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Heavenly fluffy, creamy and tender is the cake “Slavyanka”, which has a unique flavor. The secret ingredient that made this cake a gem during the Soviet era is halva. Here I’ll show you how to make the Soviet cake yourself, which was so popular back then and has since been forgotten. It’s pretty easy and requires only a few ingredients. You can find a detailed recipe for the cake “Slavyanka” with exact quantities and step-by-step instructions here at the very bottom.
Soviet nostalgia cake
Even after the decades since the dissolution of the USSR, many former Soviet people have nostalgic memories of the then popular cake “Slavyanka”. It was sold in pastry shops and bakeries in the center of Moscow, but belonged to a rarity. Often you had to stand in line for hours to possibly get hold of the cake. By the way, “Slavyanka” translated from Russian means “The Slav”. The cake was named in honor of Slavic women in the Soviet Union.
The secret ingredient halva
In the USSR, the cake “Slavyanka” was considered a special dessert. This was due to halva, with which the cream was prepared. However, at that time no one could guess what secret ingredient the cake contains, which gives it this unique taste. The cake recipe was kept secret during that time. Only when the magazine “Rabotnitsa” (from Russian “The Worker”) published the recipe, the secret was revealed, surprising everyone. The secret ingredient in the cake was a simple halva, which could be bought anywhere in the Soviet Union.
What is the delicious cake “Slavyanka” made of?
The cake “Slavyanka” proves that it is possible to make a delicious dessert with a special taste even from a few, very simple ingredients. In fact, the Soviet cake consists only of a fluffy sponge cake and a delicate butter cream with the sweetness halva. Despite this, or perhaps precisely because of it, it tastes heavenly delicious and unique.
What kind of halva do I use?
Mainly, the cream for the cake “Slavyanka” is prepared with sunflower, sesame or peanut halva. If you take nut halva, it should not contain coarse pieces of nuts. I made the cake with the Russian sunflower halva. But if you don’t like the distinct taste of this type of halva, it’s best to use sesame or peanut halva.
The cake “Slavyanka” is
- fluffy,
- creamy,
- tender,
- moist,
- soft,
- heavenly delicious,
- with unique flavor thanks to halva,
- aromatic,
- easy to make yourself,
- perfect for dessert during the week or for a special occasion,
- sweet classic of Soviet cuisine.
Recipe for Soviet cake “Slavyanka”
The recipe for the cake “Slavyanka” is absolutely not difficult. It is one of the simplest Soviet cake recipes. Here you can form a rough idea of how the preparation is done, and what you need for it. The exact quantities and step-by-step instructions, according to which you can make the Soviet cake “Slavyanka” yourself, you can find here below in the box recipe.
For the sponge cake you need
- eggs and egg whites,
- sugar,
- flour,
- cornstarch,
- vanilla
- and pinch of salt.
For the cream you need
- finely grated halva,
- room-warm butter,
- sweetened condensed milk,
- egg yolks
- and water.
To soak the sponge cake you will need
- sugar,
- water
- and possibly rum, cognac or liqueur.
To sprinkle the cake you need some finely grated halva.
How to make cake “Slavyanka”: here’s how (See the detailed recipe below.)
- For the sponge cake, beat eggs, egg whites, sugar, vanilla and salt until fluffy, then add flour and cornstarch. Spread the batter on the baking sheet and bake the sponge cake at 180 °C for about 15 minutes.
- For the cream, first boil egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk and water to a pudding-like mass and let it cool. Then whip the butter until fluffy and stir in the pudding mixture in batches. Then fold in finely grated halva into the butter cream.
- Now cut off a narrow edge of the sponge cake and crumble it finely. Cut the sponge cake into three cake layers and soak them with the sugar syrup, which you boil briefly from sugar and water and refine with alcohol. Then spread the cake layers generously with the halva butter cream and stack them on top of each other. Sprinkle the cake with the mixture of sponge crumbs and finely grated halva and chill for about 2 hours. Done!
