Passover Honey Nut Cake in Soaking Syrup

This delicious dessert features fresh orange zest, orange juice and honey. The combination of flavors and nuts recalls ancient middle eastern recipes. And since it's made without flour, it's perfect for Passover.

Ingredients

Cake:
* 3/4 cup white sugar
* 1/4 cup brown sugar
* 1/4 cup oil
* 3 eggs
* 3 tablespoons orange juice
* 1 tablespoon orange zest, finely chopped
* 1/4 teaspoon salt
* 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon (use 1/2 tsp for a more pronounced cinnamon flavor)
* 1/2 cup matzo cake crumbs
* 1/2 cup hazelnuts or almonds, finely chopped
* 1 cup walnuts, finely chopped

Soaking Syrup:
* 2/3 cup sugar
* 1/4 cup honey
* 1/3 cup orange juice
* 1/4 cup water
* 1 tablespoon lemon juice
* 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Generously grease a 7 inch round layer cake pan. In a medium sized bowl, using a wire whisk, beat the sugars, oil, and eggs. Beat very well until the mixture is thick and a pale yellow. Stir in orange juice, zest, salt, cinnamon, cake meal, and nuts. Turn Batter into prepared cake pan. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until top is light brown and set. Cool at least twenty minutes before adding Syrup. Meanwhile prepare Soaking syrup.

To prepare Soaking Syrup:

In medium saucepan, heat the sugar, honey, orange juice, water, lemon juice, and cinnamon. Heat to dissolve sugar and simmer 5-10 minutes until mixture becomes slightly thickened. Cool well.

Poke holes in the cake with a fork to allow syrup to soak in. Pour Syrup over cooled cake. Let stand 2 to 4 hours to absorb syrup. If you prefer a firmer consistency, refrigerate the cake while it is soaking in the syrup.