Orange & Dandelion Honey Cake

Dandelions are still about now – the 21st of April 2025. They were at their very best when I made my honey about 3 weeks ago when the sun was a bit more plentiful but you can still find a flock of them near you before they die back in May. Good old wet-the-beds. They are so welcome when so many things are still in their winter sleep. I always say dandelions can sometimes put people off foraging as they are so bitter but it is their bitterness that is needed to balance the sweetness in this preparation. It is of course not a real honey but it’s such a good swap for it and can be used anywhere you would like honey. I used a recipe by Erin of the Edible Flower for this cake and her guide is so easy and very delicious. If the dandelions are already passed by the time you read this you can absolutely substitute for another flower – primroses, wild rose, hawthorn or elder flower would all be great substitutes. They will all be different but that is the joy of cooking with wild ingredients. Embrace the unexpected! You can also just use real honey in the recipe below or any other syrup that you like. This cake is inspired by an old recipe by Nigella Lawson but adapted to use the dandelion honey instead of syrup. I also swapped the orange for lemon for a seasonal change as orange season is just coming to its end. It’s an excellent and extremely easy cake that will suit most people. A forever recipe.

This cake also works extremely well as individual cakes.

Ingredients

150g ground almonds
150g very fine cornmeal – I purchase mine from the Asian Supermarket
2 tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
¼ tsp fine sea salt
100ml light olive oil plus a little extra
200g caster sugar
1 large navel orange or two mandarins zested and juiced – keep separate
250g Yogurt – I used soy

50g Dandelion Honey or real honey- see introduction above

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 160ºC fan or 180ºC conventional.

2. Line the base of a 20/22 cm spring form cake tin and brush the sides with a little bit of olive oil. Place the cake tin on a baking sheet.

3. Rub the orange zest into the sugar for a couple of minutes to help release some of the oils.

4. Mix together all of the almonds, cornmeal and salt in a medium sized bowl. Sift over the baking powder and bicarb and whisk together ensuring there are no lumps.

5. Add the oil and yogurt to the sugar and stir. Pour into the dry ingredients and stir thoroughly. Transfer to the prepared cake tin and pop into the oven. Bake for 40 minutes. The cake will rise slightly and then slump back into the tin and get golden around the edges. Check with a toothpick or cake tester at the 35 minute mark – it should come out clean.

6. While the cake bakes, warm 50g of the reserved orange juice in a pan and add the dandelion honey to allow it to loosen and warm slightly. I also poached some orange slices while the cake baked in a little bit of orange juice and more of the honey. Optional but very beautiful and delicious.

7. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven brush over the syrup. I focus mostly on the edges which will be drier than the centre. Allow to cool completely before serving with some yogurt and some flower petals.

Tip – This also works very well as individual cakes in lined muffin tins – just cook 15 minutes less.