Spice up traditional honey cake with orange and rye
The Gefilte Manifesto: New Recipes for Old World Jewish
Foods is a book that respects Ashkenazi Jewish culinary tradition while not being afraid to update and modernize many recipes. It is chock-full of classic recipes with fun twists, such as Everything Bagel Butter, At-Home Mazo, Pickles, Rustic Matzo Balls and this fragrant spiced honey cake. Authors Jeffrey Yoskowitz and Liz Alpern have penned a book with fresh recipes and lots of personal storytelling.
Growing up at my house, my mother prepared a feast of a lunch after High Holiday services with an assortment of cakes and cookies for dessert. The honey cake always tasted dry and not worth the calories. That was before I tasted this one! I was surprised to see that this cake not only symbolizes the sweetness of the coming year but would be perfectly delish as a fall tea cake for other occasions, including breakfasts, tea time or dessert anytime.
The author explains that the addition of rye flour adds a rustic touch, reminiscent of older Jewish and rural French honey-cake recipes. If you are not a big sweet lover, the authors also suggest cutting out the sugar all together for
a more subtle sweetness. The recipe is baked in a loaf pan, but for special occasions, using a Bundt pan makes the cake look beautiful. If using a standard 10- or 12-cup Bundt pan, you’ll need to double this recipe and let the cake cool for an hour before removing it from the pan.
ORANGE-SPICED RYE HONEY CAKE
Makes 1 (9-by-5-inch) loaf pan or if doubled, a (10- to 12-inch) Bundt pan
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups vegetable oil, plus more for greasing the pan 3 large eggs 1 cup sugar 1 cup pure honey 3/4 cup lukewarm coffee (brewed and cooled slightly) 1 teaspoon packed orange zest 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup rye flour 2 teaspoons baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Directions:
Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Generously grease a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with oil.
In a large bowl, whisk together the 1 1/2 cups of oil and the eggs, sugar, honey, coffee and orange zest. In a separate large bowl, whisk together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and cloves.
Make a well in the center of the flour mixture, and pour in the egg mixture. Then stir with a fork or whisk until the batter is smooth and free of lumps.
Pour the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until set in the middle. The cake should hold firm when lightly pressed on top. Be careful not to leave the cake in the oven for too long, or it will dry out.
Let the cake cool in the pan for at least 30 minutes (1 hour for a Bundt cake) before very carefully inverting the cake and removing the pan. Slice the cake, and serve with fresh fruit and tea.