Here is a recipe for Imbolc Honey Cakes, a traditional dairy-based dessert to celebrate the festival:
Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup honey
2 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions:
Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease and flour a 9-inch round cake pan.
In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.
In a large bowl, beat the butter and honey together until light and fluffy. Beat in the eggs, one at a time, until well combined.
Gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture, alternating with the buttermilk, until everything is just combined. Stir in the vanilla extract.
Pour the batter into the prepared cake pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Let the cake cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Serve the cake with a glass of milk or a cup of tea.
Yes, you can make honey cakes in a cupcake tin. Here’s how:
Preheat your oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a muffin tin with cupcake liners.
Follow the recipe for Imbolc Honey Cakes as described in my previous answer.
Fill each cupcake liner about 2/3 full with the batter.
Bake for 18-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of a cupcake comes out clean.
Let the cupcakes cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
Serve the cupcakes as is, or you can decorate them with frosting or a sprinkle of powdered sugar if you like.
Baking the honey cakes in a cupcake tin is a convenient and portion-controlled way to enjoy the traditional Imbolc dessert.
Here is a simple recipe for a cream cheese frosting that would complement the Imbolc Honey Cakes:
Ingredients:
4 ounces (115 g) cream cheese, at room temperature
1/2 cup (115 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
2 cups (230 g) powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Pinch of salt
Instructions:
In a large bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter together until light and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes.
Gradually add the powdered sugar, 1 cup at a time, until the mixture is well combined.
Stir in the vanilla extract and salt. Beat the frosting for another minute or two until it is light and airy.
Spoon the frosting into a piping bag fitted with a large tip, or simply spread it on top of the cooled Imbolc Honey Cakes using a spatula.
Decorate the cupcakes as desired and serve.
This cream cheese frosting has a tangy, sweet flavor that will balance out the sweetness of the honey cakes, and its light and airy texture makes it a perfect topping for cupcakes. Enjoy!
Enjoy your delicious Imbolc Honey Cakes, and have a happy Imbolc celebration!
You can make buttermilk if you have milk and lemon juice.
The recipe is one that I created with an AI chat bot. Sort of hard to note credit in this case since it pulls from all over the web. Hmmm I’ll have to figure out how to cite it.
Hahaha no worries you don’t need to try & figure all that out… I thought it was like a family recipe that you tweaked. I do that all the time. I have a recipe for… my grandmother’s Southwestern Soup that I did that to & her Pasta Salad one.
I do have a Copy Cat Olive Garden recipe that I’ve done it to also
No, sadly it’s not passed down from my family. Lots of Swedish tea rings and Russian wedding cakes from them but nothing pagan. Plus I’m not the most accomplished baker… I’m learning and trying so the only thing I can bake to perfection is French Bread.
I have an herbed bread recipe for Lughnasdah & a white bread recipe from… either my birth mother or my grandmother
I actually had to mail copies of a few of my grandmother’s recipes & mine to my father. So 1 of them I had to find the original to give him.
I can cook & bake, but depending on what I’m baking I really have to read through it a couple of times first then go step by step or I will either miss something & do something before I’m supposed to Especially cheesecakes
I hear you about making sure you read the recipe a few times! I’ve forgotten salt in things a couple of times. I make my dinners from scratch 5-6 nights a week but I am a cook and not a chef. I can follow a recipe like a champ, but can not wing it or create something on my own.
I’m definitely more of a cook than a chef. I usually have to call my brother for things. Oddly enough, before he went into law enforcement & then the Army for totally nothing culinary related… He actually went to a trade high school for culinary arts & aced it.
Now he likes to cook so I guess thats good & can create things from what is at his house, but none of his career has anything to do with culinary arts
Give me a recipe & I’ll nail it even if I tweak it (as long as it’s not something baked) but if I have to come up with something… I turn it over to my husband or I’m on the phone with my brother if he’s available
Honey, cinnamon and nutmeg- these must taste (and smell) amazing! And the cupcake tin idea is a great way to make serving-sized cakes- great for taking as snacks on the go
This is awesome, @Artemisia- thank you for sharing such a tasty Sabbat recipe!
Whoa- that’s neat! I’ve seen the AI art tools, but I don’t know much about the AI chat bot. Does it help you write anything, or is it mostly for recipes? Either way it sounds really interesting!
Ooh, this sounds delicious! I wasn’t sure that we would bake anything today as I hadn’t found a recipe I loved yet, but this might be what pushes me to do it. Thank you for sharing!
Made it this morning and had it for breakfast! It was delicious! I’ve never made a honey cake before so I wasn’t sure what we’d think of it but my daughter and I loved it. Only changed a the amount of the powdered sugar (less just because I like it not as sweet) but everything else stayed the same.
It is an amazing tool, it can help write recipes, stories, and explain difficult concepts. Plus you can give it feedback to modify the results, like say you are allergic to nutmeg, you tell it and ask it to find a recipe without it. I’ve spent many an hour down that rabbit hole of having it help me write spells, witch jar recipes, chants, stories, and more.
It was my first time making a honey cake and loved this recipe with the modification for cupcakes. The frosting was perfect! Really enjoyed baking these today.
You are making me drool @Aurora_Hestia and @Artemisia- that cake and those cupcakes look amazing!
Whoa- that’s amazing! Technology is advancing much faster than I can keep up with haha- these things keep catching me by surprise
May I ask if there is a specific site or program you like to use? I know the AI Art programs have new ones coming out every day it seems, but I wouldn’t know where to start with trying the AI chat. It’d be interesting to play around with (and maybe try to write some recipes too!)
Milk and vinegar
Adding vinegar to milk gives it an acidity similar to that of buttermilk. You can use various kinds of vinegar, such as apple cider or white vinegar (White Vinegar: Ingredients, Uses and Benefits), but the latter has a more neutral flavor.
Especially cheesecakes 
And the cupcake tin idea is a great way to make serving-sized cakes- great for taking as snacks on the go 
