Spiced Honey Cake (Appenzell)
Submitted by Lisasrecipes
A traditional Swiss Appenzell honey cake made with wholemeal flour, warm honey, cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, and cinnamon. Dense, fragrant, and beautifully scored on top, this European classic is finished with icing.
YIELD
1 cakePREP
20 minCOOK
30 minREADY
1 hrsFrom the hills of Appenzell in northeastern Switzerland comes this dense, fragrant honey cake that’s been baked for generations.
Warm honey and sweetened milk form the base, mixed into wholemeal flour with a generous dose of cloves, nutmeg, cardamom, and a pinch of cinnamon.
The batter fills a flan ring, gets brushed with milk, and scored with a fork to create a traditional decorative pattern before baking.
Once cooled, a coat of icing dresses it up for the table.
It’s the kind of cake you serve with strong coffee on a cold afternoon.
Kitchen Tips
- Warm the honey gently, never boil it. Overheating breaks down the flavor compounds that make this cake special.
- Let the honey and milk mixture cool fully before mixing with the flour or you’ll activate the baking powder too early.
- Score the top with a fork before baking for the traditional criss-cross pattern. It’s decorative and helps the cake bake evenly.
- Like many European honey cakes, this one improves after a day or two as the spices mellow and the crumb moistens.
Ingredients
Directions
Gently heat the honey in a copper bowl or a bain-marie.
Heat the milk with the sugar separately then add to the honey and stir well over a low heat.
Leave to cool.
Put the flour into another bowl and stir in the honey mixture and then the other ingredients.
Work all these together to a smooth consistency .
Place a greased flan ring (22 - 24 cm diameter, 3½ cm high) on a baking tray and fill with the mixture.
Brush the top with milk and score a decorative pattern on the surface using a fork.
Bake in the oven for 30 minutes at 180 cup (test with a needle).
When cold, decorate with icing.
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