Marbled Red Wine and Chocolate Cake
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So, back to my kitchen: I've always had a sweet tooth, but I'm a bit of a piggy at the moment. There isn't a single day without cake on the table. Be it baked by myself, or a luscious piece of New York Cheesecake or hazelnut mascarpone torte from my favorite cafés around the corner; or those ultra soft and spongy yeast rolls and buns from a bakery - also just around the corner - that I only discovered a few months ago. I need my sugar no matter what my responsible mind tries to convince me of. Maybe I should have a day or two without it, I don't care. I'm the happiest person in the world when I'm snuggled into my beloved Butterfly Chair - that's currently covered in sheep fur for seasonal reasons - with a cup of Earl Gray tea on my lap and a large piece of cake close at hand.
Last week I had even more reason to bake, two birthdays in the calendar called for a sweet feast. I made the Poppy Seed and White Chocolate Babka that I shared with you last Sunday, peanut butter meringues (the recipe still needs some tweaking, but it'll come up soon), and a marvelous marbled red wine and chocolate cake. It's a marriage between my long loved Red Wine Cake and my classic Chocolate Marble Bundt Cake - I couldn't be more satisfied with the result. It's a little less sweet than my original pink wine creation due to the bittersweet chocolate batter swirled in and it's just perfect. Imagine a large bite of this fluffy cake covered in sticky red wine glaze melting in your mouth. Heaven.
Marbled Red Wine and Chocolate Cake
Makes 1 Bundt cake
dry breadcrumbs, for sprinkling the pan
organic eggs, separated, 6
fine sea salt 1/8 teaspoon
plain flour 300g / 2 1/3 cups
baking powder 3 teaspoons
ground cinnamon 2 teaspoons
unsweetened cocoa powder 2 teaspoons, plus 30g / 1/3 cup for the chocolate batter
butter, at room temperature, 210g / 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons
granulated sugar 250g / 1 1/4 cup, plus 1 heaping tablespoon for the chocolate batter
red wine 120ml /1/2 cup
For the icing
icing sugar 220g / 2 1/4 cups
red wine 4-5 tablespoons
bittersweet chocolate, grated, 1 tablespoon
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F (preferably convection setting). Butter a 23cm / 9″ Bundt pan and sprinkle lightly with breadcrumbs.
Whisk the egg white and salt until stiff, set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, cinnamon, and 2 teaspoons of the cocoa powder.
In the large bowl of a stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and 250g / 1 1/4 cup of the sugar for a few minutes until fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, and continue mixing until thick and creamy. Add the red wine and mix until well combined. Using a wooden spoon, fold the egg white and the flour mixture into the butter mixture, alternating about 1/3 at a time, combining well in between.
Scrape half the batter into the prepared Bundt pan. Stir the remaining cocoa powder (30g / 1/3 cup) and sugar (1 heaping tablespoon) into the remaining batter, mix until well combined. Dollop the chocolate batter on top of the lighter batter and spread carefully. Using a small fork, swirl through the 2 batters, carefully from top to bottom, pulling slowly once all the way through the pan. Bake for about 40 minutes (slightly longer if using a conventional oven) or until golden and spongy. Check with a skewer, it should come out clean. Let the cake cool for 2-3 minutes, then shake the pan a little and flip the cake onto a plate to cool completely. If the cake won’t come out, place the warm Bundt pan into a large bowl filled with cold water. This will help loosening the cake from the pan.
For the icing, in a medium bowl, whisk the icing sugar with 4 tablespoons of red wine until smooth. Add more wine if the mixture is too thick. Drizzle the icing over the cake and sprinkle with chocolate while the icing is still soft. Enjoy!
Cherry and Chocolate Marble Bundt Cake
Marble cake is a childhood memory baked in a Bundt pan. It was one of my granny Lisa's fabulous cake classics and it always impressed me with its light texture and the right balance of sweet sponge and bittersweet chocolate. Lisa must have had a weak spot for this duo. There's another masterpiece of hers, the decadent Donauwelle, which is basically the same combination baked flat on a tray, topped with cherries, German buttercream, and chocolate icing. It's a luscious, sweet bomb, perfectly fitting when it's cold and grey outside and you want to keep cosy. But the current mood is far from that, so let's forget about buttercream and all that stuff and think fruity.
You can keep it simple and dust a marble cake with a little icing sugar, but I find that a dark chocolate glaze gives it the necessary crunch and depth to balance out the softness and sweetness. To add a summery feel to it, I stirred some cherries into the batter. You can use fresh or preserved fruits, I go for preserved cherries, as it reminds me of my granny. Lisa used to have the most beautiful cherry tree in her garden, it was huge. The crop was generous, so she used to preserve the fruits and fill the shelves in her pantry. I remember long lines of jars, all filled with cherries ready to be turned into Donauwelle.
