← Nouns Cooking · Bakery

Ingredients

• 200 g unsalted butter, soft
• 200 g caster sugar
• 200 g Ground almonds
• 100 g fine polenta (cornmeal)
• 1½ tsp gluten-free baking powder
• 3 large eggs
• 2 unwaxed lemons, zest of both (keep the juice for the syrup)
• 125 g icing sugar

Method

1. Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan, 350°F). Butter a 23 cm springform tin and line the base with baking paper.
2. Beat the butter and sugar for 3 min until pale and light.
3. Mix the ground almonds, polenta and baking powder. Beat a third of this into the butter, then one egg; repeat until everything is used. Beat in the lemon zest.
4. Spoon into the tin, smooth the top and bake for 40–45 min, until golden, set and a skewer in the centre comes out clean. The cake will be slightly shrunk from the sides. If it browns too fast, cover with foil after 30 min.
5. While it bakes, gently heat the lemon juice with the icing sugar in a small pan, stirring, just until the sugar dissolves.
6. As soon as the cake comes out, prick it all over with a skewer and spoon over the warm syrup. Leave in the tin for 30 min before releasing, as it is fragile while warm.

Tips

• Contains tree nuts (almonds). Check that your baking powder and polenta are labelled gluten-free if you are coeliac.
• It keeps beautifully for 4 days and is even better on day two.

Sources

Written in our own words after cross-checking these recipes:

Nigella Lawson Sainsbury's Magazine Joy the Baker