An apple-honey cake

Add some apples to your honey cake this year. (photo by Barry A. Kaplan)

In the spirit of trying new things and as the New Year approaches, here is a recipe from my kosher kitchen, a slightly different take on the traditional honey cake. It’s a Rosh Hashanah favorite.

TWO-LAYER APPLE-HONEY CAKE

2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3/4 cup sugar or sugar substitute
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 large eggs
3/4 cup canola oil
1/3 cup non-dairy creamer
1/2 cup honey or honey substitute
3 cups grated apples

Frosting
2 cups tofu cream cheese
1/2 cup unsalted pareve margarine
1 tsp grated orange peel
1 cup confectioners sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup honey or honey substitute

1. Preheat oven to 325˚F.
2. Put vegetable spray on two nine-inch cake pans.
3. Place flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and sugar or sugar substitute in a large bowl and mix.
4. Add vanilla, eggs, oil, non-dairy creamer and honey. Mix, then add apples. Place half of the batter in each baking pan. Bake in the oven about 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the centre comes out clean. Cool.
5. Beat cream cheese and margarine in a bowl until fluffy.
6. Add orange peel, confectioners sugar and vanilla and blend. Add honey. Chill until firm enough to spread.
7. Place one cake on a serving dish. Spread with one cup of frosting. Top with the second cake and spread the remaining frosting on the top and sides.

Sybil Kaplan is a journalist, foreign correspondent, lecturer, food writer and book reviewer who lives in Jerusalem. She also does the restaurant features for janglo.net and leads walks in English in Jerusalem’s market.