Ingredients:
2 cups honey (0.5 liters)
2 cups sugar (400g)
1 cup unsalted butter (250g)
3 eggs
½ cup milk (125ml)
3 tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
7.5 cups all-purpose flour (1 kg)
3.5 oz Christmas spice mix (50g)
2 cups plum jam (0.5 liters)
2 cups cherry plum jam (0.5 liters)
Glaze:
6 tbsp milk
6 tbsp sugar
6 tbsp butter
6 tbsp cocoa powder
3.5 oz chocolate for decoration (100g)
Christmas Spice Mix:
1.75 oz cinnamon sticks (50g)
0.5 oz dried ginger (15g)
0.5 oz cardamom pods (15g)
0.5 oz cloves (15g)
0.35 oz nutmeg (10g)
0.35 oz allspice (10g)
0.35 oz star anise (10g)
0.18 oz black pepper (5g)
Prepare the Christmas spice mix. Break the cinnamon sticks into smaller pieces and chop the dried ginger as finely as possible, since it can be quite hard. Grind everything together in a coffee grinder, working in batches if needed — it may take about five rounds. Mix thoroughly and transfer the blend to an airtight jar.
Dough.
Combine the honey, sugar, and butter in a large bowl and place the bowl over a double boiler. Heat it while stirring until the sugar dissolves completely and the mixture is smooth. Remove the bowl from the heat and let the mixture cool completely.
In another bowl, mix the flour, salt, baking soda, and Christmas spice mix. Bring the milk to a boil and set it aside. Gradually add the cooled honey-sugar-butter mixture to the dry ingredients, beating until smooth, then pour in the hot milk. Knead the dough until it is firm and shiny. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 to 4 weeks to mature.
On the day of baking, remove the dough from the refrigerator 2 hours before baking. Transfer the dough to a floured surface and divide it into three equal parts. Roll each part out to a thickness suitable for your baking pan, then place it in the pan lined with parchment paper (I rolled it directly in the pan on lightly floured paper). Preheat the oven to 340°F (170°C) and bake each layer for 15 to 20 minutes. The layers should nearly double in size and turn golden brown. Let the layers cool.
Once cooled, wrap the layers in foil and refrigerate for another 3 to 7 days. When ready to assemble, remove the layers from the refrigerator, unwrap them, and cut each layer in half, resulting in six layers. Mix the plum jam with the cherry plum jam and generously spread the mixture between the layers to create two cakes with three layers each. Wrap the assembled cakes in foil again and refrigerate for an additional 2 to 5 days.
The day before serving, make the chocolate glaze. Melt the milk, sugar, butter, and cocoa together in a double boiler, stirring until smooth. Pour the glaze over the cakes and sprinkle grated chocolate on top.
