Chocolate orange Battenberg cake - this delicious twist on the classic British cake is vegan, eggless and dairy free.
Light chocolate and orange flavoured almond sponge cakes are arranged in a chequered pattern and wrapped in marzipan; it is easier to make than you might think! Step by step photos included.
Battenberg is one of my favourite cakes and my classic vegan Battenberg recipe is pretty popular, so I thought that I would make a chocolate orange variation!
Chocolate, orange and almond flavours go together so well, I think that this flavour combination might be even better than the original! The cakes are light and moist, and are made from just one batter. Paired with marmalade and chocolate marzipan this cake is heavenly!
It is a great cake for Easter, but would be good for any occasion. It may look like it is complicated to make but it is actually pretty straightforward and you don't need any special equipment. Just a 20 cm / 8 in square cake tin, some baking parchment and tin foil.
What Is Battenberg Cake?:
Battenberg (or Battenburg) is a classic British cake consisting of a light, almond flavoured sponge coloured pink and yellow, arranged in a chequered pattern and wrapped in marzipan.
Early Battenberg cakes had nine squares but modern ones have a simpler four. Probably because it was easier to mass produce.
It's origins are somewhat contested, though the commonly held belief is that the first Battenberg cake was baked in 1884 to celebrate Prince Louis of Battenberg marrying Princess Victoria, Queen Victoria's granddaughter and Prince Philip's grandmother. There is little documentary evidence to back up this claim however.
What Do I Need To Make Chocolate Orange Battenberg Cake?:
Self-raising flour plus baking powder: When testing this cake the best texture came from using self-raising flour with a bit of extra baking powder. I don't recommend swapping this for anything else.
Ground almonds: As per my original Battenberg recipe, the cake includes ground almonds. They help to give it a great texture and flavour so don't omit them.
Sugar: Caster or granulated is best here.
Vegan butter: Using a melted block vegan butter rather than oil for the cake helps to give it a slightly sturdier texture which is easier to trim and stack.
Milk: Any kind of unsweetened non-dairy milk will work, I like soy best.
Orange and vanilla extracts: Adding some orange extract as well as orange zest will give you a better flavour. Do not be tempted to add orange juice instead, the acid will change the texture of the cake and could cause it to fail.
Orange zest: Try and get unwaxed oranges, the wax used is often not vegan and probably isn't good to eat.
Cocoa powder: Dutch processed cocoa powder is best (just regular cocoa powder to those of you in the UK).
Marmalade: Marmalade is used to stick everything together and add more orange flavour. Shreddless marmalade is best if you can get it.
Marzipan: I mix some cocoa powder into marzipan to wrap the cake in though you don't have to add the cocoa powder if you don't want to. Most supermarket marzipan is vegan friendly but check the packet just in case as rarely it may contain egg.
How To Make Chocolate Orange Battenberg Cake:
(Full measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page)
Grease a 20 cm/ 8 in square cake tin.
Cut a piece of baking parchment about twice as wide as the tin - 20x40cm. Fold it in half widthways then push up the centre fold to make a pleat at least as high as the tin.
Fold a piece of tin foil over several times into a thick piece the same width as the tin and height as the pleat. Place it inside the pleat and then use this to line the tin, making sure that the pleat runs down the centre, dividing the tin into two smaller ones.
Place the self-raising flour, caster sugar, ground almonds, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine.
Add the melted butter, milk and vanilla extract and stir to form a smooth batter.
Using a scale for accuracy, pour half of the batter into a separate bowl and stir in the orange zest and extract.
In another bowl, mix together the cocoa powder and boiling water to form a paste. Add the other half of the batter and fold in the cocoa mixture.
Scrape the chocolate batter into one half of the tin, and the orange batter into the other half. Spread them level then bake for 30-35 minutes.
How To Assemble The Battenberg:
Once the cakes are completely cold, trim the tops of them so that they are flat, they should be exactly the same height.
Place one cake on top of the other and trim the long edges to neaten them.
Slice the cakes in half lengthways so you have two long strips of each colour.
Spread a thin layer of marmalade over the long side of one of the strips and stick a strip of the opposite colour to it.
Spread a thin layer of marmalade over the top of both of those strips and stick the remaining strips on top, spreading more marmalade in between the two, to form a chequered pattern.
Dust a surface with icing sugar or cocoa powder and roll out the marzipan into a rectangle about 20x40cm. Trim one of the short edges to neaten it.
