This Vegan Zebra Cake combines a chocolate cake and a vanilla cake into one flashy Marble Cake. It’s easy to make from just one batter, and it’s topped with a simple Chocolate Ganache plus crunchy walnuts, making it even more delicious! This post contains a Step-by-Step tutorial, showing you how to create the Zebra look!
Fancy Marble Cake
Making this Zebra Cake is not only fun, but it’s also a great way to have two cakes at the same time. If you’re like me, you may have experienced the problem of not being able to decide between two delicious flavors. In this case, it’s chocolate and vanilla. Well, this marble cake definitely solves that problem because we simply bake a chocolate cake and a vanilla cake together, turning it into one delicious marble cake that everyone will love for sure!
Easy to make
Although this Zebra Cake looks super cool with its striped pattern, it’s actually easier to make than you’d think. This batter comes together in a matter of minutes. Really, all you need is just a measuring cup, a spoon, a whisk, two bowls, and a baking pan. Plus a few simple ingredients you may already have at home. How does that sound to you? Good? If so, let’s start making it!
Made from 1 batter
The chocolate cake batter is made from the vanilla cake batter. This means you don’t have to prepare two completely separate batters. Yay! Simply combine the dry and wet ingredients, making the vanilla batter. Then, separate half of the batter into another bowl. Stir in cocoa and a little bit of non-dairy milk to thin it out a bit, and presto, you now have your chocolate batter.
Zebra Look
To create a zebra pattern, simply layer the batters on top of each other. Start with a spoonful of the vanilla batter in the center, place a spoonful of the chocolate batter on top. Then alternate between the two until you’ve filled the pans. The batter will spread out on its own while layering and a marbled pattern will begin to form. However, it helps to give the pans a shake every now and then to level the batter off. Here’s a picture animation video showing you how to layer the batter:
Loaf, pound cake, bundt cake or round cake?
Often, a Zebra Cake is baked in a round pan or as a bundt cake, but I prefer using a loaf pan, making a classic pound cake. I find it’s the perfect shape to easily slice into portable pieces, which fit into any lunch box, so it’s perfect to take to work or university and school.
However, if you prefer using another type of pan, feel free to do so. Please always make sure to check the baking time because it varies depending on what kind of baking pan or size you use. The best method for checking baking time is doing a cake test by inserting a toothpick or skewer into the center of your cake. When it comes out almost clean, the cake should be done.
Oh, and by the way, in this post, you can find some tips on how to get a cake out of bundt pan easily.
I hope you’ll love this Zebra Cake. It is:
- Vegan
- Egg-less
- Dairy-free
- Very easy to make from 1 batter!
- Combines a chocolate cake and a vanilla cake
- Can be made gluten-free
- Can be baked in a round pan or bundt pan
- Topped with a Chocolate Ganache
- Decorated with Walnuts
- So delicious!
The perfect Vegan Cake for any occasion
This Zebra Cake is adapted from our family all-time favorite Marble Cake recipe we used to make in my home since childhood. I’ve just veganized it, making it eggless and dairy-free, without using butter and using neutral oil instead. It’s a great recipe that you can make any time when you want a fancy Cake with Zebra marbling to impress your guests. Even though I think everyone is quite familiar with this simple chocolate cake and vanilla cake combination, so it makes a delicious dessert, along with a cup of fresh nut milk or coffee.
If you’re looking for more delicious Vegan Cake Recipes, you can check out the recipes for my Best Vegan Chocolate Cake, Brownie Cheesecake, Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake, Poppy Seed Crumble Cheesecake or any of my other Recipes for Vegan Cheesecakes and Crumble Cakes.
And if you give this recipe a try, please let me know in the comments below how it turned out for you. Also, you can take a picture of it and tag me @biancazapatka and use the hashtag #biancazapatka on Instagram, so I won’t miss your post! Happy baking!
Zebra Marble Cake
You do not have a fitting cake pan at hand right now? Try my new Cake Pan Conversion Calculator!
