Russian Honey Cake
This shortcut Russian Honey Cake is made with graham crackers delivers the classic Medovik flavor with minimum effort. It tastes like it took hours to make.
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 40 sheets graham crackers, for the layers
- 10-12 sheets graham crackers, crushed for the coating
For the filling:
- 16 ounces / 2 packets cream cheese
- 4 cups heavy whipping cream, cold
- 1 cup sour cream
- 3/4 cup powder sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Click between "US Customary" or "Metric" button above to switch between conversions. For precise results, it's recommended to weigh your dry ingredients using a digital scale in grams as measuring in cups can have uncertainties.
Instructions
Toast the graham crackers
- To a large baking pan, arrange enough graham crackers to cover the bottom of the pan. Lightly brush the top with butter.
- Bake only the top side at 325°F for 8-12 minutes until golden brown. Depending on the strength of your oven, it may take more or less time but the color should be significantly more brown than before baking. Set aside to cool completely. Repeat until you have enough graham crackers toasted for 10 layers of 4 graham crackers plus an extras for the outside coating. You can also make two cakes of 5 layers each but you will need additional crushed crackers for the outside crumbs.
Make the filling
- Follow the mixing steps exactly for best results. To a kitchen stand mixer bowl or large mixing bowl, add cream cheese. Beat with the whisk attachment on high speed for 2-3 minutes, scrapping the sides and bottom of the bowl frequently until fully combined, smooth, softened and easily spreadable. This is important to avoid clumps. Do not rush this step.
- Once the cream cheese is smooth, add 1 cup of the heavy cream at a time and mix. Beat for 1-2 minutes until the cream cheese is well combined with the heavy cream. Scrap the sides as needed. Add the last cup of the heavy cream with the sour cream, powdered sugar and vanilla extract. Beat until fluffy and soft peaks form. Small clumps may form from the powdered sugar but they should dissolve. If you notice a few big cream cheese clumps at the end, just remove them. It means you didn't beat it enough at the beginning.
Assemble the cake
- No need to assemble this cake in a dish with walls because the cake is sturdy. Pick a serving platter that fits the cake length of 4 graham cracker sheets.
- Place 4 graham cracker sheets side by side on the serving platter to form the first layer. Put a little bit of filling on the bottom to help hold the first layer in place.
- Spread a thick, even layer of the cream filling over the first layer of graham crackers, including the corners of the crackers too. The cream layer should be at least 1.5x to 2x the thickness of the graham crackers. There is plenty of cream so be generous or else when you slice, you won't see any filling. The crackers absorb some of the filing.
- Continue layering four graham cracker sheets followed by the cream filling until you have 10 layers of graham crackers. As you build the cake, scrape the edges of the layers if you notice the cream falling on the sides. Fill in any gaps on the edges.
- After the last layer, finish with the remaining frosting on top and the sides. Use a flat edge spatula to evenly spread and cover the tops and sides of the rectangle cake.
- Sprinkle and press all sides and the top of the cake with crushed graham crackers. It may get messy and might not initially stick but pick up the crumbs and keep lightly pressing and layering the crumbs on all sides until no more cream is visible.
Refrigerate overnight
- Cover loosely and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. This resting time allows the graham crackers to soften into tender cake-like layers. Place in freezer for 1 hour before slicing to make it easier to cut!
Notes
- The most common mistake is not adding enough filling between graham cracker layers. The crackers absorb the filling so be generous with each layer to achieve visible, distinct layers with enough filling in each bite. For best results, refrigerate overnight to the let the layers soften.
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