Russian Honey Cake is a gravity-defying layered cake with notes of honey and caramel. It is decadent, beautiful and absolutely delicious.

Honey cake is made up of crispy and thin cake layers that are separated by a thick cream cheese frosting. The end result is an eye-catching dessert that is sure to impress.
Honey cake hails straight from Russia. Medovik, which translates to “honey” in Russian, is a popular dessert that is reserved for only the most special of occasions.
Are you obsessed with honey cake? Try your hand at making another Momsdish favorite — Honey Sponge Cake.
Tips for Making the Best Russian Honey Cake
- Make the Layers in Advance: This cake is awesome because you can make the layers a week in advance. Just make sure to cover them tightly with plastic wrap and store them in a plastic bag until you are ready to assemble.
- Cream: Bring your butter and cream cheese to room temperature and keep your heavy cream very cold. This makes the whipping process much easier, while also creating an awesome texture.
- Don’t Overmix Cream: Once you add the heavy cream to your cream cheese and butter, pay extra mind to not overmixing your frosting. Overmixing cream cheese frosting can lead to a runny texture that will not spread well on your honey layer.
- Give it Time to Set: After you assemble your cake, allow it to set it in the fridge for at least 12 hours. This will not only help with the cake’s overall stability, it will also make it much more moist.
- Tailor the Cream to Your Taste Buds: If you want to skip out on the cream cheese or butter, feel free. If you remove the butter, compensate by adding more cream cheese and vice versa.

Making Honey Cake From Scratch
- Start a steam bath. In a glass bowl, add your honey, butter and sugar. Place the bowl on top of your steam bath and stir until combined and melted.
- In a separate bowl, beat eggs and baking soda together. Slowly add the egg mixture to your honey, butter and sugar mixture, stirring continuously.
- Once ingredients are fully incorporated, cook for an additional 30 to 40 minutes over the steam bath until the color becomes a rich caramel brown. Remove from the steam bath and add the vanilla extract and flour.
- Preheat the oven and flour your working surface generously. Separate your dough into even sized balls. With a rolling pin, roll out each ball into a thin layer. To make your life easier, roll the dough out directly onto your baking sheet.
- Bake each cake layer until golden brown (about 7-8 minutes). To make your layer a perfect circle, take the dough out and cut a perfect circle by using a plate as a stencil. Save your scraps for decorating.
- Allow your cake layers to completely cool before you begin assembling.









- Whip your cream together.
- Assemble your cake by frosting each layer with equal amounts of cream.
- Decorate the outside as you please! I like to food process the cake scraps into a crumbly topping that I spread on the top and sides of the cake for a pretty effect. Allow the cake to set in the fridge overnight. Pull it out of the fridge 30 minutes before you plan to serve.




How do you Store Honey Cake?
- Refrigerate: Keep your cake in a sealed cake container. This cake tends to absorb the smells of the fridge, so you want to make sure it’s stored airtight!
- Freezing: You can make this cake in advance and freeze it for up to a month. Fresh cake is always supreme, but this definitely is a viable option. Pull out the cake from the freezer and allow it to thaw overnight.
A Few More Russian Cakes
- Dulce De Leche Cake -This is the king of caramel cakes. Sweetened condensed milk makes this treat so luscious.
- Sharlotka Cake – This easy apple cake brings me right back to my childhood.
- Spartak Cake – Thin, chocolate cake layers are separated by a thick cream in this Eastern European classic.
- Chocolate Honey Cake – Irish creme liqueur makes this cake extra-moist. Little speckles of chocolate are scattered throughout each layer, giving this cake an awesome texture.
Recipe
Russian Honey Cake is a gravity-defying layered cake with notes of honey and caramel. It is decadent, beautiful and absolutely delicious.
Ingredients
- 70 g Butter
- 2 tbsp Honey
- 1 cup Sugar
- 3 Eggs
- 1 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 tsp Vanilla Extract
- 3 cup Flour
Cream
- 200 g Butter
- 8 oz Cream Cheese (room temperature)
- 16 oz Heavy Whipping Cream
- 12 oz Cooked Condensed Milk
Instructions
Cake Layers
- This cake dough is made on a steam bath. Preheat water using a bowl on top of the boiling water, make sure the bowl does't melt. Place butter, honey and sugar, and let it stand there until it's all melted.
