Gluten free blood orange polenta cake recipe
Give your guests a taste of sunshine with this gluten free Italian-inspired dessert. Made from polenta, also known as maize flour, this cake brings together the flavours of blood oranges, cardamom and almonds.
Key information
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 40-50 minutes
Serves: 10
Recipe difficulty rating: Medium
Allergens: Remember to provide a list of potential allergens for each item served at your Coffee Morning event so people can clearly see what ingredients they contain. You can use our cake labels, but make sure you write clearly in block capitals and black ink.
Ingredients
For the syrup and blood orange
Round Cake tin 23cm
45g unsalted butter
140g light brown sugar
16ml lemon juice
3 medium blood oranges
5 cardamom pods
1 sprig of rosemary
For the cake batter
200g unsalted butter
200g light brown sugar
3 free range eggs
16ml vanilla extract
200g ground almonds
100g coarse polenta
1 zest of orange
1 tsp orange blossom water
70g crème fraiche
3g baking powder (gluten free)
How to prepare blood orange polenta cake
- Heat the oven to 180°C/160°C fan and grease a spring form round tin (23cm), line the bottom and sides with baking paper and grease again.
- In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt 45 g butter. Then add the brown sugar and lemon juice, cardamom pods and rosemary sprig. Stir until the sugar melts, about 3 minutes. Remove the aromatics with a spoon and then scrape the syrup into the bottom of the prepared tin.
- Grate the zest from orange and reserve for the cake batter. Then slice off the tops and bottoms of both oranges. Remove the rind and pith, following the curve of the fruit from top to bottom. Then cut the oranges into 0.5 mm wheels. Arrange the wheels on top of brown sugar mixture in a single, tight layer.
- Beat the butter and sugar in a large bowl until light and creamy. Beat in the eggs one after the after, and stir in the vanilla extract.
- In a second bowl combine the ground almonds, polenta, orange zest, orange blossom water and baking powder. Stir this into the cake mix.
- Pour the batter over the syrup and blood oranges and bake for 40 -50 minutes, until the top is light brown and cake is slightly loose from the sides of the tin.
- Allow to cool for 10 minutes. Remove from the tin and carefully turn out onto a plate. Delicately remove the greaseproof paper from the cake. Serve with crème fraiche, and a grating of orange peel,