Honey Cake with whole wheat flour

What could be better than a cup of coffee or tea paired with delicious homemade pastries? For me, homemade cakes are pure love. Today, I want to share a tried-and-true recipe that never fails: Honey Cake made with whole wheat flour. It’s perfect for anyone who enjoys moderately sweet, soft, tender, and aromatic baked treats.

Ingredients:

Cake layers

All-purpose flour – 300 g (~2 ½ cups)
Whole wheat flour – 300 g (~2 ½ cups)
Butter – 100 g (~7 tbsp)
Eggs – 3
Sugar – 150 g (~¾ cup)
Honey – 3-4 tbsp
Baking soda – 2 tsp

Cream

Sour cream (20-25%) – 500 g (~2 cups)
Heavy whipping cream – 500 g (~2 cups)
Powdered sugar – 150 g (~1 ¼ cups)
Vanilla sugar – 1 packet (or 1 tsp vanilla extract)
Walnuts and hazelnuts – for decoration

Cooking process

1. First, let’s prepare the cake layers.

In a saucepan, combine the butter, sugar, eggs, honey, and baking soda. Place the pan over low heat and stir continuously. The mixture should become smooth, start to foam, increase in volume, and lighten in color.

Once the mixture reaches this stage, remove the saucepan from the heat and add the sifted flours. Knead the dough—start with a spatula, and when it becomes too stiff to mix in the pan, transfer it to a clean surface and continue kneading by hand.

Roll out the dough and divide it into 8 equal portions. Shape each portion into a ball, wrap them in plastic wrap, and place them in a cool spot for one hour.

2. After an hour, you can start rolling out the cake layers. Roll each dough ball into a circle about 24–25 cm (9–10 in) in diameter. Use a lid to trim any uneven edges—the trimmings can be baked along with the layers and used later for decorating the cake. Bake the cake layers in a preheated oven at 180 °C (350 °F) on the convection setting for 5–7 minutes. You can place multiple layers on different oven racks to bake several layers at once.

Allow the baked cake layers to cool.

3 Cream preparation.

Using a mixer, beat together the sour cream, heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla sugar, gradually increasing the speed. Continue whipping for a few minutes until the cream is smooth and fluffy.

Spread the prepared cream over each cake layer. Be generous with the amount—don’t hold back. Once you cover the top layer, also coat the sides of the cake. Smooth the cream evenly all around.

For the final touch, sprinkle the cake on all sides with a mixture of crushed cake trimmings and nuts (make sure to toast the nuts in a dry pan beforehand).

Place the finished honey cake in the refrigerator for at least one night to allow it to soak and the flavors to meld. The next day, it’s ready to enjoy!

I like this version of Honey Cake for several reasons. First, like all honey cakes, it turns out soft, tender, and aromatic. Second, thanks to the addition of whole wheat flour and a reduced amount of sugar, it’s a lower-calorie option that’s also more nutritious.