Zebra Cake

This popular Russian recipe for Zebra Cake is a chocolate and vanilla marbled tender coffeecake with a chocolate glaze. 

I got married way before Pinterest (11 years happily married, yay!), so at that time I had to store recipes in an actual physical notebook instead of pinning it to a Recipe board. When Sergi and I got engaged, I bought a notebook and started my handwritten recipe collection. I started it by copying all of my favorite recipes from my Mom's handwritten recipe books, as well as copying down all the other recipes I had tried from other people, magazines, and cookbooks.

This Zebra Cake is a gem from that book, a recipe that Mom had gotten from someone else and became a favorite in our family. Of course, it gets the name from its signature zebra stripes. It sort of reminds me of a coffee cake. It's tender, chocolaty and perfect to enjoy with a hot beverage or a cold glass of milk. This was one of the first recipes that my sister and I made by ourselves as young teens, so it's easy enough for novice bakers. However, it looks stunning, so you've got the presentation as well as the simplicity here going for you. 

Cake:

½ cup butter, room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar

5 large eggs, room temperature

¾ cup sour cream

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Chocolate Glaze:

3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

4 Tablespoons sour cream

6 Tablespoons sugar

1 Tablespoon butter

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease or butter a 9-inch springform pan.

Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes, using a standing mixer or hand-held mixer.

Add eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the sour cream and vanilla and mix to combine.

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the batter and mix just until combined, be careful not to overmix it. Divide the batter in half and set aside half of it in another bowl. Sift the cocoa powder into the batter still in the mixing bowl and mix to combine.

Scoop out a portion of the vanilla batter and put it in the center of the baking pan. Scoop out an equal portion of the chocolate batter and put it directly on top of the vanilla batter. Continue interchanging the different batters, always spooning batter into centers of pans, and occasionally tapping pan firmly on the work surface to ensure even distribution, until all batter is used (batters should appear as concentric rings).

Doesn't this look awesome? Bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, until the cake is baked through, or a toothpick comes out clean if you poke it in the center of the cake. Cool for 5 minutes and then take it out of the baking pan and onto a wire rack to cool.

Bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, until the cake is baked through, or a toothpick comes out clean if you poke it in the center of the cake. Cool for 5 minutes and then take it out of the baking pan and onto a wire rack to cool.

Meanwhile, make the chocolate glaze.

In a small saucepan, whisk together all the ingredients EXCEPT the butter, while they are still cold.

Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil, simmer for a few minutes, until the sugar dissolves and the glaze thins out to a syrupy consistency. Whisk in the butter.

Pour the warm chocolate glaze over the cake, letting it drizzle down the sides. This cake is an extra level of perfection if you enjoy it while it's still warm. It's extra flavorful and SUPER tender.

Place it on a serving plate and store at room temperature.

This cake freezes really well too. Wrap it well, without the glaze, in the freezer, for up to 6 months.

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Zebra Cake

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This popular Russian recipe for Zebra Cake is a chocolate and vanilla marbled tender coffeecake with a chocolate glaze.

• Author: Olga's Flavor Factory
• Prep Time: 30 mins
• Cook Time: 45 mins
• Total Time: 1 hour 15 mins
• Yield: 1 cake 1x
• Category: Sweets

Ingredients

Scale 1x2x3x

• Cake:
• ½ cup butter, room temperature
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 5 large eggs, room temperature
• ¾ cup sour cream
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• ¼ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• Chocolate Glaze:
• 3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
• 4 Tablespoons sour cream
• 6 Tablespoons sugar
• 1 Tablespoon butter

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Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease or butter a 9-inch springform pan.
2. Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy, 3-5 minutes, using a standing mixer or hand-held mixer.
3. Add eggs, one at a time, scraping the sides of the bowl as needed. Add the sour cream and vanilla and mix to combine.
4. Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Add to the batter and mix just until combined, be careful not to overmix it. Divide the batter in half and set aside half of it in another bowl. Sift the cocoa powder into the batter still in the mixing bowl and mix to combine.
5. Scoop out a portion of the vanilla batter and put it in the center of the baking pan. Scoop out an equal portion of the chocolate batter and put it directly on top of the vanilla batter. Continue interchanging the different batters, always spooning batter into centers of pans, and occasionally tapping pan firmly on the work surface to ensure even distribution, until all batter is used (batters should appear as concentric rings).
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes, until the cake, is baked through, or a toothpick comes out clean if you poke it in the center of the cake. Cool for 5 minutes and then take it out of the baking pan and onto a wire rack to cool.
7. Meanwhile, make the chocolate glaze.
8. In a small saucepan, whisk together all the ingredients EXCEPT the butter, while they are still cold.
9. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil, simmer for a few minutes, until the sugar dissolves and the glaze is a syrupy consistency. Whisk in the butter.
10. Pour the warm chocolate glaze over the cake, letting it drizzle down the sides. Place it on a serving plate and store at room temperature.

Notes

This cake freezes really well too. Wrap it well, without the glaze, in the freezer, for up to 6 months.