I can’t count how many times I have baked this cake over the last few months. It has become a staple in my household and is definitely one of the best cakes I have ever baked. Better still, it’s gluten free so I can eat as much of it as I like!

Gluten Free Lemon and Polenta Cake

Ingredients

200g unsalted butter
200g golden caster sugar
200g ground almonds (I grind my own, skin on)
100g fine or coarse polenta
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder (I use Doves gluten free)
3 large eggs
zest of 2 lemons

For the syrup

Juice of 2 lemons
150 g golden icing sugar

Method

1. Cream the butter and sugar until pale and fluffy
2. Mix the polenta, ground almonds and baking powder in a bowl
3. Add the dry mix and eggs, alternating as you go and ending with the dry mix
4. Add the lemon zest
5. Pour into a prepared cake tin and bake for 35 – 40 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean
6. While the cake is baking, make the syrup. Heat the icing sugar and lemon juice in a pan on the stove and heat until the sugar is dissolved
7. Take the cake out of the oven and prick all over, leaving holes big enough for the juice to soak through. Pour the syrup over the cake straight away and leave to cool completely before serving