This incredibly tender Fluffy Honey Layer Cake is perfect for any occasion. The creamy sour cream frosting pairs so well with the honey cake and the fresh fruit and almonds make it classically beautiful.
Words don't do this cake justice, so I'm going to keep it short. This honey cake is perfect any time of year and is relatively simple to prepare. The honey gives the cake a sweet and caramelized flavor, which is so magical and pairs so well with the tangy cream cheese and sour cream frosting.
Decorating with fruit is a great choice always. Fruit is beautiful, and no matter how you arrange it, you know it will make a gorgeous presentation. It also adds so much fresh and juicy flavor to the cake.
This cake has been a family favorite for decades. I hope you will enjoy it too.
Preparing the Honey Cake Layers
The honey cake layers are very similar to a sponge cake, so it's important to start out with room temperature ingredients, so that you get as much volume as possible. This will help the cake layers to become very fluffy and rise as they bake.
Sift the dry ingredients into the beaten eggs, sugar and honey mixture and then fold it in gently using a rubber spatula so that you retain as much of the volume of the cake as possible. Mix just until all the flour is incorporated, making sure to get all the flour from the bottom of the bowl too.
Tips To Keep the Cake Layers Flat and Even
To prevent the cake layers from caving in the center as they bake and then cool, DON'T grease the sides of the cake pans with butter or oil. This will help the cake to get a good "grip" on the edges of the cake pan as they bake and will result in a flat and even surface of each cake layer. However, make sure to place a round piece of parchment paper on the bottom of each cake pan to help you get the cake out of the pan after it's finished baking.
Cool the cake in the cake pan for 5-7 minutes, before using a very thin knife to go around the edges of the cake and then gently remove the cake layers out of the cake pan.
Cool the cake layers completely before slicing each of the cake layers in half horizontally.
What Cake Pans Should Be Used For This Cake
I recommend using 10 inch round cake pans. They will bake through faster which will keep the cake layers much more tender. However, 9 inch cake pans will also work, you will need to bake them longer though, since they will be taller and require more time to bake through.
Preparing the Cream Cheese and Sour Cream Frosting
This is my favorite frosting to use for this cake. It isn't as thick as a typical butter cream of cream cheese frosting, because it has sour cream, sweetened condensed milk and whipped heavy cream part of the ingredients. I think it makes a really delicious frosting. Since it's thinner, it is able to soak into the cake layers more, resulting in the most tender cake.
Make sure to start with softened cream cheese, which will mix up much better. The sour cream and heavy cream should be cold though.
When the cream cheese and sweetened condensed milk are smooth, add the sour cream and vanilla, mix until combined.
Heavy cream vs Cool Whip
I use heavy cream and powdered sugar for this frosting. You can also use the same amount of already prepared whipped topping, such as Cool Whip. The Cool Whip has stabilizers in it, so it will give the frosting a much thicker consistency. I prefer to use heavy cream, but the choice is up to you.
Fold in the whipped cream gently into the frosting.
If you want a thicker frosting
As I already mentioned, it is my opinion that this particular frosting works the best for this cake. However, if you prefer a frosting to be thicker and richer, use only cream cheese, (add an additional package of cream cheese, powdered sugar to taste and 8 oz of Cool Whip. This will give you a really thick frosting.
Tips To Frosting the Cake
You should use ALL of the frosting for this cake, so be generous when spreading it on the cake layers, leaving only enough frosting to go around the edges and the top of the cake. If you don't use all of the frosting, your cake will be more dry.
To keep the cake from sliding around, I use the sides of a springform pan and place it around the cake after I have frosted it and place it into the refrigerator for a few hours to chill and set as the frosting is soaking into the cake layers.
Then, I use a really thin knife to go around the edges of the cake and carefully remove the springform pan, and then use the remixing frosting to frost the sides of the cake.
Use the palms of your hands to add toasted almonds around the edges of the cake. Decorate the top of the cake with fresh fruit.
How Far In Advance Can You Prepare This Cake?
I like assembling and frosting the cake the day before I serve it, so that it chills in the refrigerator overnight. Add the fresh fruit right before serving, up to a few hours in advice only. The fruit will wilt if you place it on the cake too far in advance.
