A simple, Italian-style polenta cake recipe flavored with lemon. It has ricotta cheese for moisture and is served with a gorgeous blueberry sauce. The texture is dense, sweet and a welcome change from the usual sponge cakes.
A unique cake
I've been meaning to make a polenta cake for a long time. This recipe is unlike a usual soft lemon cake or even the beautifully dense lemon pound cake.
It's a great recipe with simple ingredients and a very unique texture, a dense, very moist and coarse cake (but not gritty) that needs no lemon glaze but is phenomenal with a berry sauce.
It's not a looker unless you drench it in a blueberry lemon sauce, but you can eat it as a plain snack cake.
I'm a big polenta fan (which is a finer version of grits, but from a different type of corn). I ate it all the time as a kid and loved it. It pairs so ridiculously well with lemons that I'm happy to share this recipe with you.
When paired with berries, it's a party, so I encourage you to serve it along.
- Heidi ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I think this is the first time I've ever eaten a polenta cake. This was so easy to make, and the blueberry sauce complements the cake perfectly. It was delicious!!! Thanks for sharing!
- Alisa ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
My husband is a huge polenta fan and went crazy for this cake! Thanks for sharing.
Testing notes
Use instant polenta, as it absorbs liquid better, so the cake will have a finer and less gritty texture. If you use regular polenta or old-fashioned, which takes a longer time to hydrate, the bite might not be as soft.
Ricotta: it needs to be soft, curdled, and moist but without excess liquid. Creamy but granular, and almost sweet. If it has too much water, drain it by placing it on a colander with a cheesecloth. Quality varies according to brands. I buy original ricotta sourced from good small producers when I can, but have great results with store-bought ones.
Mixing the batter: I use an electric hand-held mixer and a large mixing bowl, which makes the process easier, but you can also make this by hand with some arm muscle and a whisk. Or use a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, but I find it too much of a hassle for this recipe.
Lemon flavor: both fresh lemon juice (not bottled) and lemon zest give the best result. The cake will be sweeter if using Meyer lemons (instead of regular ones).
Blueberry topping
This is, in theory, optional, but I can't stress enough how great the whole package (polenta cake and blueberry sauce) is. They complement each other, and the dense cake becomes mellower. It's an outstanding pair.
Depending on how I plan to serve it, I use the blueberry compote, which is juicier and more fluid because it doesn't have cornstarch, so the juice seeps into the cake like the images in this post. Or the blueberry sauce, which has a thicker consistency and a heavier syrup.
Do you have other berries? Use them. Raspberries and blackberries work well, though they can be tangier, so you might want to add more sugar to the sauce. Sweet cherries also work.
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Lemon Polenta Cake with Blueberry Sauce
Ingredients
For lemon polenta cake:
- ¾ cup instant polenta, or instant yellow cornmeal
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup ricotta cheese, at room temperature
- ⅓ cup water or buttermilk, at room temperature
- ¾ cup sugar
- ½ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled but not cold
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cold and in small pieces for top of the cake
- 2 large eggs, at room temperature
For the blueberry sauce:
- 1 cup blueberries, fresh or frozen
- ¼ cup lemon juice
- ⅓ cup light brown sugar
Instructions
For lemon polenta cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180°C).
- Line the bottom of a round 9-inch (24cm) springform pan (or springform cake tin) with parchment paper and spray or butter the sides of the pan.
- In a medium bowl, stir ¾ cup instant polenta, ¾ cup all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, and ¼ teaspoon salt.
- In a large bowl with an electric mixer, beat 1 cup ricotta cheese and ⅓ cup water or buttermilk until smooth. If it's still somewhat curdled, don't worry.
- Add ¾ cup sugar, ½ cup honey, and 1 tablespoon lemon zest and beat well.
- Gradually add ½ cup unsalted butter, melted, and 2 large eggs, one at a time, and beat until the mixture is smooth.
- Add the dry ingredients in two or three additions, beating on low speed only until incorporated.
