Zebra Cake: A Birthday Cake for the Bold

(#10) Master 25 New Recipes

1. Stuffed Peppers
2. Risotto
3. Polenta
4. Beef Brisket
5. French Onion Soup
6. Chocolate Chip Cookies
7. Lentil Soup
8. Macaroni & Cheese
9. Zucchini Bread
10. Chicken Piccata
11. Moussaka
12. Chocolate Cake
13. Zebra Cake

My baby sister who I still picture as looking like this:

turned 21 this weekend. Let’s let that sink in for a second.

She decided to come visit me for her special day so I was delighted at the opportunity to make her a birthday cake. I received intelligence from my mother (which later proved to be erroneous) that she had requested a marble cake. After a quick Pinterest search I came across this recipe and decided to try it. I knew if it worked out it would look quite impressive, but if it did not it would look like a big gray mess.

But the bigger the risk the bigger the reward, right?

Basically to make this cake you need a chocolate cake batter and a vanilla cake batter. Boxed is fine but you have to add a little bit more water than the recipe recommends, to get a thinner viscosity.

It does not take great baking skill. All it takes is nerves of steel and the willingness to get messy when your finger is all that stands between perfect stripes and a drippy mess.

Using a ¼ cup measuring cup (you will need two of these) pour a scoop of vanilla batter in the center of your pan. Allow it to spread out for a few seconds.

Using your second ¼ cup and your nerves of steel, quickly pour chocolate batter directly in the center of the vanilla batter. I found that the higher you hold your cup and the quicker you pour the less likely you will be to get stray drips.

You will almost certainly get some stray drips, though, so don’t be discouraged.

Repeat the process ad infinitum. The recipe calls says fill the pan up 2/3 of the way. I had 9 inch round pans and it took me about 15 “stripes” to get to what I thought was 2/3 full. You will be left with enough batter to possibly make a third layer to your cake, but if like me you a) are emotionally exhausted by the end of this process and b) do not have a third cake pan, you will probably end up just dumping the extra batter. If wastefulness gives you liberal angst, just remember you are making this cake for someone you love.

As they bake the stripes will become less crisp. Do your best not to freak out about this. It will still look pretty cool in the end.

Finally, cool and frost your cake, and wait patiently for the guest of honor to arrive for the big reveal!

Not only did this cake look cool, the extra liquid made it very moist. And the mixture of chocolate and vanilla is one most people love, even if they didn’t actually specifically request it.

By the way, we sisters still look as cute as we always did! 

Here's the full recipe for zebra cake once again. Give it a try next time you're feeling fearless!