This Apples & Honey Babka is sweetened only with honey & boiled apple cider. Have it for breakfast or brunch, or serve it after your festive Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year) meal! 

Ahhh…Autumn

This time of year always reminds me of beginnings. Yes, I know it’s not even close to New Year’s, but for me September is filled with new pencils, shiny lunch boxes, and packages of college-ruled lined notebook paper. It doesn’t matter how old my girls get…if it’s their first day of school, they know I will want their picture. Case in point: my younger daughter is starting her first week of graduate school in Savannah this week, so I had her text me her first day picture…she looks cute, young, yet grown up at the same time.

I also love Autumn recipes that feature the warm spices of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves (a divine trinity if ever I heard one, typically found in bourbon). You know it’s Fall when you start seeing the words “Pumpkin Spice” applied to almost any foods imaginable. In the Jewish tradition, this week we also celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Food is an obvious way to celebrate a holiday (Christmas dinner, anyone?), and we Jews have a slew of traditional foods to serve at our Rosh Hashanah gatherings (don’t ask me how many a “slew” is…). Customarily, dishes that are sweet (both entrées and desserts) are served at Rosh Hashanah, symbolizing culinarily the wish for a sweet New Year. Roast chicken with apples and almonds is one example of a sweet, savory entrée, while the ubiquitous brisket usually makes an appearance at the holiday table. But this blog is about baking, so it’s the desserts on which I want to focus, specifically homemade Honey Cake.

A tried & true recipe

Apples and honey are the traditional symbolic foods for Rosh Hashanah, so desserts that feature one or both of those ingredients are usually on the dessert tray. My go-to Honey Cake recipe (one I’ve been making since 1993) is sweet without being cloying, studded with pecans, and definitely not the dry, tasteless versions to which I’ve sometimes been subjected. This year I decided to dress it up with  a special ingredient that I found at Trader Joes…Apple Cider Jam. Apples…check! Honey…check! We’re ready to bake!

This cake tastes even better when it’s made one or two days ahead, but I served it the same day I baked it. The combination of the honey cake with the chunky cinnamon apples and finely chopped pecans was a wonderful finish to our holiday meal. You can serve it with freshly made whipped cream (please, not the stuff in tubs or in a can!), or on its own. Either way, it’s a delight to serve.

Do you have Autumn baking recipes that you make year after year? Please, share them with the group. And to all, whether you celebrate Rosh Hashanah or not, I wish you a healthy, happy, prosperous, and sweet next 12 months.

Slainté! L’chaim! Cheers!

Tammy

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Homemade Honey Cake

A delicious, time-tested Honey Cake, topped with pecans and Apple Cider jam, makes for a sweet New Year

From the Los Angeles Times Food section, September 9, 1993

Prep Time15 mins

Cook Time1 hr

Cooling Time1 hr

Total Time2 hrs 15 mins

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: Jewish

Keyword: Cake, Honey Cake, Jewish New Year, Quick Breads, Rosh Hashanah

Servings: 16 slices

Calories: 175kcal

Author: Tammy Spencer, Scotch & Scones

Special Equipment

• standard loaf pan

Ingredients

• 1-1/2 tsp instant coffee granules
• 6 Tbsp hot water
• 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg, it just belongs
• dash ground cloves
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/3 cup canola oil
• 1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup Apple Cider Jam, or enough to cover the top cake when warmed
• 1/4 cup pecans, finely chopped (for topping)

Procedure

• Preheat oven to 325°F. Lightly grease a standard loaf pan and line with greased parchment paper. (Note, I use a baker's spray and a non-stick loaf pan, no parchment paper needed)
• Dissolve instant coffee in cup with hot water. Let cool.
• Sift flour with baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, (nutmeg, if you follow my lead), and cloves
• Beat eggs lightly. Add sugar and honey and beat until mixture is very smooth and lightened in color. Gradually add oil and beat until blended.
• Using a wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture alternately with coffee mixture, each in 2 batches. (Note: I just did this mixing in my stand mixture on low speed. Why not?). Stir in coarsely chopped pecans.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until cake tester inserted in cake comes out clean. Cool in pan for 15 minutes, then turn out onto rack and carefully peel off paper (if using). Cool cake completely.
• After the cake has cooled, warm the jam on in a small saucepan on low heat until loose and runny. Drizzle the jam onto the cooled cake, allowing it to drip off the sides (I placed a paper towel under my cooling rack to catch the drips). Sprinkle on the finely chopped pecans. Serve & enjoy!

Nutrition Facts

Homemade Honey Cake

Amount Per Serving

Calories 175

* Percent daily values are based on a 2,000 cal per day diet.

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