- Pour the batter into the pan, dot the top with 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, chilled and in little pieces, and bake for 35 to 45 minutes, until the top is golden and a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.
- Let cool completely on a wire rack and remove from the tin or pan onto a serving plate, and serve with the blueberry sauce. You can also sprinkle the top with powdered sugar (known as icing sugar in some countries) before serving if you like a sweeter cake.
For the blueberry sauce:
- Mix 1 cup blueberries, ¼ cup lemon juice, and ⅓ cup light brown sugar in a small saucepan.
- Cook for 3-5 minutes at medium heat, until syrupy, and the berries are somewhat wrinkled.
- Let cool completely and store, covered, in the refrigerator.
Notes
Adapted from Baking from my Home to Yours, by Dorie Greenspan
Deb says
You know I adore lemon! A compelling and vibrant dessert!
In the U.S. there are no Easter holidays, only spring break for students. So enjoy!
Amanda says
I've made a caramel polenta cake from Dorie that was out of this world. I'm sure this adaptation is also exceptional.
Liz Berg says
Oh, this looks like one fantastic cake, Paula! And the blueberry sauce is a gorgeous topping. Happy, happy Easter!!! xo
ahu says
Paula - this is beautiful, I adore polenta! Happy Easter!
Soni says
Oh you've posted the perfect recipe for me to try!I have yellow cornmeal sitting in my pantry for far too long and now I know exactly what I'm going to do with it!The blueberry lemon combo sounds wonderful!!Gorgeous pics too 🙂
german in pdx says
Paula, this cake is beyond amazing. I will need to make a special batch of my vegan ricotta to give your polenta cake a try. I also love polenta in every form and have never thought that it could be used for a cake. Thank you and Happy Easter to you 🙂 ~ Bea
Karen Hartzell (@InTheKitchenKP) says
WOW! I have never made a polenta cake, but now I must! Esp when you throw in two of my favorite flavors of lemon and blueberry! Happy Sunday, Paula!
Kate@Diethood says
Every time I come by here, I drool... I absolutely love, love, looooove this cake!! Gorgeous photos, Paula.
Happy Easter, my friend!! xo
yummychunklet says
I love the sauce! Yum!
Angie Schneider says
Looks heavenly with berry sauce!!
Sherron Watson says
I have never tried a polenta cake before but I think I would love yours. Lemon and Blueberries together just marry together nicely in any dish.
Katy says
I've been looking for a good polenta cake recipe and this one sounds absolutely divine! And I'm with you on the lemon+cake=happy 🙂
Heather Schmitt-Gonzalez says
I love Polenta cakes...and I know they go perfectly with lemon. Plus, blueberry and lemon are totally best buds, so this sounds like it may be the PERFECT cake! Beautiful, Paula.
Cathleen says
Paula, that look delicious and your photos are stunning. I love your cake box. Have a wonderful Easter.
Cher Rockwell says
Polenta is really lovely in cakes and I really like what you did here. Beautiful job, Paula!
Jen @JuanitasCocina says
I have always wanted to make a polenta cake. I should just come over and you can feed me some of this instead!
Renee says
Recently I tackled making my first olive oil cake and the next on my list is a polenta cake. Seeing your absolutely beautiful cake inspires me to move it up on the to-do list. Wow Paula. It's really stunning.
Jamie says
I have also wanted to make a polenta cake for the longest time! This one looks perfection and fabulous with the blueberry sauce! I just imagine that blueberries must be the best with the polenta and the lemon. Gorgeous and mouthwatering!
Montse {Rhu and Sam} says
Tengo ganas de experimentar con polenta, no es un ingrediente muy común aquí 😉 thanx for the recipe!
The Ninja Baker says
I've made polenta cake with apples and walnuts before but lemon and ricotta is an intriguing mix. I love both ingredients so why not?
And with your breezy, easy invite and recipe to pour blueberry sauce over the cake, stick some flowers in a vase, I'm ready to put my feet up and enjoy a piece! Oh right, I need to bake it first. Well, at least I've got your stellar recipes now.