Ingredients
For the vanilla cake
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (312g) or gluten-free* if needed
- 4 1/2 tbsp cornstarch (35g) or 1 package vanilla pudding powder
- 1 tbsp soy flour optional
- 3/4 cup sugar (175g) or to taste
- 1 tbsp baking powder (12g)
- 1/2 tsp baking soda (3g) or sub 3/4 tsp more baking powder
- pinch of salt
- 1 1/4 cup non-dairy milk (300ml)
- 2/3 cup neutral oil (160ml) such as rapeseed or sunflower oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 lemon juice or 1-2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- zest of 1/2 organic orange or lemon optional
For the chocolate cake
- 3 tbsp cocoa powder
- 4-5 tbsp non-dairy milk
For the Chocolate Frosting
- 100 g Vegan dark Chocolate chopped
- 3 tbsp non-dairy milk
Topping (optional)
- Walnuts or other nuts
Instructions
Marble Cake
- Preheat oven to 355˚F (180˚C). Grease a 9.5x4-inch (25x11cm) loaf pan and dust with flour. (The pan could be also a little bit smaller, such as 9“).
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, soy flour (if using), sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Add to the well the non-dairy milk, oil, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and orange zest. Stir together just until combined.
- In a second large bowl, add half of the batter. Add the cocoa and about 5 tablespoons non-dairy milk. Stir well to mix.
Assemble the Cake (check the step-by-step tutorial in the text above)
- To create a swirly marbled zebra look*, use a separate tablespoon for each batter, and start to spoon 1 large spoonful of the vanilla batter into the center of the loaf pan. Then, spoon 1 large spoonful of the chocolate batter into the center of the vanilla batter you just placed in the pan. Continue alternating the batters on top of each other until both of the batters are used up. (The batter will spread out on its own and a marbled pattern will begin to form. It helps when you give the pan a shake every now and then to level the batter).
- Bake the cake for about 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of the cake comes out almost clean.
- Allow the cake to cool slightly in the pan, about 1 hour, then transfer it to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
Chocolate Frosting
- Slowly, melt the chocolate over a water bath, stirring occasionally. Once it’s melted, add a bit of non-dairy milk, stirring to combine until smooth and creamy.
- Pour the chocolate cream over your cooled cake, spreading out evenly.
- Decorate with chopped walnuts or other nuts and toppings of choice.
- Slice it up and enjoy!
Notes
- To make this cake GLUTEN-FREE, you can use a gluten-free flour blend.
- Soy flour is not necessary in this cake, however, I recommend using it if you have it at home.
- To make this cake reduced in sugar you can use a sugar substitute or coconut sugar.
- If you don’t have enough patience to create a zebra look that way, you could also simply pour the vanilla batter into the pan, followed by the chocolate batter. Then gently swirl through the batters, using a butter knife or small flat spatula to make a marble effect.
- Please read the text if you want to use another baking pan, such as a round pan or bundt cake pan.
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Habe das Rezept mit glutenfreiem Mehl gebacken (Schär Mix C). Es hat sehr gut geklappt und auch geschmeckt, war nur wegen des Mehls ein wenig trocken. Nächstes Mal probiere ich es wieder mit normalem Mehl oder füge evtl. ein bisschen Apfelmus hinzu, damit es noch saftiger wird.
Aber die Optik war top, sogar meine Oma hat gesagt der Kuchen sah aus wie fertig gekauft. 😀
Es freut mich, dass es dir auch glutenfrei gut gelungen ist und geschmeckt hat! Gerne kannst du mehr Apfelmus dazugeben oder einfach 1 pürierte Banane. Der Kommentar von deiner Oma ist echt klasse! 😃
Vielen Dank für dein Feedback! ❤️
Liebe Grüße, Bianca 😊
Can I use stevia sweetener (drops) instead of sugar?
Yes, you can try that!
I made this cake a few days ago and it was SO GOOD and super easy to make! I was a bit doubtful because I always have bad luck “veganizing” my baking, but this recipe was perfect. It came out moist and not crumbly, the flavor was perfect, and the cake did not drop flat in the middle like many of my vegan cakes do. My partner thought it was store-bought! I did not use the soy flour because I didn’t have any, and I baked for only 45 minutes. I also used raw cacao powder, not cocoa powder. I have to admit, I did cut a piece while it was still hot and it fell apart, but once you let it cool (like you’re supposed to!) you can slice it without any problems. Bianca, I’ve been following you for a long time and I love your recipes- I wish I had the time to make them all. Thank you for making vegan food so appetizing and beautiful 🙂
Hi Agata, so glad you love this zebra cake and my other recipes! Thank you so much for your amazing feedback!Lots of love and hugs to you! 🙂
Made this cake today. Yummy, really delicious!
However, the cake is very crumbly (I can’t get nice slices of it). No idea what I did wrong.
