This Honey Cake recipe has a moist, tender crumb and big honey flavor, made in one bowl with oil instead of butter. It’s perfect for Rosh Hashanah.
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When I was a kid, the best thing on the Rosh Hashanah table wasn’t the honey cake, but the plate of apple slices and bowl of honey for dunking. Crisp, juicy apple and thick, syrupy honey are a perfect, sweet bite. And that’s the whole reason they’re there, to start the Jewish New Year with a sweet taste in our mouths, hoping the year ahead will be sweet too.
The honey cakes on the holiday tables of my childhood never delivered anything like that apples-and-honey bite. They were dry or gummy, and the spices—always cinnamon, often clove or nutmeg or allspice—buried the honey flavor the name promised.
This is the honey cake I wanted then. Sweet, honey-forward, unfussy, and, most important, moist and tender enough to outshine everything else on the table.
What Makes This Honey Cake Different?
So what sets this Jewish honey cake apart from the ones I grew up with? The key is in the ingredients, but also in the technique.
My #1 Secret: Use Oil Instead of Butter
Using a neutral oil, like avocado oil or canola oil, instead of butter does two separate things for your cake, and they both matter.
First, moisture. Oil is 100 percent fat, while butter is only about 80 percent fat and the rest is water. That water evaporates in the oven, and it takes some of your cake’s moisture with it. Oil has no water to lose, so it has nothing to give up. Less water lost means more moisture kept in the cake.
Second, tenderness. Butter is made mostly of saturated fat molecules, which are straight and stack together neatly, like bricks. That’s exactly why butter turns solid in the fridge. Oil is made of unsaturated fat molecules that are bent and can’t stack that way, so they stay slippery and fluid even when cold. That fluidity lets the oil coat the flour more thoroughly, which blocks gluten from forming long, chewy strands.
Less gluten means a softer, more tender crumb, and it stays that way even after the cake cools completely, since oil never firms back up the way butter does. So you get a cake that’s both more moist and more tender, for two completely different reasons.
My #2 Secret: Don’t Overmix the Batter
Overmixing your batter can make a cake gummy and dense because it creates too much gluten and forces out the air bubbles that help the cake rise. When flour meets liquid, two of its proteins bond together to form gluten. But hydration only starts the process. Every stroke of the spoon stretches those bonds and organizes them into a longer, stronger network, which is why bread doughs get kneaded for ten minutes. Gluten is elastic and stretchy, like a mesh of rubber bands. That’s perfect for chewy bread and ruinous for a delicate cake.
Since there’s no butter to cream, the batter for this cake can be mixed together in one bowl using a wooden spoon. Even when hand mixing, once you’ve combined the flour and liquids, mix only until the mixture is smooth, and then stop. If you do use a hand-held electric mixer or stand mixer, stick to low or medium speed.
Ingredient Notes
Other honey cake recipes use a heavy mix of spices, but this one lets the honey flavor take the lead. Here’s what matters in the ingredient list.
Using a neutral oil keeps the cake moist without competing with the honey flavor. I usually use avocado oil, but canola or another mild option works just as well.
The honey you choose matters more here than in almost any other recipe, since it’s the flavor you’re building the cake around. The best way to tell a more flavorful honey from a less flavorful one is color. Pale honeys are mild. They deliver sweetness, but not much flavor, and what’s there won’t survive the oven. Darker honeys taste more like the flowers they came from, and that flavor comes through in the finished cake.
Skip clover and orange blossom, which are both pale and mild. Wildflower is the easy upgrade, and it’s common enough that you’ll usually find it right next to them in the supermarket. If you want to go in an even bolder direction, try a much darker honey like chestnut, avocado, or buckwheat. They’ll change the character of the cake a lot, so taste before you commit a whole batch to one.
This recipe uses both white sugar and brown sugar along with the honey. The brown sugar adds caramel notes that deepen the flavor and keep the sweetness balanced.
