I’d say that blackberries, almonds and orange is one of my favourite flavour combinations, especially at this time of year. With the urge to experiment with polenta in a gluten-free cake, this seemed like the perfect opportunity. They key here is to use the juice of the oranges to moisten the cake (polenta can make a cake really dry) so the result is a delicious sponge spiked with juicy blackberries (get them while they are in season) and scattered with crunch flaked almonds. Enjoy!
Ingredients:
- 1 cup instant polenta
- 1 cup ground almonds or almond flour (I used Sukrin)
- ½ cup plain flour (gluten-free if needed)
- 2 tablespoons coconut sugar or stevia (I used The Coconut Company)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
- 2 eggs (I used The Happy Egg Company)
- 4 tablespoons maple syrup (I used Meridian)
- Zest and juice of 2 oranges
- 4 tablespoons oil (rapeseed or melted coconut – I used Lucy Bee)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- Large handful of fresh blackberries
- Large handful of flaked almonds
Get baking!
- Preheat the oven to 180 degrees C and grease and line a 20cm loose-bottomed cake tin.
- Mix together the polenta, ground almonds/almond flour, flour, sugar/stevia, baking powder and bicarbonate of soda in large bowl.
- Whisk together the eggs with the maple syrup, orange juice, oil, vanilla and almond extract until frothy.
- Pour this into the dry ingredients along with the orange zest and fold in to combine – you want a smooth batter.
- Spoon this into your prepared tin and smooth out evenly. Arrange the blackberries on top and scatter over the flaked almonds.
- Bake for a total of about 40-45 minutes, until risen, golden and firm to the touch. Leave to cool in the tin.
- Carefully run a knife around and remove your cake from the tin. Slice up into 8 and serve!
Keep any remaining slices in an airtight container for up to 2 days.