Swedish Honey Cake Recipes

HONEY CAKE RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 340°F/170°C. Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
• In a large bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and cardamom/nutmeg. Set aside.
• In a mixer bowl fitted with the whisk attachment, whisk together eggs, granulated sugar, and honey on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, 2-3 minutes. On low speed and with the mixer running, slowly add the oil and vanilla extract and beat until combined. Turn off mixer. Beat in the flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the coffee/tea in 2 additions, starting and ending with the flour. Beat until smooth. Do not over mix.
• Pour the batter into prepared loaf pan. Sprinkle with nuts. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. If the top is browning too fast while baking, cover pan loosely with aluminum foil. Allow cake to cool for 10 minutes, then remove from pan and set on a wire rack to cool completely.
• The cake tastes better a day after it's made. It's best served at room temperature. Cake will keep for 5 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

SWEDISH HONEY CAKE

Steps:

• Cream eggs and sugar. Add the oil, honey and orange juice.
• Sift the following 7 ingredients : flour, baking soda, allspice, cinnamon, cardamom, ginger and baking powder; add to the bowl with the liquid ingredients. Mix well.
• Pour into a slightly greased baking pan and bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes.

RUSSIAN HONEY CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375. Trace circles around a 9-inch pie or cake pan onto 12 baking-sheet-size pieces of parchment paper. Set aside.
• Make a water bath: Fill a small saucepan with 1 inch of water, and set over medium heat.
• Place 3/4 cup of honey in a 2-quart saucepan, and set over high heat. Bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to medium. After about 3 minutes, the honey will begin to foam intensely. Stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, keep a close eye on the honey. Cook until it begins to smoke, then turn off the heat and carefully add water. Allow the honey to sputter until it stops bubbling. Whisk to combine, and pour into a heatproof measuring cup with a spout, then place in prepared water bath to keep honey liquid.
• Fill a medium saucepan with 2 inches of water, and bring to a simmer. Combine 1/4 cup burned honey, 3/4 cup honey, sugar and butter in a large metal mixing bowl, and place over the pot of water.
• Crack eggs into a small bowl, and set aside. Stir together baking soda, 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt or 3/4 teaspoon sea salt and cinnamon in a separate small bowl.
• When the butter has melted, whisk the honey mixture to combine. Use your finger to test the temperature of the mixture. When it's warm, add the eggs while whisking. When the mixture returns to the same temperature, add the cinnamon mixture, and continue whisking for another 30 seconds. The batter will begin to foam and emit a curious odor. Remove the bowl from the heat, and allow it to cool until it's warm.
• Place the flour in a fine-mesh sieve, and sift over the batter in three batches, whisking to incorporate the flour completely with each addition. The batter should be completely smooth. The batter will spread more easily when it's warm, so pour half into a small bowl, and cover with plastic wrap. Place in a warm spot, such as atop the preheating oven.
• Place a piece of parchment tracing-side-down on a baking sheet, and spoon in a heaping 1/3 cup of batter. Use an offset spatula to evenly spread the batter to the edges. It will seem like just barely enough batter; do your best to get the layer even and perfectly circular. Repeat with remaining layers until you're out of pans, and then continue with remaining batter and parchment sheets, laying batter circles out on a flat surface. You'll end up with 11 or 12.
• Bake as many layers at a time as possible, for 6 to 7 minutes, until the cake turns a deep caramel color and springs back at the touch. For the first round, set the timer for 4 minutes to rotate pans if needed to ensure even cooking. Check the cakes again at 6 minutes. Do not overbake!
• When each layer is done, slide the parchment off the pan to prevent overbaking. If reusing baking sheets while they are still hot, reduce cooking time to 5 to 6 minutes.
• When the cake layers are cool enough to handle, examine them. If any spread outside the traced circles as they baked, use a sharp knife or pair of scissors to trim them. Before the cakes cool entirely, pull each one carefully from the parchment, then place back on the parchment on a flat surface, and allow to cool completely.
• When all the layers are baked, reduce the oven temperature to 250, and allow the cake to cool for 30 minutes. Return the least attractive layer (or 2, if you got 12) to a baking sheet, and place in the oven to toast until deep reddish brown and dry, about 15 minutes. Allow it to cool, then use a food processor to grind into fine crumbs. Cover and set aside.
• Place 1/2 cup burned honey, dulce de leche and 1 teaspoon Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt or 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt into a medium bowl. Whisk by hand until combined, then slowly pour in 3/4 cup cream and mix until homogeneous. Chill until completely cooled, about 30 minutes.
• Pour 4 cups heavy cream into the bowl of a stand mixer, and affix whisk attachment. Whip at medium speed to soft peaks, about 6 minutes, then add honey mixture and whip frosting to medium stiff peaks. If your mixer holds less than 5 quarts, make frosting in 2 batches and then combine in a large bowl, or use a large bowl and a hand mixer.
• Assemble the cake on a 10-inch cardboard circle or flat serving plate. Place a cake layer in the center of the cardboard, then spoon a heaping cup of frosting onto the center. Use an offset spatula to spread the frosting evenly, leaving a 1/4-inch ring unfrosted around the edge. Place the next layer atop the frosting, center it and continue as above. Don't be afraid to manhandle the cake to align the layers as you continue stacking. If necessary, make up for any doming in the center by spreading more frosting to the outer half of each layer than the inner half. After you place the 10th layer, spread another scant cup of frosting over the top. Use any leftover frosting to smooth out the sides of the cake, but don't fret if the edges of some cake layers poke through the frosting. Sprinkle the top and sides with cake crumbs.
• Chill overnight. Serve chilled. Cake can be made up to two days in advance. Refrigerate leftovers for up to 3 days.

RUSTIC HONEY CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a 9-in. cast-iron skillet., In a large bowl, beat butter and honey until blended. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in yogurt and vanilla. In another bowl, whisk flour, baking powder and salt; add to butter mixture. Transfer batter to prepared skillet., Bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean, 30-35 minutes. Cool completely in pan on a wire rack. Serve with fruit, additional honey and, if desired, chopped pistachios., Freeze option: Securely wrap cooled cake in foil; freeze. To use, thaw at room temperature and top as directed.

DEVONSHIRE HONEY CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to fan 140C/ conventional 160C/gas 3. Butter and line a 20cm round loosebottomed cake tin. Cut the butter into pieces and drop into a medium pan with the honey and sugar. Melt slowly over a low heat. When the mixture looks quite liquid, increase the heat under the pan and boil for about one minute. Leave to cool for 15-20 minutes, to prevent the eggs cooking when they are mixed in.
• Beat the eggs into the melted honey mixture using a wooden spoon. Sift the flour into a large bowl and pour in the egg and honey mixture, beating until you have a smooth, quite runny batter.
• Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 50 minutes-1 hour until the cake is well-risen, golden brown and springs back when pressed. A skewer pushed into the centre of the cake should come out clean.
• Turn the cake out on a wire rack. Warm 2 tbsp honey in a small pan and brush over the top of the cake to give a sticky glaze, then leave to cool. Keeps for 4-5 days wrapped, in an airtight tin.

SWEDISH NUT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
• In a large bowl, mix flour, sugar, 1/2 cup nuts and baking soda. Add eggs, pineapple and 2 teaspoons vanilla . Beat until smooth and pour into 9x13 inch baking pan.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 40 to 50 minutes. Spread icing on hot cake.
• For the icing: In a large bowl, cream butter or margarine, cream cheese, 1 teaspoon vanilla and confectioners sugar until light and fluffy. Fold in 1/2 cup nuts. Spread on hot cake.