Farida’s Azerbaijani Cookbook

This is just a beautiful cake. I baked it today and wanted to share the recipe with you. I like looking at Zebra cake more that eating even though it is incredibly delicious. By the way, the cake is not necessarily Azerbaijani - I would say it’s universal. And everybody adds his or her special touch to this wonderful recipe. Zebra Cake goes perfectly well with a cup of strong black tea. By the way Azerbaijanis are big on tea. It is the most popular drink in the country. We always drink our tea with something sweet, such a cube of sugar, preserve, sweets and cakes.

Looking at the picture you may think zebra patterns are difficult to make. Believe me, they are not. If you follow the recipe carefully you will get similar results, if not better. I experimented with 2 different recipes I had and the one I am posting turned out better that the other. Zebra Cake is easy and fun to make, it’s beautiful and just irresistibly delicious! My daughter loved it, and she insisted we should go to the zoo to see real zebras ASAP! That’s later. Here’s the cake. Enjoy!

Preparation time: 25 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Makes one 9-inch (23 cm) cake

INGREDIENTS

4 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup (8 oz / 250 g) granulated sugar
1 cup (8 fl oz / 250 ml) milk, at room temperature
1 cup (8 fl oz / 250 ml) oil (corn, vegetable or canola is fine)
1/3 teaspoon vanilla powder (optional)
2 cups (8 oz / 250 g) all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder (or 1/2 teaspoon soda)
4-5 tablespoons dark cocoa powder (dark zebra patterns won’t stand out with light cocoa powder. Add more if needed)

You’ll also need: mixing bowls, electric mixer or wire whisk, 9 inch (23 cm) non-stick round cake pan.

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine eggs and sugar. Using a hand-held electric mixer or wire whisk beat until the mixture is creamy and light in color

2. Add milk and oil, and continue beating until well blended.

3. Add vanilla powder and baking powder to the mixture. Gradually add flour and then beat until the batter is smooth and the dry ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.

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This is the consistency of the batter: neither very thick not too loose.

4. Divide the mixture into 2 equal portions. Keep one portion plain. Add cocoa powder into another and mix well. The color of the cocoa batter should be quite dark, so add more if needed.

5. Preheat the oven to 350˚F (180˚C).

6. Lightly grease the pan with oil. If you don’t have non-stick baking pan, grease whatever pan you have then line it with parchment paper (baking paper).

7. The most important part is assembling the cake batter in a baking pan. This is what you do. Scoop 3 heaped tablespoons of plain batter (you can also use a ladle that would hold 3 tablespoons) into the middle of the baking pan. Then scoop 3 tablespoons of cocoa batter and pour it in the center on top of the plain batter.

NOTE: Do not spread the batter or tilt the pan to distribute the mixture. It will spread by itself and fill the pan gradually. Continue alternating the batters until you finish them. The pictures below will guide you through.

This is how the cake will look before it goes into the oven.

8. Bake in the oven for about 40 minutes. Do not open the oven door at least the first 20 minutes or the cake will shrink and will not rise. To check if the cake is ready, insert a toothpick into the center. It should come out clean when ready. Remove from the oven. Immediately run a small thin knife around the inside of the pan to loosen the cake, then invert the cake onto a cooking rack. Turn the cake back over and let cool.

This is how my cake looked when I had just removed it from the oven.

Enjoy your Zebra Cake!

Nush Olsun!