Veganer Marmorkuchen (vegan marble cake)

Method

1. Stir the vinegar into the plant milk and set aside for 5 minutes.
2. Whisk the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together in one bowl.
3. Whisk the sugar, oil and vanilla into the soured milk, then fold in the dry ingredients just until combined.
4. Spoon about a third of the batter into a separate bowl. Stir in the cocoa powder and the extra 20 ml of plant milk until smooth.
5. Spoon the two batters into a lined loaf tin in alternating dollops, then drag a knife through the batter in a few wide loops to create a marbled pattern. Do not overmix; a few swirls is enough.
6. Bake at 175°C for 45 to 50 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs.
7. Cool in the tin for 15 minutes, then turn out onto a rack to cool completely before slicing.

Notes

• A few decisive swirls beat a lot of stirring. The goal is visible ribbons of plain and chocolate batter; drag the knife through too many times and the two colours blend into a uniform brown with no marbling left.
• The extra milk in the chocolate portion matters. Cocoa powder stiffens a batter noticeably; without loosening it, the chocolate portion bakes denser than the plain half and the two rise unevenly.
• The vinegar and baking soda together give this cake its lift, standing in for what eggs and baking powder alone would otherwise provide.
• It keeps for 4 days at room temperature, wrapped, and slices most cleanly once fully cool.

Ingredient substitutions

• Plant milk can be any variety; soy milk curdles most readily with vinegar for the closest result to a dairy buttermilk.
• Cocoa powder should be unsweetened; if using a Dutch-processed cocoa, the marbling colour will be darker but the flavour just as good.
• For a glazed finish, whisk 100 g icing sugar with 15 ml plant milk and drizzle over the cooled cake.
• A drop of almond extract alongside the vanilla is a traditional variation worth trying.