Spread the top of the cake with marmalade then place it, marmalade side down, against the trimmed short edge. Spread marmalade over the rest of the cake.
Carefully roll the cake up in the marzipan so that it is fully encased.
Trim the excess so that it overlaps about halfway across the cake.
Brush it with a little bit of water and gently press it down to seal. Flip the cake so that the join is on the bottom.
Use a sharp knife to slice a piece off either end to neaten the cake and reveal the pattern. If you like you can gently score lines on the top of the cake with a knife to make a crisscross pattern.
Top Tips:
For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
Take time lining your tin to make sure that it is exactly divided in half.
To make sure that your cakes are exactly the same you should weigh the batter with a scale when you divide it in half. To do this I weigh the bowl before I add any of the ingredients and make a note of this number. Once you have finished making the batter, weigh the bowl again (this time with the batter in it). Take the weight of the full bowl and subtract the weight of the empty one, this gives you the weight of your batter. Divide that number in half and that tells you how much batter to weigh out into a separate bowl.
The cakes should be completely cold before you cut them otherwise they will be difficult to slice and you might not be able to get them neat. If you like you can bake the cakes the day before assembling and store them in an airtight container overnight.
To get perfect squares of cake you will need to use a ruler or tape measure. Start by making sure that both of the cakes are level and exactly the same height. Measure how high the cakes are, mine were 4cm. Trim the long edges so that the cakes are twice as wide as they are high, so 8cm in my case. Then slice them in half lengthways so that you end up with four long rectangles that are 4cm wide and 4cm high (depending on your initial height measurement).
If the marmalade is too thick to spread, warm it up for a few seconds in the microwave until it is runny. Shreddless marmalade is best, or you can press the warmed marmalade through a sieve to remove the shreds.
I add cocoa powder to the marzipan but this is optional.
How To Store Chocolate Orange Battenberg Cake:
This vegan Battenberg cake is best eaten within a day or two but it will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. It may become a little bit sticky after a day or so.
It does not need to be kept in the fridge unless it is very hot out.
Can I Freeze It?:
Yes. Wrap it well to prevent freezer burn and freeze for up to 1 month. Allow to defrost at room temperature.
The marzipan may become a little sticky upon defrosting so I don't recommend making and freezing the cake in advance of serving it; just freeze any leftovers you may have.
More Classic British Cakes:
- Coffee and walnut cake
- Vegan golden syrup cake
- Vegan angel cake
- Vegan jam and coconut sponge
- Vegan Earl grey tea loaf
- Vegan ginger loaf cake
- Vegan lemon drizzle cake
- Vegan malt loaf
If you tried this recipe let me know how it went! Rate it, leave a comment or tag @domestic_gothess on Instagram and hashtag it #domesticgothess
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Chocolate Orange Battenberg Cake (Vegan)
Ingredients
Cake:
- 275 g (2 ¼ cups) self raising flour
- 220 g (1 cup) caster (superfine) sugar
- 80 g (⅔ cup) ground almonds
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- pinch salt
- 180 g (¾ cup) vegan block butter/margarine (I use Naturli Vegan Block or Flora plant butter) melted
- 200 ml (½ + ⅓ cup) unsweetened non-dairy milk (I use soy) room temperature
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon orange extract
- finely grated zest of 1 large orange
- 25 g (2 ½ Tablespoons) cocoa powder
- 2 ½ Tablespoons boiling water
To Assemble:
- shredless marmalade
- 500 g (17 ½ oz) marzipan
- 25 g (2 ½ Tablespoons) cocoa powder (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan/350°F/gas mark 4. Grease a 20 cm/ 8 in square cake tin.
- Cut a piece of baking parchment about twice as wide as the tin - 20x40cm. Fold it in half widthways then push up the centre fold to make a pleat at least as high as the tin. Fold a piece of tin foil over several times into a thick piece the same width as the tin and height as the pleat. Place it inside the pleat and then use this to line the tin, making sure that the pleat runs down the centre, dividing the tin into two smaller ones. Leave a bit of parchment overhanging on either side of the tin to make it easier to remove the cakes from the tin later. If your tin isn't non-stick then you will also need to line the other two sides with strips of baking parchment. (See post above for step-by-step photos).
- Place the self-raising flour, caster sugar, ground almonds, baking powder and salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine.
- Add the melted butter, milk and vanilla extract and stir to form a smooth batter.
