure.Glad I tried it!It delivers exactly what’s promised in the title…The BEST EASY Marble Cake!The perfect accompaniment to afternoon tea, this cakes going to be a regular in our household.Thanks for sharing.
Sarah Mir says
Momina!!! It was so nice to read this review! thank you for making the cake and coming back here to share what you thought! Appreciate this!
Helen says
Is it normal for this mistake to effect the flavor of the cake?
Helen says
This is a great recipe. I, however, made a mistake when it came to dolloping the two batters for the marbling effect. It all melded together. I will try again. Thanks for this recipe.
Sarah Mir says
Oh no! I am sorry that happened, but glad you liked it!
Liby Mary says
I have used this recipe many times and it has turned out well everytime. Great recipe to have on hand, especially around the holidays. I tweak it a little for the adults by adding some instant coffee granules to the chocolate mix.
Sarah Mir says
SO happy to hear that! I also love the instant coffee tip - thank you for sharing!
Martina Lauer says
I made the cake with a mix of gluten-free flours (sorghum, flour mix) and it turned out great. I put a chocolate glaze on, German family recipe with melted chocolate, hot water and icing sugar mix. Wonderful recipe, thank you.
Sarah Mir says
Thank you so very much for this review as well as sharing your tweaks and your glaze!
Marguerite says
Very good cake !
I loved eating marble cake store bought but this is better
Dense cake ( used three large eggs) and 8.5 inch loaf pan so it was very tall .
I think I overbaked it ? as the pan was smaller ..
Sarah Mir says
Thanks for the review! If the texture was dry then it could have been over baked, but otherwise I've made it in a smaller pan too and it works!
Angela says
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for sharing the recipe. I like oil based cakes. The internal looks great without tight & refined crumbs, and looks great with tiny bubbles/open holes. Does this cake recipe has a lot of loose crumbs like those pound, butter cakes or some dry sponge cakes? What about the cake top crust - does it crisps or sandy type? I am looking for a cake-like-bread type of texture that has very little crumbs.
Thanks & Cheers
Angela
Sarah Mir says
Hi Angela! Whether this is the cake that you're looking for or not I have to say I LOVE this question! This is a softer lighter mild flavoured sponge, and on the top it gets a crispy outer layer. If I want to double down on that then I add coarse sugar over top.
Afsheen says
Yum! This turned out so nice! It was great fresh out of the oven, and even greater the next day… can’t say anything for after that because it didn’t last past then despite being a decent-sized cake! Lol