Medivnyk

The story

Medivnyk, a moist spiced honey cake, belongs to a long Slavic tradition of honey cakes that links Ukrainian cooking with Polish piernik and Czech and Slovak medovník, all of them relying on honey as the main source of sweetness in the days before sugar became cheap and easy to get. The batter is often mixed with sour cream or mayonnaise so the cake stays moist and tender for days after baking, and the traditional Christmas cake is baked in one piece with walnuts and spices; versions layered with a sour cream or butter filling are a more recent fashion. The honey used varies by region and by the season of the harvest, and experienced home bakers claim they can tell a cake made with wildflower honey from one made with buckwheat honey. Medivnyk is often made in advance because, like many honey cakes, it gains in flavor and softness after a few days of resting wrapped in foil. For Ukrainian families in the diaspora, medivnyk is a frequent choice for the holiday table precisely because of that make-ahead convenience.