Fluffy Honey Layer Cake With Fruit and Almonds
The fluffy layers of this honey cake are frosted with a creamy sour cream frosting. This is such a tender and delicious cake, perfect for any occasion. Decorated with almonds and fruit, it's also classically beautiful.
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 1 cake (9-10 inches) 1x
- Category: Sweets
Ingredients
Cake:
- 6 eggs, room temperature
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 3 Tablespoons honey
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
Frosting:
- 2 (8 oz. packages) cream cheese, softened
- ½ can (14 oz) sweetened condensed milk
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1 cup heavy cream, chilled
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar, or to taste
Optional garnishes to decorate the cake:
- toasted almonds
- 1-2 mangos or peaches, peeled and sliced
- 1 box strawberries, halved or sliced
- 2 kiwi, peeled and sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Cut out parchment paper to fit into the bottom of 2 round cake pans. You can use either 9 or 10 inch pans. Do NOT use butter or oil to brush the sides of the cake pans.
- Using a hand mixer or a standing mixer with the whisk attachment, beat the eggs and gradually add in the sugar. Mix until the eggs are pale and fluffy, at least 5 minutes.
- Add the honey.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour and the baking soda. Sift the dry ingredients over the batter and gently fold it in using a rubber spatula until all the flour is incorporated.
- Divide the batter evenly between the two can pans.
- Bake in the preheated oven until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 30 minutes for the 10 inch cakes and the 9 inch cakes will take longer to bake through in the center.
- Take out the cake layers from the oven, cool for 5 minutes. Use a thin knife to go around the edges of the cake and gently take the cakes out of the cake pan. Place on a cooling rack and cool completely. You can bake the cake layers up to 3 days in advance, but if you don't use them within the first few hours, cover them with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap to keep from drying out and to keep the cake layers fresh.
- Meanwhile, make the frosting.
- With a hand mixer or using a standing mixer and a paddle attachment, mix together the cream cheese and condensed milk, until they are smooth. Use only half a can of sweetened condensed milk.
- Add the sour cream and vanilla. In another bowl and using a whisk attachment, whip up the chilled heavy cream with the powdered sugar until stiff peaks form.
- Gently fold in the whipped cream into the cream cheese mixture until the frosting is smooth.
- Place some aluminum foil around the edges of the plate where you'll be assembling the cake. This will keep the sides of the plate clean while you're working with drippy frosting, crumbs and almonds.
- Cut each cake layer in half horizontally.
- Generously spread each cake layer with frosting. Don't smoosh the cake too much while you're doing it.
- Spread more frosting on the sides and top of the cake. You may need to chill the cake in the refrigerator for a few hours until the frosting has soaked into the cake and to make frosting it much easier. I usually assemble and frost the cake the day before I am planning to serve it.
- Using the palms of your hands, coat the sides of the cake with toasted almonds. Decorate the top of the cake with fruit. If you're going to be serving the cake the next day, leave the fruit off the cake and decorate it before serving.
The recipe for this Fluffy Honey Layer Cake was originally published on August 23, 2013. I have updated the pictures and clarified the instructions to give you the best results.
Thank you for recipe !!! Delicious cake,easy direction,great website.
You're welcome, Galina! I'm thrilled you liked it.
Hi.. I would like to make a easy cake for my sons birthday, but he's allergic to nuts. Do you think it'll taste good with a more of a chocolatey cream (if I were to add cocoa) some Oreo cookie crumbs and omit the fruit? His party theme is "construction" ..
Just omit the nuts, Tanya. In regards to the chocolate frosting - personally I've never tried it, but it's up to you. everybody has different taste preferences. You can definitely omit the fruit as well.
Decorating a cake is very subjective; you can do what ever you'd like. Sounds like a fun party:). Happy birthday to your son!
So I made the cake without nuts/fruit and I added the cocoa to the frosting and It turned out sooo good. Everyone enjoyed it!! Oh and it looked great too (construction theme) .. Thank you for the easy recipe. 🙂
That's awesome! I'm so glad it worked:).
Have you tried walnuts instead? Would it taste diff?
Hi Olga! You can use walnuts if you'd like. Of course, walnuts taste different than almonds. I prefer almonds.
Toasted almonds? Is that by toasting them on fry pan?
