It's once again that time of year, the time where we gorge ourselves on sweet things, and try our hardest to enter into a diabetic coma of honey, chocolate and sugar. Of course Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, celebrates more than just food. Rosh Hashanah is the creation of humankind in the world, the time when deeds of all humanity are reviewed and evaluated.
One of the more famous food traditions is the honey cake, second only perhaps to dipping apples in honey. Everyone has their own favorite, handed down many generations, borrowed from friends and family or found in the back of a dusty cookbook (or the dusty internet). I've found that our little recipe turns out beautiful, moist and compliment-worthy cakes - as promised, here it is.
שנה טובה ומתוקה - shana tova umetukah - may you all be inscribed and sealed for a sweet and happy new year. If you haven't found a High Holiday service yet, it's not too late thanks to the great folks at Chabad. Try Chabad's free service finder to find a service near you.
Honey Cake Recipe
2 cups honey (I use Jellybush or
Manuka)
3/4 cups vegetable oil
1 cup very strong coffee or
espresso, fresh (i.e. not chilled)
3 1/2 cups plain flour
3 eggs
1 teaspoon fresh chopped
cilantro/coriander (the extra color is great)
2 teaspoons ginger
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 teaspoons freshly grated
cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup extra honey (I use Manuka here as it's part of the glaze)
3 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons unsalted butter (or
margarine, if you want to make the cake parve)
Preheat the oven to 175 C, and use butter or margarine to
line the bottom of a large cake pan (I use two large loaf pans). Then, in a
small pan, add the oil, coffee, vanilla and honey and heat - do not allow the
mixture to boil - until it is thoroughly combined. You can then remove it from
the heat to cool, or add to the rest of the mixture straight away.
In a very large mixing bowl, blend together the flour,
ginger, nutmeg, cinnamon, cilantro, baking soda, baking powder and salt. Then,
in a medium-sized mixing bowl, add the eggs and sugar and beat with a mixer on
medium speed for five minutes or until the mixture has achieved a pale yellow
colour and thick consistency. Pour the honey mixture into the
egg mixture and blend until thoroughly combined. Add the egg and honey mixture
into the flour mixture, and blend until the batter is smooth.
Pour the batter into the cake pan/loaf tins and bake for 45 - 55 minutes, covering the pan with tin foil about 30 minutes in or when the top appears to brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, add the remaining honey, sugar and butter/margarine to a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Pour the glaze over the honey cake evenly and allow to harden - I usually poke little holes in the cake with a skewer so that the honey oozes down into the cake and hardens.
