Honey And Spice Cake Recipe
We present a delicious honey and spice cake recipe, a dessert with a golden and smooth appearance that can be enjoyed at any time. Whether it’s teatime or a special occasion like Christmas. What is certain is that this delicious cake goes very well, as it does not need a very elaborate decoration. Simplicity is its magic.
Although you can reduce the use of animal ingredients in this recipe; it is necessary to conserve the honey, as it is the main ingredient. The great advantage of using, for example, a vegetable drink instead of milk is that the cake will be much lighter and the honey flavor will be much more noticeable.
Regarding spices, the variety we will use is very aromatic. It should be noted that there are people who add a little more ginger to enhance the spicy touch of the honey cake; however, it will depend on your taste.
Remember that it’s not necessary to be too shy when experimenting with spices and desserts, because the result can be truly surprising.
honey and spice cake
Ingredients
- 1 orange
- 1 cup of honey (335 g)
- 1/2 spoon of salt (2.5 g)
- 1 pinch of ground nutmeg
- 1 spoon of ground cloves (5 g)
- 4 cups of confectionery flour (about 500 g)
- 4 small spoons of ground cinnamon (20 g)
- 1 small spoon of ground ginger (5 g)
- 2 scoops of baking soda (18 g)
- 1 1/2 glass of vegetable drink or skimmed milk (300 ml)
- 1/2 spoon of ground anise or anise seeds (2.5 g)
- Optional: natural orange juice, raisins, nuts (whole or powdered)
- Vegetable oil (amount needed)
Method of preparation
- Preheat oven to 180 ºC.
- Scrape the orange and set aside.
- Place all dry ingredients in a bowl (except orange zest) and stir with a spoon several times to mix.
- Make a hole in the center of the bowl to pour the liquid ingredients into it; that is, milk and honey.
- Add the orange zest and start mixing all the ingredients with the help of a hand mixer. The purpose is to achieve a homogeneous mass, without lumps.
- Let the dough rest for 15 minutes at room temperature. This way, the ingredients will settle and the dough will begin to have an intense and pleasant aroma.
- Lightly grease a baking dish with a little vegetable oil and then start pouring the dough. With the help of a spoon or spatula, smooth the surface to evenly distribute the dough.
- Bake for approximately 30 minutes. Once the surface is well browned, pierce it with a toothpick to check if the dough is ready or if there is still time.
- If it’s not ready yet, put it in the oven for another 10 minutes, or even until the toothpick comes out completely clean.
- Once the cake is ready, let it cool to room temperature with a clean dry cloth over the top.
- When it’s warm, start to demould carefully. Afterwards, let it cool for 10 minutes.
- Before serving, you can sprinkle some natural orange juice over the honey and spice cake. As well as adding some orange slices.
A very special German recipe
The honey and spice cake has a very special variant at Christmas time. And, even if it is a German recipe, it is also enjoyed in other countries like France and Belgium. It is prepared with Glühwein, which in Portuguese translates as “mulled wine” and contains a series of spices and a sweet touch.
Ingredients for Glühwein
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 cloves
- 2 branches of cinnamon
- 1 lemon (only the skin)
- 1 orange (peel only)
- 5 spoons of sugar (75 g)
- 1/2 ginger spoon (2.5 g)
- 3 cups of red wine (750 ml)
Method of preparation
- In a saucepan over low heat, put the wine to heat. Do not let it boil.
- Add spices and stir everything with a spoon.
- Then, add the sugar and stir, little by little, until everything dissolves.
- Strain and set aside in a container.
- Prepare the honey and spice cake in the same way as in the previous recipe; however, incorporate the Glühwein after step number four.
It is generally not decorated, although it is possible to do it with a layer of milk chocolate (preferably with more than 70% cocoa); or even some icing sugar, nuts or seeds.
Cheer up and prepare it at home! You will love it!