Brewed coffee or strong tea add a touch of bitterness that offsets the sweetness and adds complexity. I prefer coffee, but strong black tea works if that’s what you have. And a splash of orange juice adds a bright citrus note. If you want to pump up the citrus flavor even more, add a teaspoon or two of freshly grated orange zest.
Because I want my honey cake to taste like honey, not a spice cake, l skip the ground cinnamon, ginger, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg common in honey cake recipes.
How to Make It
This cake comes together in one bowl with a wooden spoon, no electric mixer required.
First, grease the baking pan or pans and preheat the oven. Whisk the dry ingredients together in a large bowl, then add the liquid ingredients to the flour mixture, including the oil, eggs, honey, both kinds of sugar, coffee or tea, and orange juice. Stir gently until the mixture is smooth and well combined.
Transfer the batter to your prepared pans. Drizzle a bit of honey over the top for extra sweetness and a shiny glaze. Bake until the cake feels springy to the touch and a tester comes out clean, then let it cool in the pan before transferring it to a wire rack.
Tips for Making the Best Jewish Honey Cake
- Start with your ingredients, especially the eggs, at room temperature to ensure the cake bakes up light and evenly textured. Room temperature eggs blend more smoothly with the oil, creating a properly emulsified batter instead of a broken one that may turn out dense and greasy.
- This recipe makes a generous amount of cake. If that feels like too much, the recipe card includes scaled-down versions for smaller batches and even mini honey cakes or honey cupcakes.
- Whatever size pans you use, only fill them about halfway so the cake has room to rise. Smaller pans will bake faster, so keep an eye on them and check early.
- Line pans with greased parchment paper so the cake releases cleanly.
- If you’re baking in several small pans, set them on a sheet pan for easy oven transfer.
- The flavor improves after it rests. The cake is even better the next day, so it’s worth making it ahead.
How to Serve HOney Cake
Honey cake is so versatile that I serve it on most Jewish holidays. It even makes a great holiday breakfast or brunch. And it’s a perfect end to a meal of Brisket or roast chicken, latkes, and Beet Salad with Harissa Dressing.
A dollop of whipped cream, or vegan whipped cream, or a scoop of ice cream takes it over the top. Try rich vanilla ice cream or, even better, Pumpkin Cinnamon Ice Cream. For something lighter, sliced fresh figs or pears are lovely on top.
Looking for more Jewish holiday desserts? Try Honey Cookies with orange and cinnamon, also perfect for Rosh Hashanah, Rugelach, or Hamentashen. Chocolate Orange Babka is another Jewish dessert that easily shape shifts into a brunch favorite. Love that honey flavor? Try No Bake Honey Cheesecake.
One-Bowl Honey Cake Recipe for Rosh Hashanah
Robin Donovan
Ingredients
- 3½ cups (420 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon table salt
- 1 cup (240 ml) vegetable oil
- 1 cup (240 ml) honey, divided
- 1½ cups (300 grams) sugar
- ½ cup (110 grams) brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 cup (240 ml) brewed coffee or strong tea
- ½ cup (120 ml) orange juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350°F and generously grease the baking pan(s) with nonstick cooking spray, baking spray, or butter. (Use either three 9-by-5-inch loaf pans, one 9-by-13-inch baking pan, or any equivalent-sized pans.)
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
- Add the oil, 3/4 cup of the honey, sugar, brown sugar, eggs, vanilla, coffee or tea, and orange juice. Mix thoroughly, until all ingredients are combined and no lumps remain.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s), filling each about halfway.
- Drizzle the remaining 1/4 cup of honey over the batter.
- Bake in the preheated oven until the cake is set all the way through and feels springy to the touch (30 to 60 minutes, depending on the size of your baking dishes). A tester inserted into the center should come out clean.
- Let cool 15 minutes before removing from the baking dish. Slide a knife around the edges to help loosen the cake, if necessary.
Notes
Nutrition
L’Shana tova. Can the cup of oil be replaced by a cup of unsweetened apple sauce?
P.S. If applesauce is used, do I need to adjust the baking time?
I wish I could answer with authority, but I just don’t know. If you try it let us know how it turns out!
