The second recipe from “Julie & Julia Project” aka baking through the “Dessert Person” cookbook. To be honest with you, this spiced honey and rye cake wasn’t the one I was looking forward to making. Why? Because I’m not a fan of honey. I hate the taste of it and mostly its smell. If it wasn’t for the project, I probably wouldn’t even make it. But this is my responsibility right now, so here it is. Hope you enjoy it.
A couple of words about the recipe. It’s pretty straightforward. As for the ingredients you might have an issue finding rye flour. At least, that has happened to me. I couldn’t find any rye flour in Publix and Target, so I ordered one from Amazon (I’ve linked it in the recipe below). As for the star of the cake, the honey, you need to use a good-quality one. The stronger the flavor the better, since much of the complexity of this cake comes from honey itself. I’ve used organic white raw honey. It definitely did justice to the cake as the flavor was intense, but I honestly couldn’t eat. My husband enjoyed it though. Therefore I suggest the cake is a winner but just not for me.
I hope you will like this spiced honey and rye cake, and again please share it with your friends or simply like it. It’d mean a lot to me. See you next time.
Spiced Honey and Rye Cake
You should try this tender and pleasantly sweet classic honey cake with a twist. Rye flour adds an earthy and savory flavor, while spices add a bit of a zing, making this former classic a modern and interesting dessert.
Ingredients
- 173 g all-purpose flour
- 33 g rye flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
- 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (preferably freshly grated)
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 2 large eggs (at room temperature)
- 50 g sugar
- 2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
- 170 g honey (plus more for drizzling on top)
- 113 g neutral oil, such as vegetable or grapeseed
- 100 g unsweetened apple sauce or pear sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the oven and prepare the pan. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush the pan with a bit of neutral oil and line with the parchment paper so that it overhangs an inch or two on each side. Set the pan aside.
- Mix the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, mix together the all-purpose flour, rye flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, and cardamon. Set the mixture aside.
- Mix wet ingredients. In a medium bowl, quickly whisk the eggs to break up the yolks and whites. Add sugar, lemon zest, and honey. Whisk vigorously until the mixture is smooth and slightly thickened, about 30 seconds. While continuing to whisk, slowly pour neutral oil into the mixture. Whisk until oil is completely incorporated. Then add apple or pear sauce and whisk until everything is combined.
- Mix the wet ingredients into the dry. Make a hole in the center of the flour mixture and add the wet mixture. Whisk gently until the batter is smooth and there are no dry spots. Don't forget to scrape the bottom and the sides of the bowl making sure everything is well incorporated.
- Fill the pan and bake. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and bake until the top rises and it's a nice golden brown color for 50-60 minutes. Check the readiness with the toothpick. Remove the cake from the oven and let it cool in the form for 20 min. Then remove it from the form and transfer the cake to the wire rack and let it cool completely. Don't slice it before it's completely cooled. It's going to fall apart and it will still taste great, but the look will be off.
- Serve and enjoy. Slice the cooled cake and drizzle with honey on the top.
Notes
- The cake can be stored for up to 4 days at room temperature if properly wrapped.
- You can substitute the rye flour for spelt, buckwheat, or whole wheat. The cake would have a slightly different flavor profile. The rye flavor is more earthy and savory.
- Use good-quality honey as the flavor of the cake comes primarily from this ingredient.
