I had some polenta on my kitchen shelf and I have been trying to have a cupboard clear out of ingredients so that I use up some foody bits. I totally recommend this as it makes the weekly food shopping cheaper and also gets a bit of space back!! I hate wasting food and so was determined to find a yummy recipe to use the polenta in and I definitely found one.
I went on the BBC good food website as my go to helping hand and found this delicious orange polenta cake recipe. I changed it a little but mostly kept the cake the same. The only thing that bugged me was the fact the recipe did not specify an exact measurement of orange juice but I kind of guessed and it turned out to be a lovely moist sponge. I also had a can of mandarin segments in the cupboard and some leftover vanilla frosting in the freezer so this was a good use up session triumph! The texture of the polenta adds a slight coarseness to the cake without being too heavy and dry. The orange juice also provides a yummy moistness to make it taste melt in the mouth. I still have a tiny bit of polenta left so I may be forced to make some polenta cupcakes….
Recipe
Cake
250g unsalted butter, softened
250g golden caster sugar
4 large eggs
140g polenta
200g plain flour
2 tsp baking powder
zest from 2 oranges
125ml orange juice
Glaze
100ml orange juice
100g golden caster sugar
Vanilla Butter Icing
150g icing sugar
75g unsalted butter, softened
1 1/3 tbsp. milk
¼ tbsp. vanilla essence (yes I do mean tablespoons – I like vanilla!)
sprinkles
Decoration
mandarin segments (tinned ones are great and you can use the juice)
Method
- Preheat the oven to 1600C and line the sides and base of a 23cm cake tin. I got quite mathematical here and worked out the circumference using my maths skills!
- Cream the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy.
- Mix in the eggs one at a time so that the mixture does not curdle. Then fold in the dry ingredients.
- Finally add the zest and juice to the cake. Transfer the mix to the lined cake tin.
- Bake for about 35-45 minutes depending on your oven’s personality. My oven tends to bake quickly as the temperatures always seem higher and so I baked mine for 35 minutes.
- Leave the cake to cool in the cake tin and leave to cool further on a wired rack.
- Make the glaze by heating the sugar and juice in a pan. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 5 mins. Drizzle over the cooled cake. Leave this to set for an hour and then spread over the vanilla frosting.
- To make the frosting mix, use an electric whisk to beat the butter until light and fluffy. Then add the icing sugar and beat until creamy and combined. Next add in the vanilla and milk and beat until a desired consistency. Stir in as many sprinkles as you wish.
- Spread over the cake and top with mandarin segments.
This recipe is so tasty. It is great to have with a cup of tea. You can keep it in the fridge but I would recommend serving it at room temperature so that you can enjoy the buttery and juicy texture of the cake itself.
