Lemon Almond & Polenta Cake

Hello! Sorry that this post is so late. Just competed 4 night shifts this morning and the nights were pretty busy.

This, my friends, is one of the best lemon cake recipes I have tried to date! Here's how it all began..

I babysit this adorable little boy once in a while. I spend most of my time watching Starhub TV while he sleeps. My job is to watch over him for the evening until his parents return for an evening out. The last time I babysat him, I flipped through TV channels and ended up watching Nigella Lawson bake this awesome cake. I've never paid too much attention to her but this recipe caught my eye. Like I've said before, there's something about lemons. Anyway, this cake is special. If you're crazy about lemons but don't like the sugar loaded cake that may come with them, try this out. The ground almonds keep the cake real moist and the polenta makes the cake more grainy; a nice change in texture I found! Otherwise, it's pretty much like a lemon drizzle cake. Great for afternoon tea.

BBC Food:

Polenta is a golden-yellow Italian cornmeal made from dried, ground maize (corn), and also the name given to the savoury cornmeal porridge that’s made by mixing cornmeal with water and simmering and stirring until it thickens - a staple dish of northern Italy. Polenta can be ground coarse or fine and is widely used in the southern states of America to make a variety of dishes, including cornbread, because maize is a major crop in the US.

INGREDIENTS

• 200g Ground Almonds
• 100g Polenta
• 200g Butter
• 200g Caster Sugar
• 3 eggs
• 2 large lemons
• 1 tsp Double Acting Baking Powder
• 6 tbs Caster Sugar for syrup

METHOD

1. Beat sugar and butter until fluffy
2. Add eggs one at a time and mix well
3. In a separate bowl, mix ground almonds, polenta and baking powder together
4. Continue to beat the egg mixture while gradually adding the dry ingredients a few spoonfuls at a time
5. Grate the zest of the lemons into the cake mix and stir well
6. Pour cake mix into a greased 8" round tin and bake in a 180 degrees C oven until a skewer inserted comes out clean (approx. 40-45mins)
7. Leave cake to cool before removing from tin
8. When cake has cooled, juice the 2 lemons
9. Heat the 6 tbs of sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan over low heat until the sugar has dissolved
10. Using a piece of spaghetti or a very thin skewer, poke many holes all over the top of the cake
11. Pour the lemon syrup over the top of the cake and leave it to soak it all in
12. Garnish as desired

Go on, try it!!

God bless,

Amy.