OOOOOO, Honey!

“Life is the flower for which love is the honey.”  - Victor Hugo

I. Am. Stressed. Seriously. My entire body feels like a small animal in a really big jungle and I’m just waiting to be trampled or attacked or something. It probably has to do with the fact that I could be faced with some pretty big life changes coming up, and until everything is completely settled I’m kind of in this state of fuzzy flux.

Anyway, my cravings during this time happen to be for something homey and rustic and sweet. Something that has a subtle, natural flavor that can wrap around you like a hug. So, when I stumbled upon a recipe for using whole wheat flour and honey as a natural sweetener, I knew I had hit the jackpot. It also didn’t hurt that I was adapting the recipe from Joy Wilson of Joy the Baker, who we all know is a total sugar-world crush of mine.

This little pound cake/bread/new best friend is great because it has a snacking cake sort of a feel, but it can also be the base for anything. I was able to top it with natural almond butter, some favorite jam, or just go a little crazy and decorate it with homemade whipping cream and chocolate drizzle. Either way, it has a nutty, sweet flavor that makes you feel cozy and right at home in the moment.

Honey Whole Wheat Pound Cake

Ingredients:

2 ¼ cups whole wheat flour

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

¾ cup unsalted butter, softened

1 cup granulated sugar

½ cup honey

3 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup buttermilk

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit with a rack in the center.

Either use butter and flour or cooking spray with flour to prepare a 9X5 inch loaf pan.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

Then, using a hand mixer on medium speed, cream together the butter, sugar, and honey. It’ll probably take a few minutes, but you’ll know it’s done when it takes on a really creamy texture and the color turns a really pretty pale yellow.

Take a moment and scrape down the sides of the bowl with a non-stick spatula. Then use the hand mixer to beat the eggs in one at a time on low-speed.

Follow the eggs by mixing in the vanilla.

Now it’s time to add the flour mixture and the buttermilk. You’ll do this in three steps. Start by mixing in ½ of the flour mixture, followed by the buttermilk. Beat these all together until they’re just combined. Follow with the second ½ of the flour mixture and use the hand mixer until very few flour bits remain, work on low speed and be careful not to over-mix. If you need to, stop in the middle and scrape down the sides of the bowl, so all the ingredients are equally incorporated.

Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for around 1 hour, or until a cake tester comes out clean after inserted into the center of the cake.

Once finished, remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool for around 20-30 minutes in the pan, before inverting it onto a rack and allowing it finish cooling there. If you don’t have a rack, don’t despair, I once ended up needing to use some foil and parchment paper instead, and in a pinch, it works.

Once cooled, or heck, even when it’s still a bit warm to the touch, cut yourself a big slice and top it with whatever you fancy. Looking back, some Greek yogurt and fresh fruit would’ve been spectacular.

Enjoy!

Til next time,

Dani