ORANGE AND POLENTA CAKE
An excerpt from Best Kitchen Basics by Mark Best, Australia
“I believe that cooking should be simple and showcase the best of seasonal ingredients. As a professional chef, I want to be able to share ideas and recipes that represent the bounty of Australia in a way that anyone can make them at home. Cooking should be something that people love to do and inspires them in their everyday lives. This simple dessert is exactly that.”
Photo: Petrina Tinslay Photography
INGREDIENTS
2 small oranges
Butter for greasing
Flour for dusting
5 large eggs (55–60 g/2 oz)
170 g (6 oz/. cup) caster sugar
Icing sugar
170 g (6 oz/1⅔ cups) ground almonds
50 g (1. oz/⅓ cup) polenta
1 teaspoon baking powder
For the syrup:
1 vanilla bean
230 g (8 oz/1 cup) caster
(superfine) sugar
4 cardamom pods
2 star anise
50 ml (1. fl oz) Chartreuse
RECIPE
To make the syrup: Split the vanilla bean and scrape the seeds into a small saucepan over medium/low heat then throw in the pod as well. Add the sugar, 250 ml (8. fl oz/1 cup) of water and the remaining spices then bring to a gentle simmer, cook for 5 minutes then remove the pan from the heat. Add the Chartreuse and allow to infuse for 30 minutes. Strain into a clean container.
To make the cake: Put the oranges, unpeeled, into a saucepan, cover with water and bring to the boil over medium/high heat. Reduce the heat to medium/low, cover and simmer for 1 hour until the oranges are very soft. Drain and leave to cool for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F), butter a 24 cm (9 in) springform cake tin and line the base of it with a disc of baking paper. Butter the tin again –including the paper– and lightly dust with flour, shake out any excess.
Coarsely chop the boiled oranges removing any pips as you go, and then transfer them to a food processor and purée. Whisk together the eggs and sugar for 2 minutes before stirring in the ground almonds and polenta, finally sift in the baking powder, add the puréed oranges and mix well. Pour the mixture into the tin and bake for 40–45 minutes until light golden and just firm to the touch. Once finished, leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes then turn out onto a wire rack to cool.
To serve: Transfer the cake to a serving plate and use a skewer to prick it all over. Spoon over some of the syrup and allow it to soak in before adding more, continue until all the syrup has been used and your cake is ready to serve!