This week's Tuesdays with Dorie was selected by Carol of The Bake More: basic marbled loaf cake. The idea was simple - make the batter for a classic pound cake then divide it in half, flavor each half as you like and swirl the two batters together in the pan. Dorie provided several options for flavor variations, but she noted that the peppermint marble loaf was her favorite. Several of the TWD bakers who made the recipe early in the week tried that version and loved it and since I'm a big fan of the chocolate/mint combo it was an easy decision to go that route.
In the peppermint marble loaf, white chocolate and peppermint extract are added to half of the batter and bittersweet chocolate to the other half. I'd purchased Trader Joe's white chocolate on a whim a few weeks ago and decided to use it here. I happen to love white chocolate, and this bar with its high cocoa butter content (45%) was delicious which made it nearly impossible not to snack on as I chopped it up for melting. The recipe called for 4 oz of chocolate but my 3.5 oz bar worked fine.
In the hopes of achieving a nice pattern with my marbling, I transferred the batters to piping bags and piped alternating rows of color into the pan. Getting the batter into the bags proved to be a bit messy, which gave me plenty of opportunities to sample the batter. It was really tasty, which was the first indication this cake would be loved here; the second was the intoxicating aroma of chocolate and peppermint as the cake baked - I couldn't wait to dig in. But, since I finished baking around dinner, I wrapped the cake in plastic and then somehow proceeded to forget about it for 3 days. I think it worked to my advantage because when I finally got around to trying it, the cake was perfectly moist and tender. The white chocolate all but disappeared, leaving just the right amount of peppermint flavor in the light part of the cake. I was pleased with my marbling efforts (for probably the first time ever) so this cake was definitely an all-around winner.
Many thanks to Carol for hosting this week! You can find the recipe on her blog or on pages 230-231 of Baking: From My Home to Yours.
35 comments:
I love chocolate and mint together, too. I've never seen it in loaf cake, though. It's beautiful.
yummy......really it looks great!!!!!!!!!...will definetly try it...thnX for nice recipe
Looks great!
your marbling looks amazing! I must try the peppermint chocolate combo! It sounds like a winner!!! YUM!
What an absolutely gorgeous cake! I love the chocolate mint combo; I'd have never thought to make them into a marbled loaf cake. Love it.
Wow your marbling throughout the cake is just beautiful. I love the idea of a peppermint marble loaf cake. :)
Your marbling is stunning Tracey; I'd say that the extra effort needed for piping the cake batter was definitely worth it, especially since it produced an opportunity to preview the flavors! I can't imagine snacking on white chocolate; the best part about the white chocolate in this cake is that it disappeared flavor-wise.
Looks very pretty! And the cake batter was SO good!
Great job!! The crumb looks incredibly soft and fine in texture. Great addition of mint! Very creative and appealing!
I love how jigsaw-y your marbling looks! :)
Lovely marbling!
It's so pretty, Tracey - can't wait to try this flavor combo. I did the Cardamom & Espresso and it was super yummy! :)
How on earth did you forget about this cake for 3 days? It looks absolutely perfect. I really must try the chocolate/peppermint version next.
You forgot about it for 3 days! Oh that I had as much willpower. The batter was delicious. I thought about decorating bags but figured that would be a mess so I went with a cookie scoop. It made a fun chunky look.
I just hoped my swirl looked ok. I knew from experience I have no skill in trying to make the swirl look a particular way. I liked the chocolate mint combo, too!
Your photos are beautiful. I wish mine were half as good.
Your marbling is GORGEOUS! I've made the original version of this recipe before...need to try peppermint!
Super job on the marbling. Definitely worth the effort.
Chocolate and mint are always a good combo.
I definitely think loaf cakes need time to really develop a good flavor! Normally I can never wait that long, so it definitely worked out for you! The swirls are beautiful=)
Mmm I love peppermint and chocolate together. This looks like my kind of poundcake! :D
This marble loaf looks absolutely perfect! Mmm chocolate and peppermint :)
The marbling looks lovely! I don't think I could forget about a cake for three days!
I love the combination of chocolate and mint -- it's just heavenly to me. I didn't make this version because I wasn't sure it would live up to my expectations, but I love reading your positive reviews of the cake. I might need to try this version, soon. And, I really do want to see if a strawberry lemon version will work -- I'll let you know if it does!
Your marbling is so sharp and perfect looking. Great job, and thanks for baking with me this week. --- Carol
What a good idea to pipe the batter out. Wish I would have tried the mint. Your photos are always great!
I love the look of marbled cakes. Mmm Mint and chocolate, looks delicious :)
love the marbling! wish i had some peppermint extract so i could have tried this version
Wow, your marbling looks spectacular! I went with the peppermint cake, too.
Ciao Tracy ! i love your cake ! Did you see my swan swirl ?
What a beautiful swirl.
What a beautiful loaf cake, Tracey. Peppermint and chocolate is one of my favorite dessert combinations, so this sounds fantastic to me.
I made this cake recently and abolutely adored it every aspect of it. And thanks to this post, I will be making it again! Seems like adding the white chocolate and mint extract really takes it over the top.
I don't know if it's the rustic quality or what, but I LOVE the craggy top. That is my favorite part to photograph and eat ;)
Beautiful pics as always!!
I'll have to get back to you about the macarons, I'd love to but I don't think I have the right flour for them. Maybe something simpler... ice cream? Orrr biscotti? I have to make something for my mum and mother in law O.O
Your marbling looks great! I still need to make this one. I'm trying to decide between this version and the white choc/dark choc one.
Hi! I have a question... where does the chocolate go into the batter? The link to the recipe also does not include any chocolate, so I wasn't sure. I really want to make this loaf!
Thanks!
=)
Hi Amrita - Sorry about that, didn't realize the posted recipe didn't include the flavor variations. The recipe is available in its entirety on Google Books via this link:
http://books.google.com/books?id=oCji-fn5qEUC&lpg=PP1&dq=baking%20from%20my%20home%20to%20yours&pg=PA230#v=onepage&q=marble%20loaf&f=false
You'll find the recipe itself on page 230 and the flavor variations (including the peppermint) on page 231.
Let me know if you still have trouble. Hope you enjoy the cake :)
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