Honey & Spice Cake (Lekach)

Orange, honey, and spices blend deliciously in this modern spin on a Jewish family classic

For a more adult cake, replace a quarter of a cup of orange juice with your choice of alcohol (orange or coffee liqueurs work well, as does whisky).

Once upon a chef
Title image from www.saveur.com
Preparation time
45 minutes
Makes
12 servings
Category
Baking
Tags
baking
3.5 cups
plain flour
1.5 cups
caster sugar
1 tsp
baking powder
1 tsp
baking soda
1/2 tsp
salt
4 tsp
ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp
ground cloves
1/2 tsp
ground allspice
1 cup
vegetable oil
1 cup
honey
1/2 cup
brown sugar
3
large eggs
1.75 cups
orange juice
1 tsp
vanilla extract
1
orange
2 cups
icing mixture
  1. Preheat oven to 180°C (350°F).
  2. Spray the bundt pan with olive oil non-stick spray, then dust lightly with flour.
  3. In a very large bowl, mix together flour, caster sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice. Once thoroughly combined, make a well in the centre and add oil, honey, brown sugar, eggs, orange juice, and vanilla. Mix until well combined.
  4. Pour batter into prepared bundt pan, and bake until the cake is set and springs bake when touched gently in the centre (approximately 70 minutes). If cake browns too early, cover with aluminium foil to prevent burning.
  5. Let stand in pan for 15 minutes, then run a butter knife around the outside to help the cake release and turn out onto a wire rack.
  6. Once cool (approximately 3 hours), prepare icing: zest and juice the orange, then combine zest, juice, and icing mixture, whisking until smooth. Drizzle over cake, and decorate with fresh or candied orange slices.