Recipe: Gussie's Honey Cake

GUSSIE'S HONEY CAKE

1/2 cup golden raisins
2 Tbsp. Scotch or orange juice
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
Pinch ground cloves
2 eggs
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup buckwheat or wildflower honey
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
Juice of 1 orange, 1/2 cup
1/4 cup black coffee
1 tsp. grated zest from the orange
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray two 6-cup loaf pans with cooking spray.

In a small bowl, plump the raisins in the whiskey or juice for 20 minutes. Drain well; set aside.

In a large bowl, sift the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves; set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the sugar until foamy. Add the honey, applesauce, orange juice, zest, and coffee and blend well. Add the honey mixture to the dry ingredients, mixing until they are just blended. Stir in the raisins and nuts. Divide the batter evenly between the 2 prepared pans.

Place the pan on a rack in the center of the oven and bake 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out clean. Do not worry if the loaves are very brown on the outside. Cool on a rack for 10 minutes. Remove the cakes from the pan and cool completely.

Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and store at room temperature 2-3 days before serving.

NOTE:
Because of the honey, this cake browns darkly. It may seem dry if you cut into it when it is fresh from the oven, but since honey attracts moisture, the loaves improve after sitting for a couple of days. This also gives the flavors time to mellow. Kept tightly wrapped in plastic, this cake will stay fresh for a couple of weeks in the refrigerator.

Each of the ten slices contains 166 calories and 3 grams of fat
Adapted from source: Dana Jacobi for the American Institute for Cancer Research