Honey Cake
Ingredients
Honey cake
- 1 cup plain flour (Note 1)
- 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp cooking salt (kosher salt)
- 225g (1 cup) unsalted butter, at room temperature (Note 2)
- 2/3 cup honey
- 4 large eggs, at room temperature (Note 3)
- 3 tbsp milk, preferably full-fat, slightly warmed
- 1 pinch orange zest, optional (brings out honey flavour)
- 1/3 cup almond flakes
Honey syrup
- 2/3 cup honey
- 1/4 cup water
- 3/4 tsp lemon juice (recommended but optional)
Topping options for serving
- Vanilla ice cream, cream, lightly toasted almond flakes or slivered almonds
Instructions
- 1
Honey Cake - Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F (160°C fan).
- 2
Honey Cake - Prepare cake pan: Butter and line a 20cm/8" round pan or springform pan with baking paper (base and sides).
- 3
Honey Cake - Whisk Dry ingredients: Whisk together the flour, baking powder and salt in a small bowl.
- 4
Honey Cake - Cream butter and honey: In a separate bowl, cream the butter and honey for 3 minutes, scraping down the sides halfway, until smooth and fluffy. (Speed 7 handheld beater or stand mixer fitted with whisk attachment).
- 5
Honey Cake - Add eggs and flour – Add one egg, mix with a wooden spoon for 30 seconds until mostly incorporated into the batter (mixture will looked curdled). Then add in 1/4 of the flour and mix until the batter comes together. Repeat again – mixing in 1 egg, then a portion of flour – until you've used all the eggs.
- 6
Honey Cake - Milk and zest: Stir in the milk and orange zest, stir until the batter is almost completely smooth. The batter should be quite thick, but soft.
- 7
Honey Cake - Bake 45 min: Scrape batter into the prepared pan, smooth the surface and sprinkle with almonds. Bake for 45 minutes or until a knife inserted into the centre comes out clean.
- 8
Honey Cake - Cool 30 min: Remove cake from the oven. Cool for 30 minutes in the pan – don't skip this else the cake gets too dense when soaked with syrup.
- 9
Honey Cake - Honey Syrup: Meanwhile, make the syrup. Bring the honey and water to a gentle boil for 5 minutes over medium-low heat. Add the lemon juice and boil for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat, cool for 10 minutes then use per below.
- 10
Honey Cake - Poke and soak: Poke about 30 holes all across the surface using a skewer (between the almond flakes). Pour 1/4 of the warm Honey Syrup across the surface (if using a springform pan, put it on a plate in case it leaks). Once it mostly sinks in, repeat 3 more times, waiting between pours for the syrup to soak in. Then leave the cake to soak for 15 minutes.
- 11
Honey Cake - Serve: Serve warm. Remove the springform pan sides, or serve it straight out of the cake pan. I typically serve it plain. However Topping Options suggested above would never be turned away!
