orange polenta cake

• 1 large orange, pips removed

• 1/2 lemon, juiced and zested

• 225ml Mountain Produce Rapeseed Oil

• 200g ground almonds

• 120g polenta

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 3 free range eggs

• 225g golden caster sugar

• creme fraiche, to serve

For the drizzle

• 100g golden caster sugar

• 1/2 orange, juiced

• 1/2 lemon, juiced

• 5 cardamom pods, ground (optional)

• 5 thyme sprigs (optional)

HOW TO MAKE....

• Boil the orange, whole, in a pan of boiling water for 30 minutes. Remove from the water, leave to cool slightly and slice into quarters. Add this to a food processor with the lemon juice & zest. Blitz to a puree. 

• Heat the oven to 180C and line a 23cm tin with baking paper. 

• Sieve the almonds, polenta, baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt into a bowl and mix. 

• Whisk the eggs and sugar together until pale and creamy, before slowly pouring in the rapeseed oil. Do this gradually so that the mixture doesn’t split. Add in your orange puree and mix again. add in the dry ingredients and mix to a smooth cake batter. 

• Pour into the tin and bake for around an hour until risen and a skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean

• Whilst the cake is baking, make the syrup. Pour the sugar, orange juice, lemon juice, ground cardamom and 30ml water into a pan. Boil until the sugar has dissolved and add the thyme. Take off the heat and let infuse until the cake has baked. 

• Use a skewer to poke holes in the top of your cake and pour your syrup over. Slice, serve with crème fraîche and enjoy!