Recipe: Chocolate Marble Cake with Shiny Chocolate Glaze (tube cake using yellow cake mix)

CHOCOLATE MARBLE CAKE WITH SHINY CHOCOLATE GLAZE

"The trick to creating a marbled look in this chocolate cake is to gently drag the chocolate batter through the yellow batter with a knife until the batter is just swirled. I remember the fascination I had with marbled foods when I was just learning to cook; there was something artistic in combining two different batters just as they went into the oven. So swirl away with this easy cake. And if you're a fan of German chocolate, substitute it for the semisweet."

1 (18.25 ounce) package plain yellow cake mix
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup vegetable oil
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) butter, melted
4 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure almond extract
2 squares (1 ounce each) semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon milk
1 tablespoon water
Chocolate glaze (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly mist a 10-inch tube pan with vegetable oil spray, then dust with flour; shake out the excess flour.

Place the (dry) cake mix, sour cream, oil, melted butter, eggs and almond extract in a large mixing bowl. Blend with electric mixer on low speed 1 minute. Stop the machine and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. Increase the mixer speed to medium and beat 2 minutes more, scraping the sides down again if needed. The batter should look well blended.

Meanwhile, melt the semisweet chocolate with the milk and water in a small saucepan over medium heat, stirring often, until the chocolate is melted and smooth. Cool slightly.

Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing it out with the rubber spatula. Drop the chocolate mixture by spoonfuls over batter. Marble batter by swirling chocolate lightly through it with a knife.

Bake in preheated oven 40 to 45 minutes or until done. Remove from oven and let cool in pan 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the Shiny Chocolate Glaze.

Run sharp knife around edge of the cooled cake and invert onto a rack, then invert it again on a serving platter, so that it is right side up. While cake is still slightly warm, pour glaze over top of cake and let it drizzle down the sides. Allow the cake to cool completely, 30 minutes more, then serve.

Store this cake, covered in aluminum foil or plastic wrap, at room temperature for up to 1 week. Or freeze it, wrapped in foil, for up to 6 months. Thaw the cake overnight on the counter before serving.

CHOCOLATE GLAZE

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 cup heavy (whipping) cream
1 cup confectioner's sugar, sifted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

In small heavy saucepan over low heat, melt butter. Add cocoa powder and cream and stir until mixture thickens, 3 to 5 minutes. Do not boil. Remove pan from heat and stir in powdered sugar and vanilla. Spoon glaze over partially cooled cake. Reserve any leftover glaze for another use.

Makes 1 tube cake, 16 servings
Source: The Cake Mix Doctor Cookbook by Anne Bryn