This baklava layer cake has layers of honey cake that are brushed with a honey milk cake soak, filled with a honey walnut filling and honey buttercream, and drizzled with extra honey.
If you're looking for other honey recipes check out my chocolate honey berry jam cake, blood orange honey bundt cake, or earl grey honey cupcakes.
This post is sponsored by Local Hive™. Thank you for supporting brands that make In Bloom Bakery possible!
Why You'll Love this Baklava Layer Cake
It's easy! This cake has all the delicious flavors of baklava but without the difficulty! The cake mimics the classic dessert with layers of walnut and honey in between honey cake layers.
It's full of delicious honey flavor. Honey is baked into the cake, then each layer gets brushed with a honey milk soak, filled with a honey walnut filling, honey buttercream and then drizzled with extra honey. If you are a honey lover this cake is for you!
It has the best texture. The cake is super moist on it's own, but then gets brushed with a honey milk cake soak which adds even more moisture. The walnut filling adds a slight crunch that works perfectly with the moist cake layers to create the best texture!
Ingredients for Baklava Layer Cake
- Honey- Local Hive™ Great Lakes Honey is the star ingredient in this cake to give it that classic baklava flavor. It is used in the cake, the honey milk soak, buttercream and is drizzled directly onto the cake
- Walnuts- are chopped and mixed into some of the honey buttercream to make a delicious filling for the cake
- Cake Flour- gives the cake the best texture and crumb, you can substitute all purpose flour, but cake flour does work best in this recipe
- Granulated Sugar- used to sweeten the cake along with the honey
- Butter- softened, unsalted butter is used in the cake and to make the honey buttercream
- Egg Whites- just the whites help to make this cake extra fluffy
- Buttermilk- makes this cake extra moist, make sure it's room temperature
- Cinnamon- just a tiny bit adds warmth to the cake
- Baking Powder & Baking Soda- used to leaven the cake layers and give them their fluffy texture
- Vanilla- as always I recommend vanilla bean paste for the best flavor, but extract will work just fine as well
- Powdered Sugar- used to make the honey buttercream, make sure it's sifted
- Milk- just a little is used to make the honey milk cake soak
Step by Step Instructions
STEP ONE: Cream butter and sugar together. Then add in egg whites and vanilla and combine.
STEP TWO: Then mix in honey and buttermilk. In a separate bowl whisk together the cake flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
STEP THREE: Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until the batter is smooth.
STEP FOUR: Divide the batter between three six-inch cake pans and bake. (See recipe below for entire recipe with measurements and baking time.) Then let the cakes cool.
STEP FIVE: While the cakes bake and cool make the honey buttercream. Add butter and salt to a bowl and mix with an electric mixer until the butter is pale and fluffy, 5-10 minutes. Then mix in honey. Add in sifted powdered sugar a little at a time until all is combined. Mix until the frosting is light and fluffy.
The whipped butter should be super pale and fluffy. 
STEP SIX: Take one cup of the honey buttercream and mix it together with a chopped walnuts. Make the honey milk cake soak by combining warm milk and honey together in a small bowl.
STEP SEVEN: When the cakes are completely cooled assemble the cake! Add the honey buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a decorative tip. (My favorite tip to use is my Wilton 1M.) First, make each cake layer even by cutting off the domed tops of the cakes. Then place the first layer down and brush it with the honey milk soak, about ⅓ of the mixture. Next spoon ⅓ of the walnut filling onto the center of the cake layer and even it out. Then pipe swirls of frosting around the edges of the cake layer. Place the next cake layer over the top and repeat the steps twice. When the cake is assembled, add extra walnuts on top and drizzle on extra honey.
See the recipe below for complete measurements and baking time!
Then serve the cake! Store leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.
FAQs
Can I use a different kind of nut in this cake? Yes absolutely. A great substitute would be pistachios or pecans.
Can I bake the cake in two eight-inch or two nine-inch cake pans? Yes, baking times will vary though. Check for doneness at 28 minutes and add time as necessary.
Can this be made gluten free? I have not tested this recipe with gluten free flour but if you try it let me know!
Pro Tips
Make sure all the wet ingredients are room temperature for the best cake. Cold wet ingredients can make the cake "gummy".
Weigh cake batter in the pans to ensure the batter is equally distributed between the pans. This will help you have even cake layers.
Use parchment paper rounds in the bottom of your cake pans to ensure the cakes do not stick.
You'll know the cakes are done baking when a toothpick comes out clean from the centers, the edges begin to pull away from the sides of the pans and the tops "bounce" back when lightly pressed upon.
Other Recipes To Try
Chocolate Honey Cake with Berry Jam Filling
📖 Recipe
Baklava Layer Cake
Ingredients
For the Honey Cake
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 4 egg whites, at room temperature
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- ½ cup honey Local Hive™ Great Lakes Honey
- 1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature
- 2 ¼ cups cake flour, sifted
- 1 ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon baking soda
- ½ teaspoon salt
For the Honey Buttercream
- 1 ½ cups unsalted butter, softened
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup honey Local Hive™ Great Lakes Honey
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar, sifted
For the Walnut Filling
- 1 cup chopped walnuts
- 1 cup honey buttercream from above
For the Honey Milk Cake Soak
- ¼ cup whole milk
- ¼ cup honey Local Hive™ Great Lakes Honey
For the Honey Drizzle/Decoration
- ¼ cup honey Local Hive™ Great Lakes Honey
- ¼ cup whole walnuts
Instructions
For the Honey Cake
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray three six-inch cake pans with non stick spray and line the bottoms with parchment paper rounds. Set aside.
- Add the butter and sugar to a large bowl and cream together with an electric mixer.
- Then add in the egg white and vanilla and mix until smooth, about 1 minute.
- Next add in the honey and buttermilk and combine.
- In a separate bowl whisk together the cake flour, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until the batter is smooth.
- Evenly divide the batter between the prepared cake pans. Bake the cakes for 29-34 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean from the centers with a few moist crumbs.
- Let the cakes cool in their pans for 10 minutes, then transfer them to a cooling rack to finish cooling.
For the Honey Buttercream
- Add butter and salt to a large bowl and mix with an electric mixer until the butter is pale and fluffy, 5-10 minutes.
- Then mix in the honey.
- Add in sifted powdered sugar a little at a time until all is combined. Mix until the frosting is light and fluffy.
For the Walnut Filling
- Add the chopped walnuts to a bowl along with 1 cup of the prepared honey buttercream. Mix until combined.
For the Honey Milk Cake Soak
- Add the milk to a bowl and microwave it for 10-15 seconds, or until it's slightly warm.
- Then add in the honey and stir to combine.
Assembling the Cake
- When the cakes are completely cooled, assemble the cake.
- First, make each cake layer even by cutting off the domed tops of the cakes.
- Then place the first layer down and brush it with the honey milk soak, about ⅓ of the mixture.
- Next spoon ⅓ of the walnut filling onto the center of the cake layer.
- Add the honey buttercream to a piping bag fitted with a decorative tip. (My favorite tip to use is my Wilton 1M.) Then pipe swirls of frosting around the edges of the cake layer.
- Place the next cake layer over the top and repeat the steps twice.
- When the cake is assembled, add extra walnuts on top and drizzle on extra honey! Then serve.
- Store leftovers in an air tight container for up to four days.
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