This cake is pure sunshine.
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Meyer lemons are in season right now, and I’ve been obsessed with them for the past couple of weeks. Meyer lemon vinaigrettes, meyer lemon roast chicken, meyer lemon chia pudding, meyer lemon in my sparkling water, meyer lemon squeezed on all the things, etc. Meyer lemons are a cross between a lemon and a mandarin orange, and their flavor and aroma are just fantastic. If you can get your hands on some in the next few months, I would highly recommend doing so. Then you can make this cake!
Nigella first introduced me to the wonders of a polenta cake, and I’ve been making them ever since. This fuss-free cake starts with creamed butter and sugar. You then alternate adding eggs and a dry mix of almond meal, polenta (cornmeal), baking powder and salt. The cake batter is finished with citrus and vanilla. Here, I am using meyer lemon zest and juice, but I’ve also made this cake with regular lemons and oranges. Cooked low and slow in the oven, the cake emerges golden brown and fragrant. Nigella tops her polenta cake with a sweet lemon syrup, but here I’ve chosen to top with a crème fraîche glaze and flecks of fresh meyer lemon zest. Each bite is moist, light and crumbly with a sweet-tart hit of meyer lemon. A true celebration of this seasonal beauty. Continue reading for the cake recipe.
Can’t find meyer lemons? You can make this cake with regular lemons, oranges, blood oranges or grapefruit. Even limes might be delicious here!
The cake itself is naturally gluten-free, but I did dust the springform pan with regular flour to keep things from sticking. If you want to make this recipe 100% gluten-free, you can dust the sides of the springform pan with a gluten-free flour mix.
Meyer Lemon Polenta Cake Recipe
Ingredients
For the cake:
- 2 sticks (1 cup) unsalted butter, room temperature, plus more for greasing
- Flour for dusting the pan (use gluten-free flour to make this 100% gluten-free)
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups almond meal
- 1/2 cup medium-grind polenta (or cornmeal)
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon fine grain sea salt
- 3 eggs
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons meyer lemon zest (from 2 - 3 lemons)
- 1/4 cup meyer lemon juice
For the glaze:
- 2 cups confectioners' sugar
- 3 tablespoons crème fraîche (make this at home!)
- 1 tablespoon meyer lemon juice, plus more as needed
- Meyer lemon zest, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 325°F, and set a rack in the middle position. Lightly grease the bottom and sides of 9-inch springform pan with butter, then sprinkle with about 1 tablespoon of flour. Shake the flour around the pan to evenly coat the bottom and sides. Discard any excess flour. Line the bottom of pan with a round of parchment paper.
- In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar together on medium-high speed until light and fluffy (about 4 minutes). Meanwhile, add almond meal, polenta, baking powder and sea salt to a medium bowl, whisking to combine. Beat one egg into the butter-sugar mixture until fully combined, then beat in 1/3 of the dry ingredients. Repeat alternating with remaining 2 eggs and 2/3's dry ingredients. Stir in vanilla extract, lemon zest and lemon juice.
- Scrape cake batter into the prepared springform pan and smooth out to the edges. Set the pan on a rimmed baking sheet, and bake until the top is golden brown and a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean (45 - 55 minutes). Transfer pan to a cooling rack, and let sit for 10 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the cake to loosen, then remove the sides of the pan. Leave the cake on the bottom of the springform pan, and let cool on the rack.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together confectioners' sugar, crème fraîche and meyer lemon juice. The glaze should be thick, but pourable. Add more lemon juice drip by drip if needed to get to this consistency. Spoon glaze over the cake in an even layer, and spread out to the edges, so it drips over the sides. You may not use all the glaze. Finish with a dusting of finely grated meyer lemon zest.
