Rosh Hashanah – the Jewish New Year, is fast approaching.  At this time of year Jews eat sweet foods for a sweet new year.  Foods like honey cake and apple dipped in honey. I love making this honey cake recipe, which my mum gave me. It has been passed down through the generations and it is absolutely delicious.  Along with a brilliant birthday party chocolate cake recipe and my best banana tea bread ever recipe this is in my all time top three cake recipes.  

People don’t forget this cake in a hurry and they usually come back for more. Strangely this recipe doesn’t actually contain any honey, however you can substitute the golden syrup for honey.  It still tastes lovely just creates a cake with a slightly different texture.  

Honey Cake Recipe

Ingredients:

Dry ingredients (1)

• 8oz self raising flour,
• 4oz sugar
• 1tsp ginger
• 1tsp cinammon  

Other ingredients

• 8oz golden syrup
• 4oz margerine/ butter
• 1 egg  
• 1/4 pint milk
• 1/2 tsp bicarbonate of soda  

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.  Grease sides of the tin and line the bottom of the pan with greaseproof paper.
2. Sieve dry ingredients (1) together and mix.
3. Melt syrup and margerine together (weigh them straight into the saucepan).
4. Add the egg, syrup and margerine to the dry ingredients and mix them all together.
5. Boil milk and as it boils stir in the bicarbonate of soda. Use a large pan and a low heat, as the milk will bubble up when the bicarbonate of soda is added.
6. Pour the milk and bicarbonate of soda mixture in with the rest of the ingredients and mix well.
7. Pour mixture into the tin, only allowing it to become half full.  Put the rest in bun cases (if there is any leftover).
8. Put into the oven for 10-15 minutes, then turn the temperature down to 175°C.  Overall cooking time is 40mins (loaf tin) or 60 mins (cake tin). Buns will cook a lot quicker, so keep an eye on them!  They are ready when if you lightly push on the top of them with your fingers they rise back into shape quickly after.

I usually double or triple the recipe and cook several at a time in loaf tins, some of which I give away as gifts at this time of year.  I also try to save some (or make some more) for Yom Kippur,  as honey cake is one of my favourite foods to break the fast on! Yom Kippur is the Jewish Day of Atonement – a fast day which follows soon after Rosh Hashanah.

What is your favourite honey cake recipe and what do you think of this one?  I would love to hear how it works out for you!