Honey and Orange Polenta Cake

Last week I picked up a copy of Stylist Magazine, which I rarely read as it’s almost impossible to find unless you are a morning tube commuter. Flicking through the pages I found a recipe for Honey and Orange Polenta Cake.

It seemed interesting and simple enough for me to make, so I took a picture of it. Three days later I was already glad I had saved the recipe, because it turned out to be one of the most delicious cakes I’ve ever tasted!

What attracted me immediately about the recipe was that it is made with skyr, an Icelandic cultured dairy product similar to yoghurt. I shared a recipe for Skyr Cake with Manuka Honey and Roasted Figs a few months ago and I find this product to be very healthy and versatile. I love it!

In the Honey & Orange Polenta Cake, the skyr is used to soften the cake sponge but also as a topping. The sour taste of the skyr pairs really well with the zesty taste of the sponge, much better than a sickly sweet buttercream would.

The cornmeal / polenta mixed with the ground almonds gives a moist and grainy texture to the cake. While this recipe uses plain flour, you could use just polenta and almonds to make it gluten free.

I also decided to replace the sunflower oil of the original recipe with Vita Coco Coconut Oil as I trust this product to be healthier than a sunflower oil bought from the supermarket.

The result is a dense cake where the sweetness of the orange syrup is balanced by the sour flavour of the skyr. Absolutely delicious!

I really recommend you to try this cake, which is perfect both as an afternoon cake with tea or as an after dinner dessert.

If you like the tableware featured in these photos, the dessert plates, forks and cake slice are by Spode Blue Italian. 2016 marks the 200th anniversary of this iconic tableware design, famous for its blue and white pattern. I love the classic design and the perfect cake size of the plates.

Ingredients

• 150ml Vita Coco coconut oil
• 225g plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 80g caster sugar
• 100g ground almonds
• 120g cornmeal / coarse polenta
• zest of 2 oranges
• juice of 1 orange
• 3 eggs
• 100g honey flavoured Skyr

For the orange and honey syrup

• 100ml runny honey
• juice of 1 orange

For the topping

• 150g of honey flavoured Skyr
• Orange zest / almond flakes to decorate

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease a 20cm round cake tin and line the base with baking paper.

In the bowl of a food processor, mix the flour, sugar, almonds, polenta and zest. Add the oil, eggs, skyr and orange juice. Lightly mix the ingredients into a smooth batter.

Pour the cake mixture into the tin and bake in the centre of the oven for 35-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the cake comes out clean. Remove from the oven and turn out on to a wire rack to cool.

To make the syrup, put the honey and orange juice in a medium saucepan and bring to the boil. Let it simmer for 5 minutes, ten remove from the heat and allow to cool.

Prick the cake all over with a toothpick, then brush generously with the syrup. Once the cake is completely cool, smooth the skyr over the top of the cake and sprinkle with orange zest and almonds.

Store in the fridge for 3-4 days.

Disclaimer: I received Blue Spode Italian tableware for the purpose of a review. All opinions are my own.

For more recipes with Skyr, try this Turmeric and Pistachio Cake.