Here are some other citrus recipes on Kitchen Konfidence:
Arugula Salad with Hummus, Oranges and Roasted Beets
Grapefruit Infused Rum
Meyer Lemon Coeur à la Crème with Raspberry Sauce
Sparkling Lemon Doughnuts
Meyer Lemon Chia Pudding
I’m Brandon: food explorer, recipe curator, cocktail shaker, dessert lover. Kitchen Konfidence is how I document my time spent in my favorite space, the kitchen. Did you make a recipe? Tag @brandiego on Instagram so I can see the how it went!
nancy k says
I am confused about butter amount…!/2 cup equals one stick, 2 sticks would be one cup.
Please clarify. Thanks!
Brandon Matzek says
Sorry about that! That conversion always gets me 😉 It’s 2 sticks | 1 cup | 8 oz. of butter. Enjoy!
June @ How to Philosophize with Cake says
This cake looks like a wonderful use for Meyer lemons! I’m sure the fruit goes wonderfully with polenta flavors 🙂
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks June! It’s a nice pairing.
sippitysup says
My tree is dripping with Meyers and I love this rustic cake and that glaze is to die for. GREG
Brandon Matzek says
So jealous!! We planted some fruit trees a few years ago, and they are barely producing.
mary-clay | the open oven says
Gorgeous, gorgeous cake! Such a good idea to use creme fraiche in the frosting, too!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks so much :)!!
Julie says
Currently making this , super excited to eat it! Just to let you know though, the eggs are missing from your ingredients list 🙂
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks for the heads up! I added them in. How did you like the cake :)?
Julie says
I LOVED it! Seriously, went right on my favorites list. The glaze was amazing. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Brandon Matzek says
Yaaaasss!! So glad you liked it 🙂
Debra Eliotseats says
So needing this. The Hubs brought back 20 lbs. of Meyer lemons from his parents backyard tree (in Houston). One can only make so much marmalade. thanks!!!!
Brandon Matzek says
SO jealous of your Meyer lemon haul. That is amazing. And yes, you should make this cake. Meyer lemon curd is also really lovely.
Kate says
I’m just confused about the butter. 1/2 cup is one stick, so is it one stick or two sticks?
Brandon Matzek says
My mistake! It’s 2 sticks | 1 cup | 8 oz. of butter.
Jenny (VintageSugarcube) says
This gorgeous cake will be the first thing I bake when I have my kitchen back. Happy Valentine’s Day to you and Jorge.
Brandon Matzek says
YES!! Hopefully that is sooner rather than later. Happy Valentine’s Day to you and Elijah!
fabiola@notjustbaked says
Such a perfect cake! Cornmeal and lemon are the best, especially Meyer lemons, love it!
Brandon Matzek says
Thanks so much!
Cynthia/What A Girl Eats says
Aren’t we lucky to live in Southern California and have Meyer lemons at our disposal!? Your cake looks perfectly fresh and delicious!
Brandon Matzek says
Yeessss!! I love SoCal citrus season. So many fun options to cook with and eat.
Christina | Christina's Cucina says
One of my favorite cakes! I have so many Meyer Lemons and tons of polenta right now, so I don’t know what I’m waiting for! Beautiful photos!
Brandon Matzek says
You need to make this!! Thanks Christina 🙂
Vicky @ Avocado Pesto says
I have never bought Meyer lemons before but seriously need to! Nor have I ever tried a polenta cake — lots of firsts in this recipe for me!
Brandon Matzek says
Yes!! You should definitely try them both 🙂
Peter @ Feed Your Soul Too says
One of these days, I will work with meyer lemons. This dessert looks delicious.
brigitte says
this cake is such a boon for the gf people. i absolutely loved it, not feeling at all deprived. i did not add the glaze because i had so much sweet cream on hand and it was absolutely wonderful whipped with a little brown sugar on top of this cake. thanks again.
Brandon Matzek says
So glad you liked the cake!! This for sharing Brigitte.
Joleen @ Joleen Cuisine says
Our neighbor has a lemon tree and keeps giving us lemons but I never know what to use them for…found this recipe just on time! 😉
Brandon Matzek says
This is a perfect use-up!! Enjoy 🙂