Ingredients
For the cake: 3 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder ¼ cup cornstarch 1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg 1 teaspoon cinnamon 2 sticks (1 cup) salted butter, at room temperature 2 cups sugar ½ cup honey 6 large eggs, separated, at room temperature 2 cups milk, at room temperature 2 tablespoons vinegar 1 tablespoon almond extract ½ cup poppy seeds ½ teaspoon cream of tartar For the frosting: 3 sticks (1 ½ cups) salted butter, at room temperature 7 ½ cups powdered sugar 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract 1 ½ teaspoons almond extract 3 tablespoons honey 3 tablespoons half-and-half, plus more if needed poppy seeds for sprinkling
Preparation
Prepare 3 9-inch cake pans by spraying them thoroughly with nonstick spray. Line the bottoms with parchment paper. Set aside. Sift the dry ingredients into a large bowl: flour, baking powder, cornstarch, nutmeg, and cinnamon.
In a stand mixer, cream the 2 sticks of butter, 2 cups of sugar, and half cup honey until light and fluffy, at least 2 minutes, scraping the sides as you go. Separate the 6 eggs: the whites need to go in a separate large bowl (if you have 2 bowls for your stand mixer, use the other one). Add the yolks to the butter mixture, one at a time, stirring in between each addition. Make sure you scrape the sides well. Beat until it is smooth and creamy.
In a small bowl, combine the milk, vinegar, and almond extract. Add the milk mixture and the flour mixture alternately to the butter mixture, stirring after each addition until just combined. Gently fold in the poppyseeds.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Add the ½ teaspoon cream of tartar to the eggs whites. Using an electric mixer, beat the whites until soft peaks form. Add the beaten egg whites to the cake batter in 3 additions, folding in until just combined. Divide the batter evenly among the 3 prepared cake pans. Bake 30-40 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool 10 minutes. When you can handle the pans, remove the cakes to a wire rack. Peel off the parchment paper. At this point, you can either freeze the cakes to frost later, or do it immediately.
To freeze: While the cakes are still hot, wrap each cake tightly in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil. Freeze for several hours, or up to 10 days. The night before you want to frost, place them in the fridge to defrost.
To frost immediately: let the cakes cool completely, then wrap tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate until cold, at least an hour.
To make the frosting: beat together the butter and sugar until a thick paste forms. Then add the extracts, honey, and half & half, adding more if it seems too thick. Beat until fluffy.
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