Saturday, 5 August 2017

Blueberry and Lemon Polenta Cake

gluten-free

We planted two blueberry bushes earlier this year, but we weren't sure whether or not they would bear fruit straight away. Fortunately they did, although the fruit doesn't all ripen at once, so I'm picking 100-150g every five days or so. I've also found out that I really prefer cooked blueberries to raw, so I've made blueberry sauce for some cheesecake pots, and added some to baked rhubarb.

I decided to put the latest pickings into a cake, but had to find a recipe using a small amount. I also had some lemons that needed using, so a blueberry and lemon cake seemed in order. I soon found this Sainsbury's recipe for a lemon and blueberry polenta cake, which only used 100g of fruit. I had to adapt the recipe a little, using vanilla yogurt instead of natural. As I was using a yogurt with a separate topping of toasted oat flakes (about a tablespoonful), I sprinkled them on top of the cake too.

This was a deliciously light cake, although I think it could have taken another 50g of fruit, as the blueberries were very thinly spread. The zest of another lemon would have improved the flavour from my point of view but I do like a tart lemon cake - others might appreciate the subtlety of a milder flavour.

It's also nice to add another gluten-free cake to my repertoire.

4 comments:

Snowy said...

I too prefer cooked blueberries. I lost my blueberry bush this year - maybe frost got it. Blueberries and lemon go so well together, and this sounds delicious.

Phil in the Kitchen said...

I do like blueberries in baking, but then again, I like them in pretty much any form. I've thought about growing blueberries but I always lose most of the fruit I grow to the blackbirds. Your success with blueberry growing and the fact that I invested in some cheap but effective fruit cages this year has made me think that I could try blueberries next year.

Suelle said...

I had to cage the blueberry bushes, Phil, as I'd read that birds could be a problem. They're in a raised bed filled with ericacous compost too.

Profound Familiarity said...

This looks blooming marvelous.