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
CrispyBitsnBurntEnds says
oh my goodness gracious! that cake looks so amazing! one of the main reason's why I've decided to give baking a shot is because of your wonderful baked creations! thanks for the inspiration and making me want to challenege myself!
Nancy @ gottagetbaked says
Paula, my culinary world is always expanded when I visit your blog. Now I really really want to make a cake with polenta - this looks incredible. I have ricotta left over in my fridge from the pancakes I made. Now I need to buy some polenta. I hope you enjoy every moment of your 6 day weekend (I wish every weekend was six days long, lol!). Happy Easter, dear lady.
Carol | a cup of mascarpone says
Lovely polenta cake, Paula! It looks so moist and tender...two of my favorite flavor combos! Hope you had a wonderful Easter yesterday! xox
Cake Duchess says
Gorgeous polenta cakes and spectacular berries, Paula. This would've been nice to bring to our Easter lunch yesterday;)Love it!
Anne @ Webicurean says
I've never made a cake with polenta, but this looks so dense and moist, I have to try it now!
Lyn @LovelyPantry says
What an amazing cake. I saw it earlier and I couldn't wait to come check it out for myself. I'm pinning and keeping this one. Love it!
Abbe@This is How I Cook says
I made an Italian cake a long, long time ago with cornmeal. I don't know why I never made it again because it was so good. Yours looks like that and the blueberries are the ultimate piece de resistance!
Marissa | Pinch and Swirl says
Happy Easter, sweet Paula! Your polenta cake looks outstanding...
Bams Kitchen says
Polenta and ricotta and lemon in a cake is gorgeous. I love the texture of it, and then to drizzle a bit of blueberry sauce on top is heavenly.
Laura (Tutti Dolci) says
Beautiful cake, I love these flavors together!
Kim Bee says
Lemon and blueberry are perfect for each other. I need this in my life right now.
Sarah Reid says
AWESOME! I even have some homemade ricotta kicking around!
Guyla says
Love the looks of this! I pinned it to make later.
Stacy says
I have been meaning to make a polenta cake as well, so this is perfect timing. I love the combination of blueberries with the lemon cake. Just gorgeous, Paula! And I'll bet, delicious.
Guru Uru says
Polenta is my baby my friend, this looks too delicious 😀
Happy Easter!
Choc Chip Uru
Julieta says
Como comeria una porcion de esa torta! Incluyendo la salsa! Se ve buenisima! Como me gusta la polenta y su textura, y el acido del limon. Muy buena receta! La voy a probar! Besossss
Conni Dahl Smith says
Mmmm, this is simply beautiful! I'd love a slice 🙂
Laura Dembowski says
So nice that you have a long Easter holiday, Paula! It sounds very relaxing. This cake sounds incredible. Love the addition of the blueberry sauce too!
Laura Hunter says
I keep meaning to try polenta cake but just haven't gotten to it. This looks like a perfect way to start
Chef Di says
Wow, Paula, this cake looks incredible. What a lovely mix of flavors and textures. And your photography is breathtaking. Well, done! And have a beautiful Easter 😉