Zebra Cake, Using Two Half Boxes of Mix

Last month, I wrote up "Zebra Cake, Using Marble Cake Mix", which differs from this zebra cake only slightly. While the marble cake method has the convenience of using one box of cake mix (marble), the two-half-box method provides flexibility in varying flavors and brands. Try different varieties of chocolate (fudgy, devil's food, …) and lighter color cake (white, yellow, vanilla).
My pixstrip shows the following image areas:

1. ingredients
2. equipment
3. preparing pans (spray oil with parchment paper)
4. separate bowls for chocolate and white cake mixes
5. mixing of wet ingredients
6. mixing of white cake batter
7. mixing of chocolate cake batter
8. start of dispensing of batters into the pans, alternating colors
9. batters in pans, kitchen scale
10. baked cakes
11. parchment paper removal
12. frosted cake with slice showing zebra effect

Ingredients

• 1/2 box chocolatey cake mix (I used Duncan Hines Devil's Food.)
• 1/2 box lighter color cake mix (I used Duncan Hines Classic White.)
• 2 egg yolks
• 3 egg whites
• 3/8 C cooking oil
• 1 1/8 C water
• spray oil
• frosting of your choice (I used mocha frosting. Scroll down for EZ instructions.)

Implements

• electric mixer
• 3 mixing bowls, 1 for mixing wet ingredients, the other two for mixing the batters
• 2 round cake pans
• cooling rack(s)
• measuring cups
• rubber spatula(s)
• 2 1/4-cup measuring cups for dispensing different color batters
• measuring cup or pitcher that holds more than two cups

Additional (straggler) items

• parchment paper as desired
• knife for spreading frosting
• cake plate

Instructions (Have the cake mix box handy! And watch the YouTube video for more details.)

1. Prepare baking pans. (I used parchment paper and cooking spray.)
2. Pour the cake powders into separate bowls.
3. In the third mixing bowl, mix the wet ingredients together, then measure. (Mine measured about 2 cups.)
4. Pour half of the liquid into the lighter color cake powder, then mix (about 30 seconds on low, then 2 minutes on medium).
5. Preheat the oven (350°).
6. Pour the other half of the liquid into the chocolatey cake powder, then mix (about 30 seconds on low, then 2 minutes on medium).
7. Use the two 1/4 C measuring cups to alternate pouring light and dark batters into the two pans. (Afterward, if desired, weigh the two filled pans to confirm the amounts are close to equal. Adjust as desired.)
8. Bake for about 24 minutes. YMMV
9. Test cake(s) for doneness with toothpick.
10. Remove the pans of cake and place on cooling rack(s) for about 15 minutes for cooling.
11. Decorate as fancy as you wish. Conventional, not-too-fussy decorating is as follows:
    1. Place one layer upside down on a plate and decorate the exposed side
    2. Place the other layer right side up on the first layer.
    3. Frost the sides.
    4. Frost the top.

Mocha frosting:
o 1/2 can white frosting
o 1/2 can choco frosting
o 2 tsp instant coffee dissolved in 1 tsp just-boiled water or just-brewed coffee

If necessary, microwave the frostings a few seconds for stirrability, then stir all ingredients together.

Post-recipe Thoughts
This two-half-box method for zebra cake yielded only slightly less batter than the marble-cake method, but final cakes looked and tasted similar. (I'm not a pro.) For the marble-cake method, the wet ingredients were 3 eggs, 1 cup water, and 1/3 cup oil; baking time was two minutes shorter. Anyway, for future zebra cakes, I need to improve my aim in pouring batters in concentric circles.

Zebra Cake, Using Marble Cake Mix

I'd been intrigued by a cute Duff zebra cake mix. (Love those stripes!) But it was so much more expensive than household names like Betty Crocker, Duncan Hines, and Pillsbury. In googling"zebra cake", I found a wealth of resources—especially how to create the stripey effect.

A particularly easy, non-Duff way to make a yummy zebra cake with using only one box of mix is getting marble cake mix. My store carried marble cake mix from only Duncan Hines. Surprisingly, Pillabury and Betty Crocker seem to have ceded the marble cake market to Duncan Hines, as googling those mix products indicates.

My pixstrip shows the following image areas:

1. ingredients
2. equipment
3. prepared pans (spray oil with parchment paper)
4. mixed cake batter, pre-cocoa powder
5. scooping of 2 C batter into another bowl
6. mixing of chocolate cake batter
7. dispensing of batters into the pans, alternating colors
8. baked cakes
9. parchment paper removal
10. frosted cake
11. frosted cake with slice showing zebra effect

Ingredients

• 1 box marble cake mix
• ingredients for recipe, using the box info for guide
  • eggs
  • cooking oil
  • water
• spray oil
• frosting of your choice

Implements

• mixing bowls
• measuring cups for oil and water
• 1/4 C measuring cups for dispensing different color batters
• rubber spatula(s)
• electric mixer
• 2 round cake pans
• cooling rack(s)

Additional (straggler) items

• parchment paper as desired
• knife for spreading frosting
• cake plate

Instructions (Have the cake mix box handy! And watch the YouTube video for more details.)

1. Preheat the oven (350°).
2. Prepare baking pans. (I used parchment paper and cooking spray.)
3. Prepare the batter as instructed on the box, up till blending in the cocoa powder. (I mixed wet ingredients, then mixed in the cake mix powder.)
4. Pour 2 C of the batter into a smaller bowl.
5. In the bowl of remaining batter, pour the cocoa powder and blend together.
6. Use the two 1/4 C measuring cups to alternate pouring light and dark batters into the two pans. (Afterward, if desired, weigh the two filled pans to confirm the amounts are close to equal. Adjust as desired.)
7. Bake for about 22 minutes. YMMV
8. Test cake(s) for doneness with toothpick.
9. Remove the pans of cake and place on cooling rack(s) for about 15 minutes for cooling.
10. Decorate as fancy as you wish. Conventional, not-too-fussy decorating is as follows:
    1. Place one layer upside down on a plate and decorate the exposed side
    2. Place the other layer right side up on the first layer.
    3. Frost the sides.
    4. Frost the top.

Post-recipe Thoughts
Seems I wound up with slightly more chocolatey batter than white batter. Maybe next time I'd set aside slightly more of the lighter color cake batter. Maybe the cocoa powder wound up adding more bulk to the chocolate batter than I anticipated.

November 19, 2016: Visit "Zebra Cake, Using Two Half Boxes of Mix" for another zebra cake methodology. It requires only slightly more effort, but has a lot more flexibility for flavors and brands.