Chocolate marble birthday cake recipe

If you're looking for a chocolate marble cake then this is the ultimate recipe - it's so much more than your traditional chocolate cake. Made with cloud-like sponge, in chocolate and vanilla flavours, and topped with an indulgent Nutella-flavoured buttercream, this is a chocoholic's dream. It does take a little bit of time to make this chocolate marble cake, but if you're looking to really impress then this is the recipe to do just that with its layers of deliciously rich chocolate flavours. We've added instructions for how to make your own decorations too, so you can produce this showstopper from start to finish.

Ingredients

• 250g butter, at room temperature
• 250g golden caster sugar
• 1tbsp vanilla extract
• 5 eggs, lightly beaten
• 250g self-raising flour
• 100g white chocolate chips
• 4tbsp milk
• 100g plain dark chocolate chips
• 30g cocoa

For the chocolate shards:

• 200g dark chocolate
• 4tsp sunflower oil
• 100g white chocolate

For the coating:

• 300ml double cream
• 3tbsp chocolate spread or Nutella

For the glaze

• 125g dark chocolate
• 75g butter

You will need:

• 19cm deep, round cake tin, greased and lined

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180°C or Gas Mark 4. Put the butter, sugar, vanilla, eggs and flour in a large bowl. Gently combine with an electric mixer, then increase speed and mix for a couple of mins, until the mixture is smooth and creamy.
2. Equally divide the mixture between two bowls, add the white choc chips to one bowl with 1tbsp milk, and the dark choc chips, cocoa and 3tbsp milk to the other. Gently stir to evenly mix together.
3. Spoon the mixtures alternately into the cake tin. Swirl a knife through them, to marble. Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 mins, covering the cake with foil to stop it from browning. It’s ready when a skewer in the centre comes out clean. Cool in the tin for 30 mins. Cool completely on a wire rack.
4. To make the shards, melt the dark chocolate with 3tsp sunflower oil and the white chocolate with 1tsp sunflower oil in 2 bowls over 2 pans of simmering water. Line a tray with baking parchment and pour over the dark chocolate. Drizzle over the white chocolate, swirl and chill until firm. Cut into long strips, then triangles.
5. Whisk the cream until softly peaking. Whisk in the spread to combine.
6. For the glaze, put the chocolate and butter in a bowl resting over a pan of simmering water and heat to melt. Stir to combine. Remove from the heat.
7. Spread the chocolate coating around the sides of the cake and over the top with a palette knife.
8. Drizzle the chocolate glaze over the top of the cake. Lightly press the chocolate shards around the cake and arrange a few on top.

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