- In a separate bowl, beat eggs with baking soda until they have one consistency. Slowly add egg mixture to the batter, continue mixing the whole time while adding.
- Cook for about 30-40 minutes, until the color changes. Take it off the steam bath, add vanilla extract and let it sit for 10 minutes. Add flour to the dough; it may still be sticky after adding the flour. Preheat the oven to 350 °F and line baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Flour the surface generously. Because the dough is sticky, this will help you work easier with it. Optionally, weigh each piece of dough, to maintain the size. Roll out the dough into a round shape, large enough to be cut out later. Relocate the dough layer to the baking sheet by rolling it onto a roller, then unrolling it back out onto the baking sheet.
- Bake each layer of cake for 5-7 minutes, until golden brown. During the process of baking, roll out another layer to speed up the process. When it's done, remove it from the oven and cut out each circle by placing a plate over the top. This is the key trick to making all sides perfect. You'll need the cut off pieces for decoration, later.
- Do not immediately stack the layers on top of each other, as they will lose its even shape. Rather, make sure they first cool off on a flat surface. Repeat until you are done.
Finalizing Cake
- Whip butter together with cream cheese and condensed milk. Once they are well mixed together, add whipping cream. Whip until the cream is very thick.
- Divide all cream evenly between each layer of the cake. Form the cake by stacking the layers of the cake.
- Shred the leftover cake pieces in a blender and use it to decorate the sides of the cake. Let the cake sit in the fridge overnight. Before serving, let it sit out of the fridge for some time, as it will add more moisture to its taste.
Nutrition Facts
Russian Honey Cake
Amount Per Serving
Calories 562
Calories from Fat 360
% Daily Value*
Fat 40g62%
Saturated Fat 24g120%
Cholesterol 162mg54%
Sodium 410mg17%
Potassium 107mg3%
Carbohydrates 45g15%
Fiber 1g4%
Sugar 20g22%
Protein 7g14%
Vitamin A 1431IU29%
Vitamin C 1mg1%
Calcium 59mg6%
Iron 2mg11%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Hi! I realised too late that I didn't adjust the temperature to a fan oven. All my layers are very dry and crispy, deep brown all the way through. I'm making this cake for tomorrow. Do you think there's any way I can save them? Maybe make extra frosting and make the layers thicker so that the layers become more moist? They don't taste burnt.
Hey Paulina, they should be dry and crispy. They absorb cream and become moist. I think the cake should still come out great if they weren't burned.
I made it as per the recipe and tried some today, it's delicious 🙂 so I think it's all good although I think the layers were slightly overdone (mine were like biscuits, when I cut them to shape the spares broke/crushed into lots of small pieces instead of just coming off whole like on your photo). Thank you for your quick reply!
I would suggest either lowering temperature or reducing bake time. It sounds like the oven might be hotter than normal.
Hi! I ended up using just sweetened condensed milk on accident instead of the cooked! Is mine going to taste alright??
Hey Kayla, in the cream? I think it will taste great but it will not have that caramel flavor to the cake.
Planning for baking for Christmas..........beginner baker but taking up the challenge can I omit the heavy whipping cream in the frosting?
Hey Aleena, if you follow all the spets closely you will have an amazing outcome. I would suggest not changing anything unless you find a mother cream recipe you prefer.
How long does it keep for because of the cream ?
If you keep it in a sealed container refrigerated, for at least a week.
hey is it ok if i add some lemon juice in to make it a bit citrus-y? thanks:)
Hey Adina, you can add a little but have to be careful because lemon juice in a cream can cause it to curdle.
How thick should each layer be?
Hey Anna, I personally roll them out as thin as I possibly can.
Hello,
How many layers of dough does it yield?