Leann, did you try the apple sauce? If so how did it turn out, also, did you have to make any other adjustments? Thanks!
This recipe looks delicious and I’m planning on making it tomorrow for my book club dinner, but I have a question.
For the orange juice, do you just use store bought, or do you fresh squeeze and orange?
Thank you for the lovely recipe!
I used OJ from the store. No need to squeeze!
I made this cake. Super easy to make. I made no changes to recipe. Cake is delicious.
Loved the honey cake. Can I use extra orange juice instead of the coffee?
I’ve never tried that, but I imagine it would be fine. Let us know!
Wow I wish you would put this in the actual recipe. I assumed coffee grounds because it did not say brewed coffee anywhere!!!! This is in my oven right now and I’m sure it’ll go right into the trash
Hi Ashley, I’m so sorry that you misunderstood the ingredient. I have changed it to “brewed coffee or tea.” This recipe has been on my site for 4 years and this is the first time anyone has made that mistake that I know of, although I have gotten many questions about whether a different liquid can be substituted for the coffee or tea so I thought it was pretty clear that it was a liquid. If it was meant to be coffee grounds or tea leaves, I would have said “coffee grounds or tea leaves.” Thank you for bringing it to my attention though so that I could make it totally clear to anyone else who might make that mistake.
Loved the cake- i used all orange juice the second time i made it and it was better yet!!!!🌺
I’m a beekeeper and was looking for a honey cake recipe that would highlight the taste of honey, not bury it with spices and other ingredient flavors. So, I tweaked your recipe a bit and got exactly what I wanted. My changes were: melted butter instead of oil, dropped the white and brown sugar and increased honey to 1.5 cups, dropped the orange juice and coffee/tea liquids and just used 1/2 cup of warm water. Baked it in a 9 x 13″ pan, lined with parchment paper for 45 min, mostly at 350F, although I turned it down to 325F for the last 6-7 minutes because I was concerned about the top getting too brown. If I were too change anything for the next time, I’d think about increasing honey to 2 cups, to increase sweetness and moisture – maybe a tad more water also.
Love the flavour but struggled to get the cakes out of the tins in one piece…not sure where I went wrong….
Any advice would be appreciated!
Hi Helsa,
Thank you for posting! I am glad you liked the flavor of the honey cake, but so sorry you had a hard time removing them from the pans! It could have to do with the pans you used, or perhaps you didn’t grease the pans thoroughly enough (I have just changed the instructions from “grease the pans” to “generously grease the pans” in hopes of helping readings avoid this problem in the future.) I grease the pans with coconut oil spray but any type of nonstick cooking spray should work, as will butter or vegetable shortening.
Robin
I think parchment should be used. I made this recipe, which was delicious, but like Helsa mine stuck to the pan (all 3 of them!). I am going to make again with parchment and see how it turns out.
Hi Loni, I’m sorry that yours stuck too! I have made this cake dozens of times in different pans and never had it stick that I can recall. But yes, using parchment paper would certainly reduce any risk of sticking!
Is the batter real liquidy? Mine is
It is a very wet batter. It should be pourable. I have made this recipe exactly as written at least a dozen times, so as long as you followed the measurements given, I am certain that it is the consistency it should be.
For the coffee, do you use grounds or an actual cup of brewed black coffee?
Hi Bonnie,
It is brewed coffee (a cup of coffee, not grounds).
Thanks!
Robin
Thank you, I’m looking forward to try it
I wanted to love this recipe and make a delicious honey cake for the holidays. I even bought beautiful individual floral bundt pans as I loved the idea of individual desserts. I followed the recipe to a t and the cakes looked beautiful and were very moist but they were gummy and lacked flavor. Not sure what went wrong as so many others loved this recipe.
Hi Lola, I’m so sorry this recipe didn’t work out for you! I am not sure why it would turn out gummy. I mean, the honey does make it pretty sticky, especially the outside, which of course you have more of if you do it in small tins, but that is part of the appeal of the cake to me. Is it possible that you overmixed the batter? I’m not sure what else would cause gumminess, but I will see if I can figure that one out!