The cherries added a hint of pleasant fruitiness to the marble cake, which I liked a lot. I can imagine that apricots or peaches would work just as well, but I've never tried it, that's next on the baking schedule.
Cherry and Chocolate Marble Cake
Makes 1 Bundt cake
organic eggs, separated, 6
a pinch of salt
granulated sugar 250g / 1 1/4 cups
plain flour, sifted, 300g / 2 1/3 cups
baking powder 3 teaspoons
butter, at room temperature, 200g / 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons
vanilla bean, split and scraped, 1/4
whole milk 100ml / 1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons
cocoa powder 30g /1/4 cup
pitted jarred or fresh cherries 200g / 7 ounces
breadcrumbs, to sprinkle the pan
For the glaze
bittersweet chocolate 200g / 7 ounces
butter 1 tablespoon
fresh cherries 8, for decorating (optional)
Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F (preferably convection setting). Butter a 23cm / 9″ Bundt pan and sprinkle with breadcrumbs.
In the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites, salt, and 1 tablespoon of the sugar until stiff.
In a medium bowl, combine the flour and baking powder.
In the large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter, the remaining sugar, and vanilla for a few minutes until fluffy. Add the egg yolks, one at a time, and continue mixing until thick, creamy, and light yellow. Add the milk and mix until well combined. Using a wooden spoon, fold the egg whites and the flour mixture into the butter mixture, alternating about 1/3 at a time, combining well in between.
Scrape 1/2 of the batter into the prepared Bundt pan and spread the preserved cherries on top; push them gently into the batter. Stir the cocoa powder into the remaining batter, mix until well combined, and dollop on top of the light batter. Spread the dark batter carefully, then swirl with a small fork through the 2 batters, once is enough, carefully from top to bottom, pulling slowly all the way through the pan. Bake for about 40 minutes (slightly longer if using a conventional oven) or until golden and spongy. Check with a skewer, it should come out clean. Let the cake cool for 2-3 minutes, then shake the pan a little and flip onto a wire rack to cool completely. If the cake won't come out, place the warm Bundt pan into a large bowl filled with cold water. This will help loosening the cake from the pan.
For the chocolate glaze, in a small saucepan, melt the chocolate and butter on low heat, whisk until well combined. Let the chocolate cool for a few minutes, then drizzle over the cake. Decorate with the fresh cherries while the chocolate is still warm.
My Granny's Donauwelle - a Marble Cake with Cherries and Buttercream
In my young years, I built up a remarkable reputation in my family regarding the amount of cake I could eat at one go. Our regular gatherings at my granny Lisa's house used to start with a huge cake buffet which equaled paradise in my childish eyes. Most of my aunts and uncles are passionate cooks and bakers, they always lined up a scrumptious selection of our sweet family classics, like black forest cake, cheese and fruit cakes, spongy lemon cake, crumbles and my granny's masterpiece, her fabulous Donauwelle (meaning Danube wave). This traditional cake is also known as Snow-White-Cake due to its colour combination. It combines a layer of juicy black and white marble cake with sour cherries, German buttercream and melted bittersweet chocolate on top. The original name refers to the wavy pattern which you see when you cut the pieces. The cherries sink into the dough while it's baking and create waves like the Danube river - Donau in German.
As a child, I used to have quite a healthy appetite, but sometimes I pushed my borders. I could easily eat five or six pieces of cake, especially when I tried to keep up with my well built male cousins. Of course, there were many days I had to suffer afterwards but it was all forgotten by the next family feast.
It's been more than twenty years since my granny passed away and I never baked this cake myself. I kept the recipe safe and waited. But then, when my Maltese mother Jenny visited us last week, I thought about a special German sweet to treat her to. My granny Lisa's Donauwelle was the first one that came into my mind and it felt like the right time to finally give it a try. I was a bit nervous so I called my sister to get some more detailed instructions. After a few adjustments and improvisations on the recipe (we forgot to use the fifth egg as it rolled behind the toaster but we didn't miss it in the final result), we had this luscious family classic on our table. It tasted like my granny's and brought back sweet memories of her in the kitchen, of her cherry tree in her garden and the perfect times I used to spend at her house.
The cake is traditionally completely covered in chocolate decorated with a wavy pattern, my granny made it this way too. I find the bittersweet taste too overpowering so I went for a lighter chocolate sprinkle. I also only used half of the butter for the buttercream, it made it less dense and heavy.
We were all quite impressed with the result and savoured it for days. On the second and third day, we thought it was best but the chocolate wasn't as pretty any more, but who cares! What can I say, food is like music, it saves memories for the rest of our life so that we can recall them at any time, I love that!
