Serves 10 to 12
I HAVE A SOFT SPOT FOR THIS CAKE FROM LOGAN LEVANT OF THE FORMER BUTTER-cake Bakery in Los Angeles. Her bakery inspired me to make baking a part of my career more than a decade ago. This recipe also made me go out and buy my very first Nordic Ware Bundt pan. Years later, I have a rather aggressive wall of vintage Bundt pans in all shapes and colors decorating my office, so maybe I should start telling my husband the pan hoarding is kind of Logan’s fault. At any rate, you really can’t go wrong with this unbelievably moist counter cake, and its classic combination of vanilla and chocolate swirls.
A few tips for success here: Don’t overswirl the batter; just a quick wave with a knife once or twice around the pan is all you need to create a beautiful marbled interior. As much as you’ll want to devour this cake ASAP after baking, give it a couple of hours to really cool and rest out of the pan before serving—the flavor and texture are well worth the wait. Don’t forget to flour the pan after spraying it with nonstick cooking spray; this cake likes to stick. But as a trade-off, this cake also stays extraordinarily moist for days on end, kept in a cake dome at room temperature.
2½ cups/500 g granulated sugar, divided
½ cup/64 g unsweetened cocoa powder*
½ cup/113 g hot water
¼ cup/84 g light corn syrup
2½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract, divided
1 cup/225 g unsalted butter, at room temperature, plus more for pan (optional)
Nonstick cooking spray for pan (optional)
2⅔ cups/340 g unbleached all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, plus more for pan
2 teaspoons baking powder
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup/225 g whole milk, at room temperature
1 cup/170 g semisweet chocolate chips
In a 1- to 1½-quart/1 to 1.4 L saucepan, whisk together ½ cup/100 g of the sugar and the cocoa powder, hot water, and corn syrup. Over high heat, bring to a simmer, whisking occasionally until smooth. Remove the pan from the heat. Whisk in ½ teaspoon of the vanilla. Set the chocolate syrup aside.
Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat it to 350°F/180°C. Butter or spray and lightly flour a 12- to 15-cup/2.8 to 3.6 L Bundt pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the butter and remaining 2 cups/400 g of sugar. Beat on medium-high speed until fluffy and lightened in color, about 3 minutes. Beat in the eggs, 1 at a time. Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl. Beat in the remaining 2 teaspoons of vanilla.
On low speed, stir in the flour mixture and milk in 5 alternating additions. Gently fold in the chocolate chips by hand.
Scoop a third of the batter into a medium bowl. Whisk in the chocolate syrup. Pour another third of the vanilla batter into the prepared Bundt pan. Pour the chocolate batter over the first layer. Finish by pouring the last of the vanilla batter over the top. With a knife, lightly swirl the batters together with a figure-eight motion, once or twice around the pan.
Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out mostly clean with a few moist crumbs, 60 to 70 minutes. Let cool the cake in the pan on a wire rack. Invert onto a serving platter. Store any leftovers in a cake dome at room temperature for 4 to 5 days.
*Either natural or Dutch-processed cocoa powder will work here.