Swirled chocolate and vanilla cake batter creates a delightfully simple treat! This recipe combines oil and real chocolate for a moist, rich flavor and uses just 100g of silken tofu or 2 eggs. For a vegan option, blended silken tofu works perfectly, offering a brilliant alternative for creating dense, buttery pound cakes like this one. No need for self-raising flour or caster sugar—plain flour and granulated sugar make this an easy and straightforward bake to whip up!
INGREDIENTS
- Butter: 110 g (1/2 cup) vegan block butter or unsalted butter
- Flour: 185 g (1 1/2 cups) plain white flour (all-purpose flour)
- Cornflour: 20 g (2 tbsp) cornflour (or substitute with extra plain flour – see notes)
- Salt: 1/2 tsp fine table salt
- Chocolate: 65 g (2.25 ounces) dark chocolate (70% cocoa solids)
- Sugar: 220 g (1 cup) granulated sugar
- Leavening agents: 1 tsp baking powder, 1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
- Milk: 165 g (2/3 cup) non-dairy milk or cow’s milk
- Oil: 30 g (2 tbsp) vegetable or neutral oil
- Vanilla: 2 tsp vanilla extract
- Binder: 100 g blended silken tofu (vegan option) OR 2 medium UK eggs (large US eggs)
- Acid: 1 tsp vinegar or lemon juice
- Liquid: 2 tbsp brewed coffee or water
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat & Prepare: Preheat your oven to 180°C (350°F) convection. Grease and line a 2lb loaf tin with baking paper, leaving a sling for easy removal.
- Melt Butter: In a medium pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Once melted, remove from heat.
- Combine Dry Ingredients: Mix the flour, cornflour, and salt in a medium bowl. Pour the melted butter into this mixture, stirring until it forms a sandy texture. Add the sugar, baking powder, and bicarbonate of soda, mixing thoroughly (use your fingertips to break up lumps).
- Melt Chocolate: Add the chocolate to the same pot used for the butter (off the heat). Let the residual heat melt it. If needed, place the pot on low heat briefly, stirring until smooth. Set aside.
- Mix Wet Ingredients: In a jug, whisk together milk, oil, vanilla, tofu/eggs, and vinegar until smooth. (A hand blender works well for the tofu.)
- Combine Wet & Dry: Gradually add the wet mixture to the dry ingredients, stirring with a whisk or fork until smooth. Don’t worry about a few small lumps.
- Prepare Batters: Transfer 300 g (1 cup) of the batter into the pot with the melted chocolate. Add coffee (or water) and stir to create the chocolate batter. The remaining batter is your vanilla layer.
- Layer & Swirl: Alternate layers of chocolate and vanilla batters in the prepared loaf tin (3 layers of each work well). Use a butter knife to gently swirl the batters for a marbled effect—don’t overmix.
- Bake: Bake for 50-60 minutes, covering with foil during the last 10 minutes if browning too much. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Cool & Serve: Cool in the tin for 10 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Once cooled, slice and enjoy!
NOTES
- Cornflour substitute: Replace with 20 g (2 tbsp) extra plain flour.
- No chocolate: Use 4 tbsp cocoa powder + 1 tbsp oil.
- Vinegar: Use neutral options like apple cider or white vinegar. Avoid flavored ones.
- Vegan version: Use silken tofu, vegan block margarine, and non-dairy milk. Ensure chocolate is dairy-free.
Enjoy baking this simple yet indulgent cake!
