honey cake
Cakes Desserts

Honey cake (Bangalore bakery style Honey cake )

Honey cake is considered a legend in its own right in several old Bangalore bakeries . You know , the kind that people have fond memories of and which transports you back to childhood (that is, if you are a Bangalorean kid of the 80s and 90s ). Well , I didn’t grow up in Bangalore , but I have been here since 10 years now and heard plenty about these cakes . They are right up there in popularity along with Iyengar bakery puffs and khara buns and dilpasands. I have received multiple requests for this cake and then tried and tested some recipes over time.

If you google Honey cake , you will get a myriad of results including a sophisticated Russian creation with layers of cake and frosting , any number of cakes with honey in the batter and of course this nostalgic Indian bakery cake .


honey cake



The Bangalore honey cake is essentially
a) a vanilla cake sponge
b) soaked in a honey syrup
c) topped with melted jam
d) finished with a sprinkling of desiccated coconut .

Pretty simple right ! I used a fluffy and light sponge recipe that I also used in my Danish cake but you can also go with an egg free sponge if you wish. I would recommend my egg free vanilla cake recipe. Since this a soaked cake , I would suggest making this at least a few hours ahead. To ensure the honey syrup goes well into all the bits of cake , do poke holes into the cake with a skewer or toothpick. You can also cut off the top crust of the cake before poking and pouring . And do keep in mind that if you use a different base sponge recipe , depending on the height of the cake , you may need more or less of the syrup !

Its syrupy , its sweet , its rich , Its delicious !

honey cake

Honey cake ( Bangalore bakery style honey cake)

The famous Bangalore bakery style Honey cake is made with a sponge cake , soaked in a honey syrup , topped with jam and coconut !

Ingredients
  

For the cake

  • 190 grams or 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 180 ml or 3/4 cup whole milk
  • 112 grams or 1/2 cup unsalted butter
  • 3 eggs at room temperature
  • 150 grams or 3/4 cup granulated or castor sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

For the honey syrup

  • 240 ml or 1 cup water
  • 50 grams or 1/4 cup granulated or castor sugar
  • 6-8 tablespoons honey

For the topping

  • 4 tablespoons jam
  • 3 tablespoons desiccated coconut or dried coconut flakes

Instructions
 

To make the cake :

  • Preheat your oven to 180 C / 350 F
  • Butter and flour a 8 inch square cake pan . You can line the bottom with parchment (optional)
  • In a bowl , whisk together flour , baking powder and salt. Keep aside.
  • In a saucepan , heat together butter and milk until butter melts . Keep this warm until needed
  • In a large bowl , beat together the eggs , sugar and vanilla
  • Beat well until mixture is tripled in volume and is light and fluffy.
  • Beat or fold in the flour mixture at low speed until all the flour is mixed in. Scrape the sides and bottom of bowl to ensure even mixing.
  • Beat in the hot milk-butter mixture until smooth. This will take only a few seconds
  • Pour batter immediately into prepared pan and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until top is set , springs back when pressed and maybe even lightly browned
  • Remove from oven and cool in pan for 5 minutes.
  • Gently remove from pan , remove parchment (if using) and cool right side up on a wire rack until cool

To make the honey syrup :

  • In a thick bottomed sauce pan , measure out the water and sugar
  • Bring to a boil and then simmer for few minutes
  • Take off heat and stir in the honey.
  • Taste and add more honey as needed.
  • Bring to room temperature before using.

To finish :

  • Once the cake is cool, place it right side up in serving plate or cake pan
  • Using a skewer , poke holes in the cake all over , going till the bottom.
  • Pour the syrup all over the cake
  • Warm the jam a little in the microwave or over stovetop to make it easier to spread ( optional )
  • Spread jam all over the top of the cake in and smoothen
  • Sprinkle the desiccated coconut over the top
  • Serve immediately or ideally after resting for couple of hours at least.

Notes

This can be refrigerated for upto 3 days.
You can use an eggless or any other vanilla cake base instead. Adjust the syrup amount accordingly .
I used a mix fruit jam. 
If you don’t have dessicated coconut on hand, just dry roast fresh coconut on a pan for few minutes , stirring often.
My measuring cup is 240 ml

If this doesn’t satisfy your sweet tooth ….

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