I love Honey and Lemon Cake cake because it perfectly combines the sweetness of honey with the bright, zesty flavor of lemon. This combination makes it a standout dessert that’s just too good not to share. The theme for this Sunday Supper was citrus, and I couldn’t have been more excited to make this cake.

Citrus fruits always lift my mood. The scent of limes takes me back to Latin America, even though I often use them in Asian dishes and mojitos. Lemons, on the other hand, remind me of summer days regardless of the weather outside.

Perfecting my honey and lemon cake took a few tries, but the result was worth it. The cake is essentially a simple sponge with a few special touches. The honey adds a rich, deep flavor that pairs beautifully with the zingy lemon, and together they create a perfectly balanced, moist cake, even when using gluten-free flour.

You can pair this honey and lemon cake with wine, tea, or cocktails (honey Whiskey Sour or Lemon Drop Martini). This is how to make lemon ginger honey cake:

Ingredients

For the cake

100 g butter
50 g caster sugar
50 g honey
3 eggs
175 g self-raising flour, I used a gluten-free blend
1 lemon
1 tsp ginger

For the glaze

4 tbsp icing sugar
2 tsp honey
Lemon juice
Flaked almonds to decorate

Instructions

For the cake

Grease and line a small, round cake tin. Preheat the oven to 170^oC.
Cream the butter, sugar and honey together, then beat in the eggs one at a time. Add a pinch of flour with the last egg to prevent the mixture from curdling.
Fold in the rest of the flour, incorporating lots of air.
Grate in the zest of the lemon – be careful to only grate the yellow outer zest, as the white underneath can be bitter.
Cut the lemon in half and squeeze in the juice from one half of the lemon.
Add the teaspoon of ginger and lightly stir so all the ingredients are mixed in.
Spoon the mixture into the tin and bake in the center of the oven for about 45 mins. Check that the cake is cooked through with a skewer. If it comes out clean, the cake is done.
Leave the cake to cool for a few minutes in the tin, then turn it out onto a wire rack and leave it to cool completely.

For the glaze

Once the cake is cool, put the two tsp of honey and the juice from the remaining half of the lemon into a pan. Heat briefly just until the honey becomes more ‘liquidy’. Remove from heat and seive in the icing sugar, stirring well. You should have a runny consistency, not too thick.
Pierce the cake several times with a fork, then spoon over the glaze. Don’t worry if it runs all over the place – that is part of the charm!
Before it sets, decorate with flaked almonds.
Once the glaze is dry and cool, dust the cake with icing sugar.
Serve on its own or with a dash of cream.