Marbled Pound Cake

This beautiful marbled pound cake use cream cheese to give it a classic pound cake crumb that everyone loves.

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I adore my classic cream cheese pound cake for the velvety tight crumb that it has. But when I want something that’s even more impressive, I make this marbled version. After all, I did write the cookbook Marbled, Swirled, and Layered! How could I resist making a chocolate and vanilla pound cake, aka the marbled version of my favorite pound cake? With swirls of chocolate batter in it, each slice of the pound cake looks beautiful when you slice into it. The recipe isn’t much different than my cream cheese pound cake but you do need to do the extra step of turning half the batter into a chocolate batter to mix in. Don’t worry though, it’s a pretty easy step!

How to make this pound cake

Like my cream cheese pound cake, you start by creaming together butter and cream cheese until well blended. Then add in salt and baking powder. Once everything is well blended, pour in the white sugar as you mix, continue to beating it until the mixture is light and fluffy. This process mechanically incorporates as much air as possible into the batter. But the addition of a touch of baking powder also is an added insurance that the pound cake isn’t too dense.

Beat together room temperature eggs with the vanilla and then drizzle the mixture into the batter, trying to add just a little bit at a time to keep the mixture emulsified and smooth. But don’t stress too much if that doesn’t happen! Adding the flour next will help bring the whole batter back together.

Once the flour is added, scoop out half of the batter and add in cocoa, instant espresso powder or coffee, and vanilla to it. Mix until uniform. 

Now spoon the vanilla and chocolate batter into a loaf pan, alternating batters in the pan. Then use a chopstick or butter knife and swirl the batters together. Don’t swirl too much! Bake and cool slightly in the pan, then invert and let cool on a wire rack until room temperature and ready to serve.

What sort of cocoa to use

For a lot of recipes, the type of cocoa you use makes a difference, as it affects the way the baked good rises. But because pound cake primarily uses a mechanical leavening, where you add air into the batter by just mixing it until it’s fluffy, it doesn’t matter what cocoa powder you use in this cake!

I choose Dutch-processed cocoa because it’s darker color and creates a more contrasting swirling pattern. It also has a more mellow chocolate flavor. But if you only have natural cocoa powder or prefer the more acidic sharper chocolate flavor, then you can use the same amount of natural cocoa in place. 

How to store this pound cake

This pound cake can be stored at room temperature, tightly wrapped in plastic wrap, under a cake dome, for up to 3 day. You can also freeze this pound cake! Let the pound cake cool completely and then wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Place the wrapped pound cake in a large freezer Ziploc bag in the freezer for up to 2 months.

If you like this marbled pound cake, check out these other marbled and swirled recipes:

• Marbled Sugar Cookies
• White Chocolate and Green Tea Brownies
• Chocolate and Vanilla Waffles
• Psychedelic Rainbow Cheesecake Brownies
• Marbled Rum Cake
• Neapolitan Cheesecake Brownies

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5 from 1 vote

Marble Cream Cheese Pound Cake

This beautiful marbled pound cake has a velvety crumb and is practically fool proof. It has the addition of a little bit of baking powder (something that traditionally not included in pound cake) to help ensure it’s not too dense and is just the right consistency and texture. Be sure to just swirl the batter only once or twice. If you over mix the batter, you run the risk of blending them together too much.

Course coffee time, Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword cake, chocolate, marbled, swirl, vanilla

Servings 8

Calories 1811kcal

Author Irvin

Ingredients

Cake batter

• 14 tablespoons unsalted butter 2 1/4 sticks or 200 g
• 3 ounces cream cheese 85 g
• 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar 300 g
• 5 large eggs at room temperature (see note below)
• 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 210 g

Chocolate mix-in

• 3 tablespoons Dutch-processed cocoa sifted if clumped together
• 1/2 teaspoon instant coffee or espresso optional but recommended
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Lightly grease a 9 x 5-inch loaf pan with cooking oil spray.

  Cut the butter and cream cheese into 1/2-inch cubes. If you're using a stand mixer, the ingredients can be directly from the refrigerator cold. But if you're using a hand mixer, it’s better to use room temperature ingredients.

  Place the ingredients in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until they start to combine, which should take 1 to 2 minutes. Then, increase the speed to medium and continue mixing until the ingredients have a creamy appearance, are well blended, and cling to the sides of the bowl, which should take another 2 to 3 minutes.
  
• Add the salt and baking powder and mix for an additional 30 seconds until they are fully incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl using a silicone spatula.

  With the mixer still on low speed, gradually add the sugar, pouring it into the bowl in a steady stream to incorporate it slowly into the butter. Continue adding all the sugar until it is well combined and appears fluffy. Once again, scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl with a spatula.
  
• In a separate glass measuring cup with a spout, whisk together the eggs and vanilla. Slowly drizzle this egg mixture into the bowl with the mixer on low speed, occasionally pausing to make sure egg is fully absorbed before adding more. The goal is to maintain a smooth batter, but don't worry if it appears slightly broken and grainy in the end – this is normal.

  Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl again and, with the mixer on low speed, gradually add the flour, mixing until the flour is fully incorporated, and the batter becomes smooth.
  
• Do a couple more scrapes of the bottom and side with a spatula and another mix to make sure everything is well blended. Then take half the batter, about 550 grams if you have a scale, and move it to a separate bowl. Add the cocoa, instant coffee (if using), and vanilla to the remaining batter in the mixer bowl and mix until incorporated.
  
• Spoon alternating batches of the plain and chocolate batter into the prepared pan. Then, using a chopstick or butter knife, gently swirl the batters together, using large “figure eight” motions. Don’t over swirl, but mix it enough to create a pretty pattern.
  
• Bake for 85 to 90 minutes, or until the top has cracked open, the center looks dry (not wet) and a skewer inserted comes out clean. If you have an instant read thermometer, the internal center temperature should be somewhere between 200° and 205°F.

  Let cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then invert onto a wire rack and flip right side up. Let the pound cake cool completely before serving.
  

Notes

If you forgot the step of bringing your eggs to room temperature, don’t worry. You can quickly warm them up by placing them in a bowl of hot water straight from the tap. Allow the eggs to sit in the hot water for approximately 10 minutes, which should be about the same time it takes to reach the step where you need to add them to the batter. This will bring the eggs to room temperature.

Nutrition

Calories: 1811kcal | Carbohydrates: 62.9g | Protein: 21g | Fat: 166.4g | Saturated Fat: 103g | Cholesterol: 650mg | Sodium: 1447mg | Potassium: 1822mg | Fiber: 11.8g | Sugar: 24.9g | Calcium: 427mg | Iron: 9mg

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