Does anyone have a no fail honey cake recipe they would be willing to share? I need to make a honey cake for a friend but for some reason the cake keeps falling. It rises beautifully in the oven, looks perfect and then when I take it out it deflates like I've pulled the plug on a lilo!

I've made more than I can count, adjusting the oven temp, sifting and then not sifting the ingredients, I just don't know what to do.
The recipe I use worked perfectly until now and I just don't know what I'm doing wrong.

If you can sense some desperation in my tone - you're right
Please let me know if you have any ideas, thanks.

This blogger has a recipe which was improved by decreasing the amount of baking powder and baking in a bundt pan.

http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/09/majestic-and-moist-honey-cake/

Other recommended honey cake recipes:

http://imamother.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=90499

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/honey-cake-iii/detail.aspx

http://www.food.com/recipe/the-best-honey-bundt-cake-71494

HTH

Thank you Jan but I have actually tried those recipe's with no luck. I just can't seem to work out what I'm doing wrong, I'm losing sleep over this - have been up since 4h00 am. For some reason they keep collapsing when taken out of the oven. There must be a trick to this but I have no idea what it is. Do you know what the perfect temp is for a sheet cake of honey cake? I keep thinking that's my problem but any adjustment seems to turn out the same way.

Did you see if your baking powder has gone flat? If all recipes aren't working and that's an ingredient in all of them that might be it. Get some new baking powder... That's my guess. Hope that helps, good luck!

Hmm, I don't know if it's gone flat, how could I find out?

There should be an expiration or best used by date on the container of baking powder.

Do you have a separate oven thermometer to insure your oven is baking at correct temperature?

JodeyF's pound cake recipe worked as a tube/bundt cake but not when made as layers:

http://cakecentral.com/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&p=6553683&sid=e8f6a784a01150016b15378283f76c54

Might also help if you advised exactly which recipe/s you tried and what size cakes, baking temperature, etc. that you used.

HTH

P.S. Here's a honey cake recipe which doesn't use baking powder only baking soda.

http://www.mybissim.com/2011/09/rosh-hashana-honey-cake/

The blogger advises: The cake will rise a lot and then settle down a little. Dont worry about it. So perhaps this is true of all honey cakes.

Also found this Shabbat Shalom link which states that honey cakes can sink/crack if the ratio of oil or honey is too rich in proportion to the flour used:

http://www.ou.org/shabbat_shalom/column/cracked_cake/
(Also provides other cake troubleshooting info.)

Bless you Jan for your help. I don't think it's the baking powder as I just made another one with the honey I used to use and it rose perfectly, sunk a drop upon taking out of the oven and settled well. So happy - yay!

Well, my MIL made honey cake, as she does every year for Jewish New Year and she said it was AWFUL this year... no idea why!

I have a lovely honey cake recipe, but, ahem, it doesn't use honey! It uses golden syrup.

1lb tin golden syrup
Cup of oil
Cup of sugar
1lb plain flour
2 eggs
2 tsp instant coffee
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp mixed spice
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp bicarb
Flaked almonds to decorate


Preheat oven to Gas Mark 3. Line a tin (the tin I use is approx 10 x 8) both lengthways and widthways with foil, allowing a large excess on each side. Fold the excess foil under the tin. You will use this to keep wrap the cake, once it is cooked and cooled.

Put the syrup into a large mixing bowl. Put coffee into empty syrup tin and fill tin with hot water. Stir well and pour into the bowl (tin will be hot!). Add everything, except eggs, flour, baking powder and bicarb. Mix with a wooden spoon do not use food mixer! Add eggs, mix, then sift in the flour, baking powder and bicarb. Mix again, (do not worry about the mixture being lumpy, at this point) then use an electric hand mixer to smooth the mixture and to get lots of air bubbles into the mixture. Empty into the tin. Sprinkle with flaked almonds.

Bake for 1½ hours, then check to see if it is done.

The cake will keep for a week, if well wrapped.

Congrats Claire138.

And which recipe finally worked for you, and did you do anything differently.
('Cause this honey cake discussion has me feeling like I'd like to try one.)

I used my mums recipe. It's delicous and works really well for cupcakes too.

2 eggs
3/4 C honey
1 C sugar (I use a little less bc I use cane sugar and find it too sweet/heavy)
2/3 C oil
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp cocoa
Some ginger (I just sprinkle some)
Some mixed spices (I can't get this where I live so skip it)
2 C all purpose flour
1 C strong coffee (I use 2&half TBS)

Mix eggs, honey, sugar & oil and then alternate the dry with the coffee.

My mum bakes this on 180 but I bake it slightly lower as I find my oven is pretty hot to start with.

This cake is really really good, very moist and tasty. Enjoy!

Thanks to all for your help & Relznik, I actually have that recipe but golden syrup is imported here so it's really expensive. Have to wait until I visit London to pick up some!

Happy baking........!

Thanks so much for sharing Claire138, that sounds nice and easy.

But I have one more question. Are you using U.S. sized measuring cups and spoons?

TIA

No problem. Enjoy.