Hi Wendy, did you cool the cake completely? A freshly baked cake is usually very soft and fluffy… If it’s too dry, you might have overbaked it…
I absolutely love this recipe!!! The cake was so moist and I used a mixture of dark chocolate and vegan chocolate chunks to make the frosting and it was phenomenal! My cake turned out exactly like the photos, I’m so happy! Your recipes are always pretty and delicious thank you so much! I used orange juice instead of lemon juice and salted cashews instead of walnuts. It was still Perfect.
So glad you love my recipes so much! Thank you for your amazing feedback! 🙂
So Delicious, kisses from Brazil 🙂 Thank you for recipe
Thank you ! 🙂
I loved this recipe and the pouring part felt like making a piece of art.
Thank you so much! 🙂
It looks so good😍 just one question, can I replace corn starch with tapioca starch?
Yes, sure! 🙂
Hi, can I replace the cornstarch with a potato starch?
Yes, sure! 🙂
Haven’t tried yet but looks great. Made in a bunds pan but didn’t change quantities so hope still delicious. Recipe was very helpful though. If serving in a few days what is best way to store? Is freezing it okay? Thanksc
You can wrap it in foil and store airtight in the fridge for up to 4-5 days or freezer for up to 2 months.
Made this cake for a family gathering and it was so good! Thank you for sharing your recipe!
Thank you so much for your lovely feedback! So happy that you enjoyed this zebra cake! 🙂
This is a simple yet beautiful cake. Everyone enjoyed it and I’ll be sure to make it again soon!
Thank you so much for your lovely feedback! So glad that you enjoyed this zebra cake! Lots of love, Bianca <3
Hello can I use bob’s red mill gluten free 1-to-1 baking flour for gluten free flour?
Yes, sure! 🙂
OMG! I just tried this recipe! This is fantastic thank you so much for sharing. Can’t wait to try the apple pie recipe!
Hi Cinthya, so glad you enjoyed it! Thank you! Have fun trying the apple pie! Lots of love, Bianca 🙂
This cake looks amazing! I only have a 4×12 inch loaf pan- would that work? Or a 6×6 square pan?.. those are my options, can you tell me which is better? Thanks!
Hi Maddy, I guess the 4×12-inch pan will be a bit too large so the cake won’t be as high. Also, take a not that you may reduce the baking time slightly because a flatter cake is done sooner. I suggest testing with a skewer after about 35-40 minutes. Unfortunately, I haven’t tried the recipe in a square pan yet but feel free to do that 🙂 Let me know how it turned out for you! Kind regards, Bianca
Thank you so much for this accurate recipe. I used GF and it was very delicious (well I am told so 🙈 The last piece I was going for was gotten by someone else when I was kind enough to ask if he would like it 😂) and someone also asked for the recipe. Definitely a winner and I will be making this next week again since I have the ingredients and my husband also missed out on it 🙈 I will be doing your recipes from now on!
So glad you liked this recipe! 😀 Thank you for your feedback and the recommendation 🙂
Can i use vanilla custurd instead of cornstarch ?
Yes, sure! It’s actually pretty the same 🙂
Lovely and easy. Thanks
So glad that you liked it too 🙂 Thank you!
Amazing recipie!! Quick easy good looking and delicious
Thank you so much!
This was really lovely. I added a small amount of chopped orange peel and rose petals to the top and it was beautiful. I think I may cut it in half next time (I used a springform and it was about5-6” tall) and put cherry preserves in btwn.
Or maybe add a tiny bit of orange extract to the batter.
Thank you!! We called it the, skunk, zebra, orca, penguin cake 😊
Hi Crystine, so glad you enjoyed this zebra cake! I totally love how you call it, haha! 😀 Thank you for your amazing feedback! Lots of love, Bianca 🙂
I just tried this recipe and really it’s the best vegan cake i tried ever!!! Fluffy,moist and delicious thanks for auch recipes
So happy about that! Thank you so much! 🙂 <3
I made the zebra cake in two 9 inch circle tins for a non vegan friend. She couldn’t believe it was a vegan cake. She loved it !
So glad to hear that you could also impress your friend with this cake! Thank you so much! ?
Amazing!
Thank you! <3
I made this cake today. I absoluty love it!!
So glad that you liked it ? Thank you!
This cake is absolutely amazing ! I love the texture and the taste ! This is the best vegan cake I’ve tried 🙂
Thank you so much! So happy about that! 🙂
I made this cake and AHHH, it was delicious! Me, my family and my friends ate all in 1 hour??