This is a recipe handed down generations, literally. Rebekkah's great-grandmother used to make this to celebrate the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah. Let us be the first to tell you this honey cake is definitely a keeper. It is moist and deeply rich tasting and full of love. Because come on, how could a recipe from Old-Nana not be? It's awesome. So make the full recipe, make lots of mini-loaf cakes and pass them around to spread a Happy New Year. Cause lets face it, don't we all want a Happy New Year? 🙂
Nana's Honey Cake
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
4 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup honey
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
3 large eggs at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup warm coffee
1/2 cup orange juice
1/4 cup whiskey (or increase OJ by 1/4 cup instead of whiskey)Chopped apple (optional)
Cinnamon Sugar (1/4 cup sugar, 3 to 4 tea cinnamon whisked together)
OK, here we go! Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray pans with non-stick spray or grease with oil (or butter) and dust with flour.
In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves and allspice. Add sugars, whisk together.
Make a well in the center, add oil, honey, eggs, vanilla, coffee and orange juice (and whiskey if you're using that). Stir in chopped apple if you're adding one. We personally like this addition, it adds a nice texture and contributes to the sweetness of the New Year!Mix well to make a thick, well-blended batter, making sure that no ingredients are stuck to the bottom.
Spoon batter into prepared pan(s) to a little over half way, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar mixture. Add additional batter to about 3/4 level of loaf pan. Bake until cake tests done, that is, it springs back when you gently touch the cake center about 45 to 55 minutes (for large loafs), about 30 minutes for small loafs. Make sure to keep an eye on it, have your cake tester at the ready. You really don't want to over bake this one. Let cake stand fifteen minutes before removing from pan.
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