This Deep Chocolate Zebra Cake is a winner for all the chocoholics in your life! Rich and totally satisfying, one slice is all you need, but you may just have to go back for seconds LOL.
Bundt cakes have always been a favorite in The Artist’s family. His mom would make them for both his and his brother’s birthdays each year. He still loves them and is always excited when I tell him that I’m making one for Chocolate Monday!
Hot from the oven
This is the perfect choice for your family and friends who prefer cakes that are less sweet. It is packed with chocolate flavor in every bite but not overly sugary.
What makes this cake so visually stunning is the vanilla glaze. It adds a lovely creaminess to every bite and also balances the flavors, adding the perfect amount of sweetness to complement the depth of chocolate in the cake.
I used my swirl bundt pan which gave me the stripes of white glaze making it look a little like a zebra, thus the recipe title. No matter which design of pan you use, this will be a beautiful cake.
One thing that is a surprise in this recipe is using 1 tablespoon, yes, a full tablespoon of baking soda! This is not a typo and my cake did not overflow the pan but I did have it sitting over a baking sheet just in case. Be sure to use a large bundt pan!
The Artist and I loved this tender, delicate Deep Chocolate Zebra Cake, inhaling a slice each. Although I was completely full after dinner, I really wanted to go back for seconds, LOL.
Have a wonderful Chocolate Monday and week ahead!
Did you enjoy this recipe? Let me know in the comments, I love hearing from you!
Key Ingredients for Deep Chocolate Zebra Cake:
- Bittersweet chocolate, flour or GF flour blend
- Cocoa powder, baking soda, salt, egg
- Buttermilk, milk, vanilla, vegetable oil
- Sugar, confectioners’ sugar, cream (or milk)
PRO Tip:
This recipe makes a large cake so be sure you have a 12-cup bundt pan ready to go. Don’t fill to the top – if you have extra batter, pour it into a second buttered baking pan and bake it alongside the bundt pan. Another trick is to bake the cake on a baking sheet just in case of spill-overs.
How to make Deep Chocolate Zebra Cake:
- Prepare the Cake: Set the racks in the lower third of the oven and butter a 12-cup bundt pan
- Melt the chocolate over a pan of simmering water, stirring often; remove from the heat and set the bowl on a kitchen towel
- Whisk together the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt; in a 4-cup measuring cup, whisk together the egg, buttermilk, milk, and vanilla
- Pour the melted chocolate into the bowl of your mixer, add the oil and sugar, mixing until smooth; add half the dry ingredients and half the liquids, mixing until just smooth – add remaining dry and liquid ingredients, mixing until smooth
- Pour the batter into the buttered pan and bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached; cool the cake in the pan for 10 minutes then invert onto a cooling rack and cool completely
- Make the Glaze: Whisk together the glaze ingredients until smooth; adjust thickness with a tiny bit more milk or additional sugar until you get a good pouring consistency
- Set the cooled cake on a serving plate and pour the glaze over the top, letting it drip down the sides; let stand at least 15 minutes until the glaze has set before slicing and serving
PRO Tip:
When working with bundt pans, be sure to thoroughly get the butter in every nook and cranny. I used a paper towel to spread the butter carefully on all surfaces. This guarantees the cake will release easily and your cake will be beautifully designed.
Recommended Tools (affiliate links; no extra cost to you):
- Chef’s knife
- Cutting board
- Kitchen scale
- 12-cup bundt pan
- Saucepan
- Heatproof bowl
- 4-cup measuring cup
- Stand mixer or hand mixer
Gluten-Free Tips:
I used my regular gluten-free flour blend in this cake and we loved how delicate and tender the crumb was. You can adjust any recipe to gluten-free by using 120 grams per cup of my favorite gluten-free flour blend. If you are using another brand of gluten-free flour, whisk the mix, spoon it lightly into a measuring cup until mounded, level off the top with a straight edge, and weigh the flour left in the cup. Use that weight as your standard per cup of that specific flour. Commercial blends such as Pamela’s, Bob’s Red Mill 1-to-1, or King Arthur Measure for Measure are all good choices.
Deep Chocolate Zebra Cake (Gluten Free)
This beautiful cake is packed with rich and tantalizing chocolate flavor and topped with a luscious (and simple) vanilla glaze offering the perfect counterpoint. This is a beautiful dessert for parties and feeds about 10 to 12 people. If you are taking it to someone else's home, wait to glaze it until you arrive!
Ingredients
Cake
- Butter, for the pan
- 2 oz (about 58g) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
- 2 cups (240g) all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour blend
- 1/2 cup (44g) unsweetened Dutch-process cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon (15g) baking soda (this is not a typo!)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 1 cup milk
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
- 1 large egg
- 3/4 cup light vegetable oil
- 1-1/4 cups sugar
Vanilla Glaze
- 3 cups confectioners' sugar
- 3 tbsp milk or cream, plus more if needed
- 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F with the racks in the lower third. Butter a 12-cup bundt pan well.
- Prepare the Cake: In a saucepan, set a medium heatproof bowl over simmering water. Add the chocolate to the bowl and melt over med-low heat, stirring often. Remove from the heat and carefully set the bowl aside. Let cool slightly.
- In a bowl, whisk the flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt together.
- In a 4-cup measuring cup, whisk together the buttermilk, milk, vanilla and egg. Set aside.
- Pour the melted chocolate into the bowl of your stand mixer or use a hand mixer. Add the oil and sugar and mix until smooth. Add half of the dry ingredients plus half of the liquids; mix just until smooth. Add the remaining dry ingredients and liquids, mixing until smooth.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake in the lower third of the oven for about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out with a few moist crumbs attached. Let the cake cool on a rack in the pan for 10 minutes, then invert it onto the rack, remove the pan, and let it cool completely.
- Make the Vanilla Glaze: In a bowl, whisk together the ingredients until smooth. If too thick, add a touch more milk (1/2 tsp at a time) and if too thin, add more sugar.
- Set the cooled cake on a serving plate or platter. Pour the glaze over the top and let it drip down the sides. Let the cake stand until the glaze is set, at least 15 minutes, before slicing and serving.
- Recipe can be found at www.theheritagecook.com
Notes
Adapted from a Food and Wine recipe
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 665Total Fat: 17gSaturated Fat: 3gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 13gCholesterol: 24mgSodium: 156mgCarbohydrates: 124gFiber: 1gSugar: 100gProtein: 5g
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Shan
I would love to see the pan you use for this lovely cake. It came out so perfectly! I’ve seen silicone bundt pans lately and wondered about them.
Jane Bonacci
Hi Shannon – I found the pan listed in the King Arthur Flour catalog and I’m sure you could find it on Amazon. It looks exactly like the cake. I do butter the pan before filling with the batter so it will release beautifully. Hope you have a chance to get one!