Donauwelle
For a 24 x 30cm / 10 x 12" baking dish you need
sour cherries (preserved) 300g / 10.5 ounces
bittersweet chocolate 100g / 3.5 ounces, for the topping
butter 1 tablespoon, for the topping
For the marble cake
butter, at room temperature, 275g / 10 ounces
granulated sugar 275g / 10 ounces
seeds of 1/2 vanilla pod
organic eggs 4
milk 175ml / 6 ounces
plain flour 400g / 14 ounces
baking powder 1 package (4 teaspoons)
a pinch of salt
dark unsweetened cocoa powder 2 heaped tablespoons
Set the oven to 180°C / 355°F (fan-assisted oven) and line the baking dish with parchment paper.
Beat the butter, sugar and vanilla until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time and continue beating for a few minutes until thick, creamy and light yellow. Combine the flour, salt and baking powder. Fold the dry ingredients and the milk with a wooden spoon gently into the butter egg mixture, alternating, about 1/3 at a time. Divide the dough in half between two bowls and stir the cocoa powder into one of them.
Scrape the light dough into the baking dish, even it out and put the dark one on top. Spread the cherries on top, one by one, and push them lightly into the dough. Bake for 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the cake is done. Check with a skewer, it should come out clean. Let the cake cool completely.
For the German buttercream
All ingredients for the buttercream must be at the same temperature (room temperature) to combine well!
butter 125g / 4.5 ounces
organic egg yolks 4
cornstarch 60g / 2 ounces
granulated sugar 120g / 4.5 ounces
milk 500ml / 17 ounces
a pinch of salt
vanilla pod, slit slightly, 1
Beat the soft butter for 5 minutes until white and fluffy.
Whisk the egg yolks with the cornstarch, sugar, salt and 50ml / 2 ounces of the milk until well combined.
In a sauce pan, bring the remaining milk with the vanilla pod to the boil. Take the vanilla pod out and scrape the seeds out of the bean into the milk. Add the egg mixture to the hot milk, whisking well. Take the sauce pan off the heat after 1 minute and continue whisking for 2 minutes until stiff. Fill into a bowl and cover the pudding’s surface with cling film.
When the vanilla pudding has cooled off completely, press it through a sieve and mix it in batches with the beaten butter, first with a spoon and then with your mixer for a few seconds until nice and creamy.
The Donauwelle
For the topping, melt the chocolate and butter and let it cool a little.
Spread the buttercream on top of the cake and decorate with the melted chocolate.
My favourite Chocolate Marble Cake
My favourite marble cake needs 6 eggs to turn into a bundt cake so fluffy and juicy, light and enjoyable that I just can't stop eating it. Most of the time I just sprinkle it with icing sugar but some days ask for more. When I'm in a chocolaty mood I cover it in a crunchy layer of bittersweet chocolate.
This cake is so simple but whenever I hold a slice of it in my hand and take the first bite I ask myself why I don't bake it more often. It's a typical childhood cake, a birthday party classic which had to be on every coffee table. It's also the cake my mother used to bake for my own special day. In the morning, I used to find it on my birthday table together with all my presents and it always had my name and age written on it, with colourful smarties pushed into the glossy chocolate. Two year's ago I baked it for the first time for our godchild's first birthday, with smarties of course to continue the tradition.
Chocolate Marble Cake
For a 23cm / 9″ bundt pan you need
butter 200g / 7 ounces plus 1 tablespoon for the chocolate glaze
granulated sugar 250g / 9 ounces
a pinch of fresh vanilla
organic eggs, divided, 6
a pinch of salt
milk 100ml
plain flour, sieved, 300g / 10.5 ounces
baking powder 3 teaspoons
cocoa powder 30g /1 ounce
bittersweet chocolate 200g / 7 ounces, for the topping
dry breadcrumbs to sprinkle the pan
Set the oven to 180°C / 355°F (fan-assisted oven). Butter a bundt pan and sprinkle with bread crumbs.
Whisk the egg whites with the salt and 1 tablespoon of the sugar till stiff.
Combine the flour and baking powder in another bowl.
In a large bowl, mix the butter, sugar and vanilla till fluffy. Add the egg yolks and continue mixing till thick, creamy and light yellow. Add the milk and mix until well. Fold the egg whites and the flour with a wooden spoon gently into the butter and egg mixture, alternating, 1/3 at a time, combining well in between.
Scrape half of the dough into the bundt pan and stir the cocoa powder into the remaining batter. Dollop the dark batter on top of the light one and swirl with a small fork through the 2 batters, carefully, from top to bottom pulling slowly all the way around the pan. Don't over mix the different batters to keep the marble pattern.
Bake for 40 minutes or until golden and spongy. Check with a skewer, it should come out clean. Let the cake cool for 2-3 minutes before you turn it around onto a wire rack to cool completely.
Melt the chocolate and mix in 1 tablespoon of butter, let it cool for 2 minutes before you drizzle it over the cake. Spread it or leave it sprinkly, as you like.