- Using a scale for accuracy, pour half of the batter into a separate bowl and stir in the orange zest and extract.
- In another bowl, mix together the cocoa powder and boiling water to form a paste. Add the other half of the batter and stir in the cocoa mixture.
- Scrape the chocolate batter into one half of the tin, and the orange batter into the other half. Spread them level then bake for 30-35 minutes until a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- Leave the cakes to cool in the tin for 20 minutes then carefully lift them out onto a wire rack using the overhanging sides and the centre pleat. It really helps to have a second person to help you do this as the cakes are delicate when warm. Peel off the parchment and leave them on the wire rack to cool completely.
- Once the cakes are completely cold, trim the tops of them to level if necessary, they should be exactly the same height.
- Place one cake on top of the other and trim the long edges to neaten them. If you want perfect squares then use a tape measure - the cakes should be twice as wide as they are high. Mine were 4cm high so I trimmed them to be 8cm wide.
- Slice the cakes in half lengthways so you have two long strips of each colour.
- Gently warm up about half a jar of marmalade until it is spreadable.
- Spread a thin layer of marmalade over the long side of one of the strips and stick a strip of the opposite colour to it.
- Spread a thin layer of marmalade over the top of both of those strips and stick the remaining strips on top, spreading more marmalade in between the two, to form a chequered pattern - chocolate above orange and orange above chocolate.
- If you want chocolate marzipan, sprinkle the cocoa powder over the marzipan and knead it in until it is fully combined. Add a drop of water as needed if it is too dry.
- Dust a surface with icing sugar or cocoa powder and roll out the marzipan into a rectangle about 20x40cm. Trim one of the short edges to neaten it.
- Spread the top of the cake with marmalade then place it, marmalade side down, against the trimmed short edge. Spread marmalade over the rest of the cake (except the short ends).
- Carefully roll the cake up in the marzipan so that it is fully encased.
- Trim the excess so that it overlaps about halfway across the cake. Brush it with a little bit of water and gently press it down to seal. Flip the cake so that the join is on the bottom.
- Use a sharp knife to slice a piece off either end to neaten the cake and reveal the pattern. If you like you can gently score lines on the top of the cake with a knife to make a crisscross pattern.
Notes
- See post above for tips, details and step-by-step photos.
- For the best results make sure that you follow the recipe closely. As always, I highly recommend using the gram measurements (with a digital scale), rather than the cup conversions. Cup measurements are simply not accurate enough for baking and I cannot guarantee the best results if you use them.
- To make sure that your cakes are exactly the same you should weigh the batter with a scale when you divide it in half. To do this I weigh the bowl before I add any of the ingredients and make a note of this number. Once you have finished making the batter, weigh the bowl again (this time with the batter in it). Take the weight of the full bowl and subtract the weight of the empty one, this gives you the weight of your batter. Divide that number in half and that tells you how much batter to weigh out into a separate bowl.
- The cakes should be completely cold before you cut them otherwise they will be difficult to slice and you might not be able to get them neat. If you like you can bake the cakes the day before assembling and store them in an airtight container overnight.
Liz
I love trying your recipes as I know they're going to work and this was no exception. It tastes lovely and is nice and moist. What's not to love about a cake wrapped in marzipan
Dees
This looks marvellous and I would like to give it a try. But both my husband and I are allergic to nuts, so ground almonds are not an option. Do you have any suggestions? I have not tried any recipe using almond flour yet and have been pondering for ages now if ground sunflower seeds would work. Or maybe some cornflour (not the starchy kind, bit the kind that resembles grits; semolina?)
I’d appreciate your ideas.
Hannah
Hi Dees, I haven't tested this cake without the almonds and have never tried baking with ground sunflower seeds so no idea how they would work I'm afraid! You could try using 60g of semolina or plain flour in place of the almonds; it won't have the same texture but should turn out ok.
Rachael
I didn’t think Battenberg could taste any better until I tried this! So delicious!! Any tips on making the chocolate marzipan? I tried just kneading it in and added a drop of water but it rolled off. I then tried making the cocoa powder into a paste to see if that helped. I ended up gently warming the marzipan and using my stand mixer to knead the paste into it. Very messy overall though!
Hannah
Hi Rachael, so glad you enjoyed it! Unfortunately it is just a bit of a messy process. It won't initially want to combine but you just have to keep kneading and it will eventually get there!