How to make cake “Slavyanka”: tips and tricks
- To check if the sponge cake is baked, gently press its surface with a finger about the middle. If it springs back after pressing, and no traces remain to be seen, it is ready.
- You can simply omit alcohol in the sugar syrup or use a fruit syrup instead, for example.
- Soaking the sponge cake with the sugar syrup makes the cake taste even more moist and tender.
- Butter and the pudding mass must be room-warm and both about the same temperature when whipped into cream so they can combine well.
- Use sunflower, sesame or peanut halva without nut pieces for the recipe. Note my notes here above for this.
- Decorate the cake any way you like, to your taste.
Video for the cake “Slavyanka” recipe
By the way, on my Youtube channel you can find a short video for the Soviet cake “Slavyanka”. There you can see exactly how to make it yourself. If you don’t want to miss any more videos from me, feel free to subscribe to my channel.
Did you make the cake “Slawyanka” according to this recipe? I’m looking forward to your result, your star rating and your comment here below, how you succeeded and tasted the sweet Soviet classic.
Fancy getting more cake recipes from the Soviet era? Try:
- Cake “Tavrichesky” – luxury Soviet cake from Yalta
- Cake “Muraveynik” – recipe for Russian anthill cake
- “Cherepacha” – recipe for Russian turtle cake
Cake "Slavyanka"
Ingredients
for the batter
- 3 eggs
- 3 egg whites
- 150 g sugar
- 150 g flour
- 30 g cornstarch
- 8 g vanilla sugar
- 1 pinch of salt
for the cream
- 100 g halva finely grated (sunflower, sesame or peanut halva without nut pieces)
- 300 g butter room-warm
- 200 g sweetened condensed milk
- 3 egg yolks
- 70 ml water
for the sugar syrup
- 120 ml water
- 80 g sugar
- 2 tbsp rum (cognac or liqueur)
for the sprinkling
- 90 g halva finely grated
Instructions
Preparation of the batter
- Beat eggs, egg whites, sugar, vanilla sugar and salt to a light and fluffy mixture.
- Mix flour with cornstarch and add it to the egg-sugar mixture to make an airy, thick sponge mixture.
- Spread the batter evenly on a baking tray lined with baking paper, bake the sponge cake in a preheated oven at 180 °C top and bottom heat for about 15 minutes and let it cool.
Preparation of the sugar syrup
- Put sugar and water in a small saucepan and boil briefly, stirring constantly so that the sugar dissolves before it boils. Let the sugar syrup cool.
- Add rum to the sugar syrup and stir.
Preparation of the cream
- Put egg yolks, sweetened condensed milk and water in a small saucepan with a thick bottom and mix with a whisk to a homogeneous mass. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly, then simmer until thickened, about 1 - 2 minutes, and let the pudding mass cool to room temperature, stirring occasionally.
- Beat softened butter for about 5 minutes until fluffy creamy light mass.
- Add pudding mixture to butter in batches, beating each time to form a homogeneous cream.
- Alternatively, transfer about 2 tablespoons of butter cream to a piping bag to decorate the cake.
- Add finely grated halva to the remaining butter cream and gently whisk until homogeneous.
Preparation of the cake
- Cut off about 0.5 - 1 cm thick edge from all sides of the sponge cake and crumble it finely.
- Cut the sponge cake from the short side into three rectangles of the same size and soak them with the sugar syrup.
- Spread the three sponge cake layers generously with the halva butter cream and stack them on top of each other. Spread the sides of the cake with the remaining cream.
- Mix the sponge crumbs with finely grated halva and sprinkle over the top and sides of the cake.
- Decorate the cake as desired with the butter cream transferred to the piping bag and chill for at least 2 hours.
Notes
- To check if the sponge cake is done baking, gently press on its surface with a finger about the middle. If it springs back after being pressed, and no marks remain visible, it is done.
- You can simply omit alcohol in the sugar syrup or use a fruit syrup instead, for example.
- Use sunflower, sesame or peanut halva without nut pieces. For this, follow my notes here above.
- Note the detailed tips and tricks for making the cake "Slavyanka" above in the post.