This is one of my go-to cakes when I’m craving a bake for myself. It’s gluten and dairy free, so full of moisture, only a little bit full of guilt and so tasty.

I’ve made a version of this a handful of times and tweaked the recipe ever so slightly each time, but think I’ve got it down pat now.

I’ve edited this from Nigella’s Lemon Polenta Cake on her website and feel quite happy with where it’s at right now, altering the ingredients slightly to my preferred taste (coconut sugar for caster sugar, coconut oil for butter) and edited the quantities a pinch to make it a little less sweet as I find the original a little too sugary for my liking. The below recipe is still very indulgent and sticky, sweet deliciousness so trust me here!

I serve it to guests without a need to tell them it’s gluten and dairy free because it simply is just delicious that way.

In fact, the deckhand on our boat devoured half of this cake in just a couple of hours and said it was one of the best cakes he’s ever tasted.

Give it a try next time you’re having guests over, it’s a birthday or you’re simply after a nice treat for some afternoon tea.

The lemon flavour brings a burst of sunshine and the moisture is honestly to die for.

So here we go.

You will need:

• 175g Coconut Oil, Room Temp
• 175g Coconut Sugar
• 200g Almond Flour (or finely ground almonds)
• 100g Fine Polenta
• 1 1/2 t Baking Powder (make sure it’s GF if necessary)
• Pinch of Salt
• 3 Eggs
• Zest and juice of 2 large lemons or 3 small (separated)
• 100g Icing Sugar

Optional Flavour Additions:

• 1/2 Cup Chopped or Blitzed Pistachios
• 1/2t Rosewater & 1 T Dried Rose Petals

What you need to do:

• Weigh your dry ingredients (almond, Polenta, BP and a pinch of salt) in a small bowl.
• Using a large bowl and an electric mixer or wooden spoon, cream together the coconut oil and sugar until lighter in colour and smooth.
• Add a third of the dry ingredients into the creamed mix and combine, beating as you add.

Add an egg, still beating and repeat this process of alternating egg and dry mix until all the mixture is combined and well beaten.

If you are adding rosewater, add it in here, saving the petals for decoration.

Using a 26cm springform pan, line with a round of parchment and tip the mixture into it, banging on the counter a few times to let out the air and flatten.

Bake in the centre of an oven at 160 degrees for 40 minutes.

While your cake is baking, combine the icing sugar and lemon juice in a saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring until all the sugar is dissolved. Set aside.

Once the cake is baked, remove from the oven and prick all over with a skewer (being gentle as it’s a soft cake) and generously pour the syrup all over the cake right to the edges.

Finish by sprinkling pistachios and/or rose petals or whatever you decide and allow to cool completely – trust me on this one. I’ve ruined this cake a couple of times by being too eager to taste it and stuck my finger in the top by accident before it’s completely set by cooling down, so patience is a virtue here!

Enjoy…

L, xo