Delicious egg-free French honey cakes with a lovely smooth texture. They're lightly spiced and topped with marmalade to give a delightful bitter contrast to the sweetness of the cake and then drizzled with orange icing.
200mlgood quality runny honey(I used 175 ml Cornish honey with 25 ml of my homemade dandelion honey)
100glight brown sugar
100mlmilk
100mlwater(I used 90ml water and 10ml of homemade orange liqueur)
8cardamom pods
1small orangegrated zest
175gplain flour (all purpose flour)
125gwholemeal rye flour
2tspbaking powder
1tspbicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
50gwhite chocolatechopped (optional)
12tspseville marmalade
Glaze
2tbspicing sugar
2tsporange juice or orange liqueur
Instructions
Nonnettes
Melt the butter in a large saucepan.
80 g unsalted butter
Add the honey and sugar.
200 ml good quality runny honey, 100 g light brown sugar
Turn off the heat and add the milk. Stir until smooth then leave to cool a little.
100 ml milk, 100 ml water
Meanwhile, grind the seeds from the cardamom pods in a pestle and mortar and add to the mix along with the orange zest.
8 cardamom pods, 1 small orange
Sift the dry ingredients into the pan and gently stir until the mixture just comes together.
175 g plain flour (all purpose flour), 125 g wholemeal rye flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda (baking soda)
Stir in the chocolate pieces, if using.
50 g white chocolate
Leave in a cool place or the fridge to stand for half an hour.
Divide the mixture between twelve buttered silicone muffin moulds. You can use tinned ones, but the mixture is very sticky and they might be hard to get out.
Place a teaspoonful of marmalade on the top of each one.
12 tsp seville marmalade
Bake in a preheated oven at 180℃ (160℃ fan, 350℉, Gas 4) for 20-25 minutes. They're done when they're well risen and the tops are golden and firm to the touch. If unsure use a cake tester. If it comes out more or less clean, they're good to go.
Leave to cool in their moulds.
Icing
Mix the icing sugar with the orange juice to form a slightly runny icing. Go carefully when adding the orange juice as you may need slightly more or slightly less.
2 tbsp icing sugar, 2 tsp orange juice
Drizzle over the warm cakes whilst still in their moulds. Leave to cool completely, then turn out.
Notes
When I first made these nonnettes, I added white chocolate. They add lovely little caramelised bites. However, I generally don't any more as they sort of distract from the more subtle cardamom and orange flavours. They also add more sugar to the mix.The cakes are actually better eaten the next day, so they're excellent cakes to make if you want to get ahead. They'll keep well in a sealed container for four to five days.You’ll find additional tips and info about this recipe in the main body of the post.Please note: calories and other nutritional information are per serving. They’re approximate and will depend on serving size and exact ingredients used. Please refer to my nutrition disclaimer for further information.