Zebra-Striped cake!!

I’ve seen this cake online for a while now, on various blogs and in various forms, but haven’t actually gotten around to trying it myself until now. Visually, I believe that this Zebra-Striped Cake is one of the most impressive looking cakes.

I like looking at Zebra cake more that eating it even though it is incredibly delicious. This cake is very popular in Eastern Europe.The recipe that i have for you is almost similar to a Marble Cake (link) which I made some time back except for the change in patterns.

This pattern looks very intricate, but it is actually very easy to create. It starts with one vanilla batter that is divided in half and has semi-sweet chocolate added to a portion. The batters are alternately spooned into the center of a prepared baking pan to form a bulls-eye design. The trick to getting the design is all in how you lay the batters. Put a spoonful of vanilla batter (about 3 tbsp, for this particular cake) into the center of the pan and let it spread slightly on its own. Put a spoonful of chocolate in the center of the vanilla. It will push out the other batter and, as it sits for a moment, will spread itself.

Alternating spoonfuls of the two batters, you simply repeat the technique until all the batter has been used up. You can tap the pan on the counter gently to help it spread and eliminate air bubbles, but the batter really must be allowed to spread on its own. This is a fairly plain cake and, while it does have a good chocolate and vanilla flavor to it, it isn’t too sweet. The cake is also very moist due to the butter or oil added!

So i did some mix n match and came out with this recipe. Pls try the below recipe with confidence. Its been tested and tried by me and i guarantee you amazing results.

You will need:

2 ounces Semi-sweet chocolate, chopped

1 tablespoon brewed coffee or espresso
2 cups cake flour (i use All-Purpose bleached, pre-sifted flour)
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 1/4 cups granulated white sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup sour cream
1/3 cup milk

PS: Instead of semi-sweet chocolate and brewed coffee, you may also use 2 tsps dark cocoa powder, make sure it is not very bitter. Dutch processed cocoa powder is the best.

Instead of 1/2 cup butter, you may use 1 cup vegetable oil.

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and place rack in center of oven. Butter, or spray with a non stick spray, the cake pan.

In a stainless steel bowl, over a saucepan of simmering water, melt the semisweet chocolate with the coffee. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a separate bowl sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Set aside.

In bowl of electric mixer, cream the butter. Gradually add the sugar and continue to beat until the mixture is light and fluffy (about 5 minutes). Add beaten eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and sour cream.

With the mixer on low speed alternately add the flour mixture and the milk to the batter, in three additions, beginning and ending with the flour.

After preparing the batter, pour half of the batter into a separate bowl. Stir the melted chocolate into one half of the batter, mixing well.

The most important part is assembling the cake batter in a baking pan. This is what you do. Scoop 3 tablespoons of plain batter into the middle of the baking pan. Then scoop 3 tablespoons of cocoa batter and pour it in the center on top of the plain batter.

IMPORTANT! Do not stop and wait until the previous batter spreads - KEEP GOING! Do not spread the batter or tilt the pan to distribute the mixture. It will spread by itself and fill the pan gradually. Continue alternating the batters until you finish them.

Bake in the oven for about 50 minutes. Do not open the oven door at least the first 30 minutes or the cake will shrink and will not rise. To check if the cake is ready, insert a toothpick into the center. It should come out clean when ready. Remove from the oven. Immediately run a small thin knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cake, then invert the cake onto a cooking rack. Turn the cake back over and let cool.

This Zebra cake goes perfectly well with a cup of strong tea.

You can sprinkle the top of the cake with some powdered (confectioner’s) sugar or leave it plain.

Few more clicks!

Hope you enjoyed the making of this cake!

Wanted to share some of my awards too but this post is long already.....will do it in the next post!

That's all for the week....adios!