Marmorkuchen for Lucy (Marble Cake)

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Things have been pretty quiet again here, which is partly because I've been away and have just got back from a four day study trip, taking our students to Berlin. It was very cold and pretty tiring, but well worth it. Even though I am German I had never before been to Berlin, but now that I have I definitely want to return again.

It's a fantastic place with so much going on and so much history to it. We just didn't have anywhere near enough time to do all the things we wanted to do and see all the things we wanted to see, despite our days being absolutely packed.

My friend J. and I stole an hour or two away from everybody else and visited the delicatessen floor in the famous KaDeWe, which is one of Europe's largest department store, second only to Harrod's in London.



Well, if you are a foodie and find yourself in Berlin I can only urge you to go. They sell regional foods from all over Germany and of course imported foods from all over the world. As can be expected it is pricey and some of the things can easily be found in a normal German supermarket for quite a bit less, but a place that sells Norwegian Brunost (Brown Cheese) has to be good in my books. The meat, fish, cheese and bread counters are unbelievable and the same can be said for the selection of coffees, teas, spices, chocolates and alcohol.



Well, now that I have finally caught up on some much needed sleep, I've been baking cake. My friend Lucy is leaving for a month' artist residency in the Shetland Islands tomorrow and her housemates have arranged a little tea party so we can all say our farewells. As I am still in a somewhat German mode I thought I'll bake Marmorkuchen or Marble Cake, because even though it probably isn't exclusively or typically German, it still is the first cake that I ever made by myself as a teenager and it is very popular over there. The recipe is from what is probably the best selling baking book in Germany, Dr. Oetker's Backen Macht Freude (link to the English version) and works every time.



Marmorkuchen (Marbel Cake)

250gr butter or margarine
250gr caster sugar
1 sachet vanilla sugar (or a splash of vanilla essence)
3-4 eggs
a pinch of salt
1 vial of rum-aroma (I can't get this here in the UK and just left it out)
500gr flour
2 tsp baking powder
about 125ml milk
30gr cocoa powder
25gr sugar
2-3 tbsp milk

Preheat oven to 180C/ Gas 4/ 350F.

Using and electric whisk or a food processor, whisk the butter until frothy.

Add the sugar, vanilla sugar (essence), eggs and rum aroma (if using) little by little.

Start adding the flour and milk alternately and continue to mix. Only use enough milk to make a dough that drops of a spoon heavily.

Spoon 2/3 of the dough into a greased and floured Kugelhopf or loaf pan. (You could also use an angel cake pan or a springform pan with a fluted tube insert.)

Add the cocoa powder and sugar to the remaining doug and mix until well combined. Add enough milk to once again achieve a dough that heavily drops of a spoon.

Spoon the dark dough over the light dough. Using a fork, marble the two doughs, by spirally dragging it through both.

Bale for 50-65 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a wooden skwere into the middle. If it comes out clean the cake is done, if there is still dough sticking to the skewer it needs a little longer.

Leave to rest for 5-10 minutes, before carefully turning out onto a cake rack to cool completely.

Dust with icing sugar, before serving.