Hey Mira, I typically get 12-14 layers. Enjoy
❤️
Thank you for this recipe. I enjoyed attempting this cake. My finished cake had total 4 layers to frost and the cake part is a soft cookie dough texture. Is that the right texture or am I mistaken in thinking it was meant to be crispy? I only baked the cake dough for 5 mins each so maybe I should have baked longer.
It should be slightly crispy because keeping it softer could cause it to fall apart. The layers soften as they sit with cream.
Hi. What is a steam bath? Is this the same as using a double boiler?
Yes, using the double boiler.
Also another question: when you say "Cook for about 30-40 minutes, until the color changes. " since there is egg in it, do i need to whisk it the whole 30-40 minutes while its cooking?
Hey Amanda, you don't need to do it the entire time but the majority of the time. Youn don't want the edges to burn or curl up.
My daughter is from Russia, so for her 21st birthday last week I made your recipe for honey cake. Everyone said it was the BEST cake they have ever had. My son wants it for his birthday and my daughter wants it for her wedding! The recipe was easy to understand and follow. The only thing I may have not done right is the condensed milk. It says cooked, but I didn't know what that meant. It still turned out lovey.
Hey JeanAnne, thank you for sharing. I am so happy to hear that your family enjoyed it. Cooked condensed milk is dulce de leche, it has a caramel flavor.
This is a really incredible recipe! Such an amazing cake. Thank you for all of the thoughtful tips and tricks - it made it easier than I would have guessed to make!
Hey Cyd, I am so happy to hear that you enjoy the recipe and found all the tips useful. Thanks for sharing your feedback.
Love how easy it is to follow the recipe! The step by step photos are so helpful! Taste amazing!
Thank you Ashley. When it comes to cakes, we really need to go all out on the photos.
What a beautiful cake! I love the layers & the hint of honey!
Hey Kristyn, thank you for a sweet compliment.
Made this cake. Super yummy!
Anna, I am so happy to hear this. Thank you!
Is this the same recipe as before? The cream looks different. I am taking about honey cake with jam and candy bees 🐝 on top.
Hey Liya, the cake and cream is the same. We just removed the bees. 🙂
Hi, I recently made a honey cake with a batter, not a dough. After baking the dough and cooking, would it be ok to freeze until needing it? Also, what is the traditional icing for a honey cake? I’ve seen variations of sour cream, whipped cream and now cream cheese etc?
I would recommend laking layers and freezing them rather than dough. Dough hardens as it cools down, I am worried it will be hard to work with if you freeze it. The cream is not traditional, the traditional honey cake has sourcream with sugar.
Hi Natalya, have spent this afternoon making your honey cake and it looks amazing. Your recipe was so easy to follow and we can't wait to try it tomorrow. Thank you so much. Fiona x
Hi, thanks for your feedback. I would love to know what you think of the cake once you try it 🙂 Enjoy!
Hi Natalya! I wanted to find out if the frosting is really sweet in this cake.
I am getting tired of my frosting so wanted to try yours. I usually whip heavy cream, some sugar and add some good quality sour cream. I really want to use this filling next time.
Thanks.
Your guys video wa awesome! Thanks for sharing such a personal story.
I mean its a cake so it will be sweet lol...It not overly sweet but you can control it by adding less or more of dulce de leche.
Thank you, Natalya! All of your recipes are a big hit! Everything always turns out perfect?
Oh my!! you are too sweet.
Natalya thank you very much for the recipe. I made it for my dads birthday and it was a huge hit .
I love it!!! Thanks for sharing with me.
Made the layers last night and stumbled upon a few problems. I cooked the butter, sugar and honey mixture and at only about 15 minutes it seemed to have the same colour as yours, but since instructions called for 30-40 I decided to keep going. At 25 mins I had to take it off the heat because the mixture was getting sticky and difficult to stir. I believe that's also why I could only manage to add in half of the flour and it was dry and crumbly. Somehow I managed to roll them out and bake them. They puffed up in the oven but came out pretty flat with some wrinkles. Husband (who is Russian) said they taste how they should, but are chewier. I'm going to make the cream and assemble the cake now, hopefully it will be a success in the end. I think the mistake was to overcook the honey, butter and sugar mixture. You may want to change your instruction to: "cook for 30-40 mins or until it changes color". You have amazing pictures for each step, so bakers; trust the color in the pic, not your timer 🙂 Thank you for the recipe! Regardless of the result it has been fun to try and I'm sure I'll give it another go.
