Growing up, my mom always made marble cake.

I barely remember her making it, but I do remember eating it.

I really remember eating it when I look back at my chubby elementary school pictures. Especially the one where I wore a purple silk top under a paisley purple vest. Yes, I think vests were cool then, but they weren’t the kind of vests that are cool now.

And I’m still not cool enough to wear one of those cool vests today. Not to mention that I would blind everyone within 4 miles because of my pasty, translucent skin.


Around that same time, I also got a perm and overheard my mom tell someone I looked like Roseanne Barr with that hair. I was more mad at the time that I wasn’t even allowed to watch Roseanne. Who cared if my hair resembled hers? So what if it looked like I stuck my hand in an electric outlet? I just wanted to watch the trashy TV shows that I wasn’t supposed to watch.


I’m probably better off.

And I’m too much of a boring, old granny to watch shows like that these days. I’d rather lose brain cells on trashy reality TV. Because, you know, it’s. . . real.


Back to my marbled dessert.

Have you ever been flipping through the pages of a book and have a picture just jump out at you? It happens to me often, especially since I tend to ‘read’ books with large pictures and minimal print. I’m trying to expand my horizons.

Martha’s marble cupcakes were begging me to bake them, so I made them in mini cupcake form.

Because if they are mini, then you can eat more. Like, 6 more. Or 10. Whatever floats your boat.


The chocolate swirl is so fudgy.

I don’t love cake. I like it, but I don’t love it.

However, I find myself lusting after these cupcakes. Creamy vanilla cake and fudgy chocolate cake in one? Sign me up.

In fact, sign me up for about 16 batches, because that is how badly I want to eat them. Plus, I do everything in excess. Or so my dad, husband, brother and. . . basically every male in my life says.


You can’t resist this swirl.

The batter was enough to make me swoon.


I frosted a few with some basic buttercream frosting, and topped some others with a light dusting of powdered sugar. It was a race to first place, but the powdered sugar ones stole my heart.

The marble swirl seemed to be a mixture of fluffy cake and thick brownie – that is how fudge-like the chocolate portion is.


This cupcake is begging you to bake it.  You won’t regret it.


Mini Marble Cupcakes

from Martha Stewart

1 1/4 cups cake flour, sifted

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup milk

1/3 cup heavy cream

1 stick butter, softened

1 cup sugar

3 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/4 cup boiling water

Preheat oven to 350. Line muffin tins with paper liners.

Sift together flour, salt and baking power. Combine milk and cream.

In an electric mixer, cream butter and sugar until pale and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating until each is incorporated. Beat in vanilla. Add in flour mixture in 3 bathes, alternating with two additions of milk/cream mixture and beating until combined.

For chocolate batter, measure out 1 cup batter, and transfer to another bowl. Combine cocoa and boiling water into the bowl. Stir into 1 cup of reserved batter.

Fill cupcake tins with alternating spoonfuls of vanilla and chocolate batter, filling each 3/4 full. Run the tip of a knife through the batter in figure eight motions to make swirls. (I used a toothpick.)

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Cool completely.

When finished, dust with powdered sugar or top with frosting.



And. . . I’m off to fitbloggin‘!

Say a prayer for Mr. How Sweet. Let’s hope he survives the weekend alone.


He’s thinking of hangin’ out with Tiger, Charlie Sheen, and Jesse James. That is probably the best way to stay out of trouble.