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LEMON POLENTA CAKE
This cake is a sort of Anglo-Italian amalgam. The flat, plain disc is reminiscent of the confections that sit geometrically arranged in patisserie windows in Italy; the sharp, syrupy sogginess borrows from the classic english teatime favourite, the lemon drizzle cake. It is a good marriage: I love italian cooking in all respects save one - I find their cakes both too dry and too sweet. Here, though, the flavoursome grittiness of the polenta and tender rubble of ground almonds provide so much better a foil for the wholly desirable dampness than does the usual flour. But there is more to it than that. By some alchemical process, the lemon highlights the eggy butteriness of the cake, making it rich and sharp at the same time. If you were to try to imagine what lemon curd would taste like in cake form, this would be it. Although I am greedily happy to slice and cram messily straight into my mouth, letting damp clumps fall where they will, this cake is best eaten - in company at least - with spoon and fork. Either way, consider it a contender for teatime comfort and supper-party celebration alike.
Recipe posted by Nigella
Ingredients
- for the cake:
- 200g soft unsalted butter, plus some for greasing
- 200g caster sugar
- 200g ground almonds
- 100g fine polenta/cornmeal
- 1 1⁄2 teaspoons baking powder (gluten-free if required)
- 3 eggs
- zest 2 lemons (save the juice for the syrup, below)
- for the syrup:
- juice 2 lemons
- 125g icing sugar
- 1 x 23cm springform or other round cake tin
Method
Serves: 16
- Line the base of your cake tin with baking parchment and grease its sides lightly with butter.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C/gas mark 4.
- Beat the butter and sugar till pale and whipped, either by hand in a bowl with a wooden spoon, or using a freestanding mixer.
- Mix together the almonds, polenta and baking powder, and beat some of this into the butter-sugar mixture, followed by 1 egg, then alternate dry ingredients and eggs, beating all the while.
- Finally, beat in the lemon zest and pour, spoon or scrape the mixture into your prepared tin and bake in the oven for about 40 minutes.
- It may seem wibbly but, if the cake is cooked, a cake tester should come out cleanish and, most significantly, the edges of the cake will have begun to shrink away from the sides of the tin. remove from the oven to a wire cooling rack, but leave in its tin.
- Make the syrup by boiling together the lemon juice and icing sugar in a smallish saucepan.
- Once the icing sugar’s dissolved into the juice, you’re done.
- Prick the top of the cake all over with a cake tester (a skewer would be too destructive), pour the warm syrup over the cake, and leave to cool before taking it out of its tin.
Comments
It's the best thing I've ever done in my kitchen! :)
Posted by allmyloving on 4th May 2011 at 21.26
Hey Nigella! My name is Morgan and I'm from Australia.. I'm a very big fan of yours and love your recipes. For me and my little family they are relatable and affordable. I love the sound of this cake. Ive always had an interest in polenta and have only really made egg plant dipped in egg and then in polenta an then pan fried..that tastes soo good. But I will definitely give this one ago!!
Posted by MorganDavis on 4th Jun 2011 at 9.24
Very nice- lemony and buttery. Nice summery flavor. Very moist as described. I used unpeeled almonds. The recipe didn't specify. I didn't get the bright yellow as pictured but I don't think that made a difference in the flavor. Baked for 35 minutes and tester came out clean. Cake not wobbly , wibbly, whatever. Would make again.
Posted by serafinadellarosa on 14th Jun 2011 at 15.09
I made this for my mother's birthday and it came out quite good! 2 little brown spots unfortunately, but I don't bake a lot so I'm very happy with the result!! And it tastes really yummy!
Posted by DesiChan on 19th Aug 2011 at 22.31
Gorgeous! Especially with a little bit of cream......
Posted by dale down on 4th Oct 2011 at 6.13
A very nice lemon, moist flavour and absolute keeper!
Posted by Stany on 1st Nov 2011 at 10.10