Rye and Buckwheat Honey French Spice Bread

As per tradition, a real French Spice Bread should be made with only rye flour, and dark buckwheat honey as a sweetener (no sugar). You won’t find any butter in it, as it is indeed a bread – not a cake – far less sweet and much drier than its American cousin, the gingerbread.

As a matter of fact, for the story, a Pain d’épices was originally a sourdough bread made without any added leavening; the flour and honey mixture would be left in a wooden vessel to rest in a cool place for months, during which the honeyed rye flour experienced fermentation. Modern versions of this spice bread now simply relies on baking powder for rising. Because this is such a popular bread in France, you can find many takes and recipes for it.

I myself have a tradition of baking at least one (usually two or three) loaves of it around Christmas time, and this is the recipe I have crafted and tweaked along the way. For me, it is a perfectly dense and just sweet enough spice bread.

It is just delicious on its own, cut in thin slices and enjoyed with foie gras, cheese or simply butter (remember, it is much drier than a cake, so treat it just like a bread). Or you can do what I did here, and serve it as a dessert with a simple sugar glaze – perfect for the Holidays! Cooking note:

• I opted for a round bundt cake loaf pan; as I wanted to serve it like a cake for a dessert. But to keep it traditional, you can use a rectangular loaf pan.

(Older photo of this same spice bread recipe, with no glaze) If you try this Rye and Buckwheat Honey French Spice Bread, let me know!

Leave a comment or share a photo on Instagram tagging @pardonyourfrench or using #pardonyourfrench. I’d love to see what you come up with.

Bon Appétit! A recipe inspired by Jujube en Cuisine, Cuisine d’Aubery and the book: le Tour de France Gourmand de Julie Andrieu