Whether you want a nice pound cake with your morning tea or a dairy-free cake to serve to your family, this marble loaf cake fits the bill. Made with olive oil, this cake will wow your guests with its moist texture and fabulous chocolate swirl.
Find more olive oil cake recipes here.
I love to bake. I bake all kinds of treats, from cookies, bars and pies to cakes, muffins and scones. I have prepared fancy schmancy desserts to simple ones. My family and I love them all.
I am always on the lookout for simple desserts that I can whip up quickly, but is nice enough to serve to dinner guests. This marble loaf cake is both easy to make and the chocolate swirl makes it an impressive looking dessert.
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Recipe highlights
- Economical: Ground beef jerky costs less to make than regular jerky.
- Simple: This recipe comes together very easily. You probably have most of the ingredients in your pantry. The cake is dairy free and does use almond milk, which you might not have in your pantry. So if you cook kosher and want a dairy-free dessert, this cake is calling your name.
- Texture: The cake is a pound cake, but is still very moist and fluffy.
- Flavor: The marble effect is really easy to recreate and gives the cake a dramatic look and swirls of chocolatey flavor. I love that this is a no fuss cake that does not require frosting or icing. Don’t let its simplicity fool you. It truly is a moist and delicious cake.
Ingredients you need
- Extra virgin olive oil: I bake exclusively with extra virgin olive oil, so this marble pound cake recipe was perfect for me. When baking with olive oil, choose an oil that is mild in flavor instead of a peppery or pungent oil. You can also use neutral vegetable oil. You can learn more about baking with olive oil here.
- Almond milk: This cake is dairy-free and uses almond milk. Choose an unsweetened plain almond milk.
- Eggs: Large eggs are used in this recipe. To make this cake vegan, you can substitute with flax eggs. For this recipe that means 2 tablespoons of flax seeds and 6 tablespoons of water. Although I have not tried flax in this recipe, I have tried it with my vanilla olive oil cake and it works really well.
- Pantry staples: Unsweetened cocoa powder, granulated sugar, all purpose flour, baking powder, kosher salt and vanilla extract
Step-by-step directions
- Make the paste. Combine cocoa powder, sugar and water to form a thick paste. Set aside.
- Whisk the sugar and oil. In a larger bowl, whisk together sugar, olive oil and vanilla until fluffy.
- Add eggs. Mix in eggs, one at a time, into the olive oil mixture beating for about one minute after each addition.
- Combine dry ingredients. In a medium sized bowl add flour, baking powder and salt. Alternate adding the flour mixture and almond milk into the cake batter, mixing on low speed.
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- Chocolate batter. Remove about 1 cup of batter and mix it in with into the reserved cocoa paste.
- Pour into loaf pan. Spray your loaf pan with oil and dust with flour. Spoon each batter into prepared loaf pan, alternating the layers. I started with the vanilla batter since I had more of it.
- Add swirls. Using a knife or bamboo skewer, zig zag it down the pan into the batter. You only need to do this about 6 times. Any more and the batter will mix together instead of producing a cool marble effect.
- Bake. Bake at 325ºF for 45 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Let the cake cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife down the sides of the pan, then remove the cake to cool completely.
Recipe tips and FAQs
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This recipe is from my good friend, Beth Lee, is a talented baker and food blogger at OMG Yummy. I have been enjoying her recipes for many years. This wonderful marble loaf cake recipe came from her cookbook, The Essential Jewish Baking Cookbook.
You can make some small adjustments to this recipe if you want to add more flavor.
- For more chocolatey goodness, mix in ¼ cup of chocolate chips with the chocolate cake batter. This was Middle Child’s suggestion for the next time I make this cake!
- Stir in ½-1 teaspoon of instant coffee granules for more intense chocolate flavor.
- Top your cake with ¼ cup of chopped walnuts or pecans for more crunch.
Storing/Freezing Instructions
TO STORE: Store any leftover cake for up to 3 days, if stored at room temperature in an air-tight container. You can also wrap it up in foil or plastic wrap and store it in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
TO FREEZE: You can also freeze leftovers. Wrap individual slices of cake in freezer safe plastic wrap or foil and freeze for up to 4 months.
Your baked goods are only as good as the ingredients you put into it. Do not choose a peppery olive oil to bake an olive oil cake. Do not chose a cheap olive oil to bake this olive oil cake. DO use a late harvest, mild flavored extra virgin olive oil to bake this cake. And it won’t taste like olive oil.
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Marble Loaf Cake
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon water
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 3 large eggs room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup almond milk room temperature
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325ºF. Spray an 8 ¼" x 4 ¼" loaf pan with oil and dust with flour.
- In a medium bowl mix cocoa powder, 3 tablespoon sugar and water to form a thick paste. Set aside.
- In a larger bowl, whisk together 1 cup sugar, olive oil and vanilla until fluffy.
- Add eggs, one at a time, into the olive oil mixture beating for about one minute after each addition.
- In a medium sized bowl combine flour, baking powder and salt.
- Alternate adding the flour mixture and almond milk into the cake batter, mixing on low speed.
- Remove about 1 cup of batter and mix it in with into the reserved cocoa paste.
- Spoon each batter into prepared loaf pan, alternating the layers.
- Using a knife or bamboo skewer, zig zag it down the pan into the batter. You only need to do this about 6 times. Any more and the batter will mix together instead of producing a marble effect.
- Bake at 325ºF for 45 minutes, or until a tooth pick inserted into the cake comes out clean.
- Let the cake cool on a rack for 15 minutes. Run a knife down the sides of the pan, then remove the cake to cool completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition Disclaimer
Nutritional information is an estimate provided to you as a courtesy. You should calculate the actual nutritional information with the products and brands you are using with your preferred nutritional calculator.
PS If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback.
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Written by Laura Bashar
Hi, I’m Laura, a certified professional cook and cookbook author living in San Diego. I have been sharing my family’s favorite recipes inspired from all over the world since 2008. Let’s cook up something fun!
Can we substitute coconut milk for almond milk
Hi Beena-
Yes, you can use any non-dairy milk.
Laura
Sounds like an excellent book — terrific review. Such a great recipe, too! Look great, and sounds totally yummy. Thanks!
Oh Laura – I am so glad you chose this recipe to make! It’s so you – with the olive oil and the simple but dramatic look. Thank you so much for sharing it with your readers and your family. I hope they all love it as much as I do. And I love the idea of the chocolate chip addition – very very smart!