Last week, Bernice enjoyed a lecture and tasting at her senior center about the amazing healing powers of eating local honey. When I heard this, I said get me some please! Today my mother brought me a beautiful little jar of this golden goodness which I immediately turned into a Jewish holiday classic — honey cake. I love this recipe! My baking mentor Susan Purdy included it in her high altitude classic Pie in the Sky, which I helped her test. This recipe, with very little modification, works at every altitude and you don't even need to use an electric mixer. What makes it so great is the inclusion of espresso powder, which gives it real depth and also adds a slight twist on the spices. I leave out the ginger (I'm allergic) and use cinnamon, nutmeg, mace and cardamom. Feel free to alter it to make it your own. Shanah Tovah! (Happy New Year!)
Ingredients
3/4 cup very hot water
1 tablespoon espresso powder
1 cup honey
1 cup sugar
3 eggs
3/4 cup canola oil
2 1/2 cups AP flour
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon mace
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
Procedure
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan with oil spray, line with parchment and spray again. In a large bowl, dissolve the espresso powder in the hot water and then stir in the honey until it is smooth. Next mix in the sugar, oil, and eggs using a whisk. In a separate large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and soda, salt and spices. Make a well in the center of the flour and add the liquids. Using your whisk, stir until smooth. The batter will be thin. Pour into prepared pan and set in the middle of the oven. Bake for 60-70 minutes until the top springs back and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Let cool on rack 30 minutes then remove pan and let cool all the way. If you want to dress it up, you can cut it into layers and fill it with apricot jam or glaze it and top it with toasted almond slices!
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