Over the Top Honey Cake

This is the towering Jewish honey cake (lekach) traditionally baked for Rosh Hashanah, the New Year that wishes everyone a sweet year ahead. The name fits: with a full 1¼ cups of honey and a parchment collar that adds two extra inches above the rim of the tube pan, this cake bakes up taller than your average bundt.

The magic ingredient is a full cup of strong coffee. It doesn’t make the cake taste like coffee. Instead it deepens the molasses notes from the brown sugar and gives the honey somewhere darker and more complex to land. Skip it and the cake reads one-note sweet.

The spice blend is gentle on purpose, so the honey can shine: just ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon, with whispers of nutmeg, ginger, and clove rounding it out. This isn’t a spice cake, it’s a honey cake that knows when to back off.

Folding chopped walnuts into the batter and scattering more on top gives you texture in every slice and a crackly browned crown. The cake bakes low and slow at 335°F (170°C) so the honey doesn’t burn and the inside stays moist.

Pro Tips

• Make the parchment collar as the recipe instructs; this batter rises high and overflows a standard tube pan without one.
• Brewed coffee works fine, but use day-old leftovers if you have them; over-extraction gives more depth.
• The cake actually improves the next day; wrap it tightly and let it sit 24 hours before slicing for the best texture.
• Test for doneness with a wooden toothpick at the deepest point of the tube; honey cakes can fool you with a wet center.

Variations

• Swap walnuts for pecans or almonds; both work in this batter without changing anything else.
• Add 2 tablespoons of dark rum or brandy with the honey for a deeper, more festive flavor.
• Bake in two loaf pans instead of a tube pan as the recipe suggests; reduce baking time to 35-40 minutes.