Top | Miriam Wolf

Dorothy's Honey Cake

(recipe, Miriam Wolf)


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Introduction

My mother, Dorothy Wolf, made this honey cake every autumn for Rosh Hashanah. The recipe, which had been passed down through her family, incorporates a full cup of honey; the resulting cake is moist and a deep golden color.

Ingredients

  1. 1 medium apple
  2. 1 medium orange
  3. 1½ cups brewed coffee, or 1 cup brewed coffee and ½ cup sweet red wine, such as Manischewitz
  4. 4 cups flour
  5. 1½ Tbsp. baking soda
  6. 1 tsp. baking powder
  7. 1½ tsp. allspice
  8. 1½ tsp. cinnamon
  9. ½ tsp. cloves
  10. ½ tsp. salt
  11. 4 eggs
  12. 1 cup sugar
  13. 1 cup oil
  14. 1 cup honey
  15. ½ cup raisins
  16. ½ cup walnuts

Steps

  1. Grate the apple and orange, including the peel but discarding seeds and stems. Add the coffee or coffee-and-wine combo.
  2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a large, heavy, ovenproof skillet or two 9-by-5-inch loaf pans with heavy foil or parchment paper.
  3. In a medium bowl, sift together the dry ingredients.
  4. In a large bowl, cream together the eggs, sugar, and oil. Add the honey.
  5. In ½-cup increments, and alternating between the two, add the sifted flour mixture and the fruit/coffee mixture to the eggs/oil/sugar mixture. Stir in the raisins and the walnuts.
  6. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan(s). Bake for 60 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out with just a few crumbs clinging to it. Let cool for 10 minutes before inverting onto wire racks to finish cooling. Cut into slices to serve.