Honey Lemon Cake

Oh honey! It’s such a wonderful product. All those bees buzzing around from flower to flower and gathering sweet nectar. No wonder Pooh likes it so much. While the medical benefits of honey are many, the fact is, honey packs just as much punch as regular sugar in terms of calories and sweetness. It’s just less refined and more natural. While you argue that theory or agree with me, there is no debating the deliciousness of this cake.

The sweetness of honey goes absolutely perfectly with the tart freshness of lemon. I just realized it is June already and I’ve only baked this apple cake and these Easter cupcakes so far this year. I.needed.a.cake.ASAP.

I also wanted to use this pretty stuff that I got at a local farm. Creamed honey or whipped honey cream is solid but turns to liquid honey if you stand the bottle in warm water. Why I tell you that is, you don’t have to go looking for creamed honey. Just use the regular stuff. Kudos to you if you buy honey from an organic, sustainable local farm.

I was not so lucky with the lemons though. I had to use regular grocery store ones. Is it just me or don’t you think the size of produce is getting larger with every passing year? Well, I shall not delve into all that right now. Just remember to thoroughly wash the lemons if you are not sure where they came from, yet you desperately need to zest them. Okay?

The following recipe has been adapted from this recipe. I think it is what you call a Greek honey cake with olive oil, Greek yogurt, honey and lemons. Well you know me, the queen of improvisations. I used vegetable oil, part honey and part sugar and regular yogurt. If you are thinking of substituting honey for sugar in all your baking, you may need these useful tips. It seems you cannot simply swap one for the other. You are welcome!

Another thing that attracted me to the recipe was that you don’t need to beat the hell out of your eggs. My hand mixer met with an unfortunate accident, leaving it one-legged and not-so-effective right now. I whipped this cake up with just a bowl and a whisk. How about that! I think a whisk/spatula combo works well for creating an airy, spongy, lemony batter. Especially for muffins. And this recipe. The batter was so delicious, I could’ve eaten it straight out of the bowl. Now how would I know that? Wink.wink. Don’t tell me you never do this!

Here’s the recipe.

HONEY LEMON CAKE

You will need:

• Eggs – 3, large
• Sugar – 1/2 cup
• Honey – 1/2 cup
• Yogurt – 1 1/2 cups, strained
• Oil – 2/3 cup (Olive oil is best, I used vegetable oil)
• Lemon juice – 2 tbsp, freshly squeezed
• Lemon zest – 1 – 2 tbsp (from 2 lemons)
• All purpose flour – 2 1/2 cups
• Baking powder – 2 1/2 tsp
• Baking soda – 3/4 tsp
• Salt – 1/2 tsp
• Any sweet spice powder – 1/4 tsp (cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, etc; I used cardamom powder)

How to:

• Pre-heat the oven to 350 deg.F and prepare a 9-inch cake pan. (A spring-form pan is best. But I made do with a foil-lined regular pan.)
• Sift the dry ingredients (except sugar) and keep aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk the eggs lightly. Add sugar, honey, yogurt, oil, lemon juice and zest. Whisk well to combine. You will have to make sure the sugar is completely dissolved.
• Now add the dry ingredients and mix till just combined. Do not over-mix.
• Pour into the cake pan, smooth the top with a spatula and bake for 50-60 minutes or till it passes the toothpick test. Since there is honey in the cake, it will start to brown rapidly. Check once after 35-40 minutes, if the top is browning too much, tent with foil and continue baking.
• Cool in pan on wire rack for 10 minutes. Serve warm with coffee or tea.

Notes:

• A spring-form pan works best for this cake. I made do with a foil-lined regular pan. But I will be investing in one for sure.
• You can dust the cake with powdered sugar or brush lightly with a solution of honey and lemon juice. A lemon and sugar glaze will work fine too. But I prefer not to overwhelm a cake with too much sweetness.

This cake is not airy and light but slightly dense, which is actually good in some cakes. It keeps well once cooled completely. Warm it slightly in the microwave before serving.

The cake may brown too fast and the top may crack at some places, but it’s ok. It is not much of a looker. But believe me when I say, it really is absolutely delicious. Another perfect tea or coffee time cake, not too sweet with a hint of honey and lemon.

If you’ve never baked using honey, this is a good recipe to try for starters. Let me know what you think.

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