Hi Sophie, thanks for all the tips in your comment. I will have to test it out again and see if anything needs to be changed. How did you like the cake?
Hi Natalya. Sorry I forgot to come back and say that the cake turned out a huge success! I served it to my husband and his Russian friends and they couldn't stop complimenting it 🙂 I'll try to cook the mixture less next time anyway, but the flavor and moist texture was divine. Thank you!
In reference to cooking time, maybe try cooking it on lower heat. Thank you so much for sharing all the feedback you shared.
Question about the "Cooked Condensed Milk." Is this just regular sweetened condensed milk? Did you cook it? If so, how? Thanks! Can't wait to try this.
You can actually purchased as we call it cooked condensed milk. But it is dulce de leche, sold at walmurt Hispanic section. If your walmart doesn't have it you can use this method of cooking it at home http://natashaskitchen.com/20…
Thanks for sharing such a wonderful cake! It looks yummy! after you divide all cream evenly between each layer of the cake and form the cake shape by putting the layers of cake on top of each other then you covered the top & sides of the cake with cream ,you put yellowish shinning butter on it which give the cake a delightful look! will you please tell me what was that yellow butter on the cake? Thank you again.
The top is covered with peach jam actually. It created more of a honey look to it.
Photo from one of my Instagram friends. She made this cake and I just wanted to share her pretty creation!
I'm trying to make the frosting part - have done the cream cheese, butter, cooked condensed milk and now the whipping cream but it just will not thicken. Any tips?!
Hey, it should be pretty thick. If it's fluffy than leave it refrigerated for a bit, it will thicken. Let me know how it goes. I just wonder if you overbeat the cream and not whipping cream broke apart.
I think i messed up and overbeat it. I tried to put it in fridge but when i brought it out and attempted at layering the cake it looked like it was separating. Will it still be okay to eat or should I just throw it? 🙁 Was really looking forward to this. Dang
Yes, it is ok to eat it. It will probably taste the same too. Just wouldn't look exactly the same.
Thanks so much. I made this recipe and LOVED it! Now I am living eslehere thoguh, and do not have an oven! 🙁 Any ideas on a shop bought biscuit i could replace the layers with?
Gram crackers could work but the flavor would be different because this cake has a pretty intense honey flavor.
This is my moms favorite recipe. We make it on every b-day. But the only difference is that our cream is different. In the classical, moms, recipe we use sour cream (~30% since there is such in here, but it's not heavy cream) with sugar until it begins to thicken a bit. Then add them between the layers and let the cake sit for few days in the fridge. I changed my moms recipe with adding yogurt (with gelatin) and some fruits. It taste rather light and helps the layers to be moist.
Hi. I wanted to know how many grams was the dough after you made it and into how many parts u divided it? how many layers also you got from the amount of dough?
thank you
I had nine layers, I didn't weigh all dough. Only individual pieces so I would have them exactly same size.
Thank you for your time and effort in sharing this recipe. I would just like to know if it is possible to freeze the cooked biscuit layers for future use when needed. Thank you Susan.
Hi Susan, you can store cake layers in a why place for up to a few weeks. They are almost like gram crackers and wouldn't go quick. I think you can also freeze them but haven't tried that.
Im wondering... is the final result of the cake/cookie layer expected to be crisp or spongy?
It will be soft, not crispy but you can still see individual layers. The layers get soaked in with cream and have a really tasty flavor to them.
Great! thanks for your reply. Will definitely try this asap.
This cake looks delicious, planining to make this cake but Im confused with 200 grams of Butter; Cream. Does this mean regular butter and cream it?
Butter is for the cream. I will correct it so it's more clear. 😉
Do I use butter or cream please let me know making it this weekend
Butter is used for preparing the cream for the cake. Hope this helps.