You can toast the almonds in a skillet or in the oven, Olga.
hi Olga. I made this cake for a little tea gettogether and everyone loved it.... my husband is a picky eater ....even he said " from now on this is my favorite cake" lol.....
thank u so much for this delicious recipe.....
I have two questions tho
1. does the cream have to be runny the way it was?
2. how long can I freeze biskvit?
Hi Mila,
I'm so glad you guys enjoyed the cake:). Thanks for taking the time to let me know.
I know you can freeze cake layers, but I never do it myself, so I can't tell you from experience. I think it would be fine for a month or so as long as you seal it well.
In regards to the frosting, I like the texture and use it for most of my cakes. It's my family's and mine personal preference. If you prefer your frosting to be thicker, by all means use your own favorite frosting recipe.
This looks so delicious
Olga just wondering if you cooked the condensed milk for the frosting. My sister and I are planning to make this for my daughters birthday. Thanks for you time and I love your blog. God bless!!
Happy birthday to your daughter, Roza!
In my opinion, I think that using cooked condensed milk in the frosting doesn't really go with the flavors of the cake layers, but it might work too.
Hi Olga,
Can you tell me how sweet the cake is? I know everyone has a different opinion of what sweet is, but from 1-10 what would you give it. I tried the Tres Leches cake from Pioneer Women and we didn't finish the cake because it was way too sweet. Also, what do you thing will happen to the cream if I cooked the condensed milk (I like the flavor of it cooked vs raw)?
Just wanted to thank you for keeping up your food blog. I tried numerous of your recipes, and they all turned well. It makes me happy to see women who are good keepers of their home. May God bless your family. Did your little ones arrive?
It's hard to judge how sweet something is since everyone has different preferences, but I normally cut the amount of sugar in most recipes in half, since I don't like things too sweet, either.
In my opinion, I don't think this cake is too sweet. The cake layers are not too sweet and you can make the frosting as sweet as you like by adjusting the amount of condensed milk that you add.
I finally made this cake three weeks ago when I had guests over for dinner. Baking is not my forte, therefore I don't bake often and when I do, I have to have a good feeling about the recipe. This cake was very easy and turned out good. Although 3/4-1 can of condensed milk was suggested to use for the cream, I will be using 1/2 a can tomorrow for Thanksgiving. I will also try adding chocolate ganache(not very sweet) over the cream, since fruit is out of season right now and I think chocolate will complement well. Thank you Olga. Your blog is my reliable "recipe book" that hasn't failed me.
I'm so happy to hear that you enjoyed the cake! Thank you so much for taking the time to tell me.
Chocolate ganache will go great with this cake.
I just made it...we used canned peaches but every else is on spot with the recipe. Sooo yummy😉
I'm happy that you enjoyed it:).
Would it be ok to add cocoa to half of the batter to make half chocolate and have white cake?
Sure, you can, Lena. I prefer the taste of the honey cake layers, but you won't ruin it with cocoa.
Made it on Saturday, and cut it on Sunday. It was perfect, and surprisingly fast to make from beginning to end. This was one yummy cake. Except we didn't have any fresh fruit, and my husband doesn't like any nuts on the cakes, so I omitted those.
I didn't have 2 pans of exact size, so I used a 9 inch, and other a 10 inch. Once they baked, I trimmed the larger cake edges, grated them and that's what I used for the sides and topping, simple and delicious. Next time, I'd have to buy the fruit, sounds like a great combination.
That's awesome to hear, Oksana! Very innovative of you to figure out how to make the recipe work with 2 different sized pans.
Oh, wow! I can't wait to try!!!
I want to ask if you can taste the baking soda in the cake since the recipe uses 2 tspns. (Seems like a lot to me).
Alena, 2 teaspoons is the correct amount for this cake. In my opinion, you can't taste it in the cake. If you don't add the full amount, the cake won't be as tall or fluffy.
Looks very delicious!!! Do you think it would work with fruits on the inside?
Sure, Tanya. I'm sure fruit in the inside would work great too.
Thanks for posting, cake looks very yummy. Will try for sure!!!!
I want to try this recipe. Thank you Olga for sharing 🙂
How long is this cake good in the fridge for?:)
Up to 3 days, Jess.