Chocolate Marble Squares Cake Recipe

This Chocolate Marble Squares Cake recipe is a delicious favorite! Chocolate and yellow cake with homemade caramel icing make the most amazing marble cake!

This family favorite Chocolate Marble Squares Cake is a special treat that Mama made with my sister and me when we were young. It’s a super delicious cake made with swirls of chocolate and yellow cake and topped with an amazing homemade caramel icing. It is served in squares, so we have always called this Chocolate Marble Squares, but it is seriously one of the best marble cakes ever! The cake is moist and delicious, but that creamy caramel icing takes it over the top!

Chocolate Marble Squares Cake Recipe

As I’ve mentioned many times, I loved cooking alongside my Mama or my grandmother as I was growing up. It’s how my sister and I both learned to cook. Since there are a few steps to making this marble cake, this was a perfect dessert for Mama to let us help her make.

Since my sister was a little older than me, she was able to use the mixer to cream together the butter and sugar and then later, Mama would add in the eggs one at a time. I would impatiently shift from one foot to another waiting for my turn to have a hand at making these delicious bites of heaven.

Mama would let me help her prepare the pan for baking and let me combine the melted chocolate with part of the cake batter. I loved thinking that I got to give this dessert it’s signature swirl. She would guide my hand as I pulled the butter knife through the chocolate and yellow cake to create the marbling or swirls you expect from these chocolate marble squares.

I have such fond memories of making these marble cake squares. I hope you enjoy this as much as my family always does.

Here’s how to make them.

How to Make Chocolate Marble Squares Cake

Begin by preheating the oven to 350º F. Then prepare a 9×13 baking pan with nonstick baking spray or by lightly buttering and flouring.

Next, with an electric mixer, cream together butter, sugar, and vanilla until creamy and smooth. Then add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour and salt and mix well. Then stir in nuts, if you are including them.

Divide the batter in half into two separate medium sized bowls. Add the cooled chocolate to one bowl and stir until well combined.

Pour the yellow cake mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread evenly with an offset spatula. Then drop dollops of the chocolate mixture alternately across the yellow cake mixture. Lightly and gently run a knife through the batter to marbleize. Be sure you don’t completely mix the two together, just lightly swirl with the knife to make a marbled look.

Then bake for 40-45 minutes until done. Remove cake from oven and allow to cool completely. You can follow my tips for how to tell when your cake is done.

Next, it’s time to top the cooled cake with caramel icing. This icing is absolutely amazing on these marble squares. You can  use my recipe for Southern Caramel Icing or use your favorite caramel icing.

Let the icing set a bit, then cut into squares, serve and enjoy. It’s scrumptious!

Mama shared this favorite recipe with me so that Sam and I could enjoy making it together when he was young too.

Let’s just say the famous foot shift exercise still works wonders for being asked to help make this delicious dish!

Here’s how I make Mama’s chocolate marble squares cake. I hope you enjoy it as much as my family does!

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Chocolate Marble Squares

Robyn Stone

5 from 3 votes

This Chocolate Marble Squares cake recipe makes a delicious cake recipe of marbled chocolate and yellow cake topped with homemade caramel icing!

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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour

Servings: 20

Ingredients

• ▢ 1 cup (226 g) butter, softened
• ▢ 2 cups (240 g) all-purpose flour
• ▢ 2 teaspoons (9.4 g) vanilla extract
• ▢ 2 cups (396 g) granulated sugar
• ▢ 4 (200 g) eggs
• ▢ 1/2 teaspoon (1.3 g) kosher salt
• ▢ 1 cup (114 g) chopped pecans, optional
• ▢ 2 ounces (56 g) unsweetened chocolate, melted

Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350º F. Prepare 9×13 baking pan with nonstick baking spray or by lightly buttering and flouring.
• Cream together butter, sugar, and vanilla until creamy with an electric mixer. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add flour and salt, mix well. Stir in nuts, if included.
• Divide batter in half into two separate medium bowls. Add cooled chocolate to one bowl and stir until well combined.
• Pour yellow cake mixture into the prepared baking dish and spread evenly with an offset spatula. Add dollops of chocolate mixture alternately across yellow mixture. Run knife through batter to marbleize. Bake 40-45 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool completely.
• Add Southern Caramel Icing or your favorite caramel icing.

Nutrition

Calories: 269kcal | Carbohydrates: 31g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 16g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 5g | Trans Fat: 0.4g | Cholesterol: 57mg | Sodium: 145mg | Potassium: 75mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 20g | Vitamin A: 334IU | Vitamin C: 0.1mg | Calcium: 16mg | Iron: 1mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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This sheet cake is perfect for making when you have company coming by, are headed to a family reunion, or a fun family outing. I think it will quickly become one of your family’s favorite cakes, too.

Updated September 2019. Originally published June 2011.