This orange marble pound cake is the perfect mix of chocolate and vanilla. A hint of orange gives it an unexpected but delicious twist. 
Searching for inspiration, I asked V what his favorite kind of cake would be. "Vanilla and chocolate mixed mommy". And so began my search for the perfect marble cake recipe.
I started with a base recipe from culinary school and my fancy bundt pan. The result? A cake that was way too buttery and not in a good way.
I sometimes wonder if over buttering the pan ruins the flavor of cakes too. Unfortunately, I see no way out of over buttering this particular bundt pan because there are so many nooks in it. 
Bottom line, I did not love this cake. Even V only took a bite or two and S tunneled out the inside only because the outer part of the cake just wasn't very good.
So I decided to try it again and this time stayed away from the pretty bundt pan. After much research, I came up with a recipe using less butter and incorporated some orange zest to enhance the flavor. This cake was much better and V ate the whole slice!
Taking photos with V around can be quite a challenge. Sometimes it's just easier to do as he says. So if the superheroes need their picture taken too then a superhero shot it is!
Not ready to make this marble pound cake recipe yet? PIN it now and SAVE it for later!
For another wonderful orange flavored dessert, you may also want to check out my Flourless Chocolate Orange Cake and my Dark Chocolate and Orange Tart.
Marble Pound Cake
This marble pound cake is the perfect mix of chocolate and vanilla. A hint of orange gives it an unexpected but delicious twist.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ⅔ cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 Tbs vanilla
- zest of one orange
- 2 eggs
- ⅓ cup buttermilk
- 112 g bittersweet chocolate, melted
Instructions
- Butter a loaf pan and line it with parchment paper. Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl and set aside.
- In an electric mixer beat the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the zest and vanilla.
- On a lower speed, add the eggs one at a time until fully incorporated. Add the dry ingredients and buttermilk in three additions alternating between the two. Mix until just combined.
- Set aside two thirds of your batter and mix the melted chocolate into the remaining third. (I weigh my mixing bowl empty and with the batter so I can calculate exactly how much to take out.)
- Make a checker board pattern by spooning in your two batters on the bottom of your loaf pan.
- Layer another pattern on top and alternate the batters so chocolate is on top of vanilla and vice versa. Using a butter knife, swirl the batters once in each direction. Do not over swirl or your cake will not look marbled.
- Bake at 350 °F for 50-60 minutes or until the a skewer inserted into the center comes out clean. Let the cake cool slightly and remove from the pan.
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1 sliceAmount Per Serving: Calories: 355Total Fat: 19gSaturated Fat: 12gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 70mgSodium: 142mgCarbohydrates: 40gFiber: 3gSugar: 22gProtein: 5g
This nutrition information is only an approximate provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. Information comes from Nutritionix, an automated nutrition calculator.
Sudha says
Urvashee,
I've heard of a pond cake and I've heard of a marble cake - but combining the two beauties to create a marble pound cake is just awesome!Your cake has come out so good that I would have snatched a piece straight out of my monitor if I could do so:) Your son is a lucky guy who gets to gorge on Mom's lovely made goodies!!Wonderful presentation too.
Anna says
I never thought one can overuse butter in a cake. Well, I am a butter addict. But I will not argue with this recipe, since it looks absolutely gorgeous. If your kid loves it, I bet it is really good! Must try! Thanks!
Julia says
Ok, bundt pans make me CRAZY! The end result can be so pretty, but cleaning all the nooks in there. Oy vey!!!! You cake looks delicious, I love the addition of orange zest. And shoot, you could give me the over buttered batch, I'll gobble it up!
Kulsum at JourneyKitchen says
aw aw aw! that super hero shot is so cute :-D and so this the cake!
Jamie says
I love the Bundt pan, but I guess sometimes simpler is best. The pound cake is beautiful and looks just perfect. And adding the orange zest was a stroke of genius - you now know how I feel about orange and chocolate? A marriage made in heaven. And I love the Super Hero characters enjoying the cake!
Carrie says
Where did you buy this particular bundt pan? It's beautiful and I'd like to buy one.
Dessarts says
Carrie, the pan was a gift from my bridal shower. It's been 10 years but if I had to guess, I think it was from Williams Sonoma.