Choc And Almond Polenta Cake Food

ALMOND POLENTA POUND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with rack in lower third. Butter an 8-by-4-inch loaf pan; dust with flour, tapping out excess. In the bowl of an electric mixer, cut almond paste into 2/3 cup sugar with two forks until it resembles coarse meal. Add the butter; using the paddle attachment, beat until soft and light, about 4 minutes.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together extracts, cream, and egg yolks. With mixer on medium, gradually add cream mixture to butter mixture. In a small bowl, stir together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt. Sift half the flour mixture over butter mixture, and fold to combine. Fold in remaining flour mixture.
• In another mixing bowl, beat the egg whites and remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar on medium speed until stiff peaks form, 2 to 3 minutes. Fold into batter.
• Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake until a cake tester inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour. If top begins to brown too much, cover loosely with foil. Let cool before serving.

POLENTA ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Spread sliced almonds in a single layer on a small baking sheet. Bake until fragrant and golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a shallow bowl; set aside to cool. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the metal blade, finely grind whole almonds; set aside.
• In a medium bowl, whisk together the ground almonds, polenta, flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and salt; set aside. Pour melted butter into an 8-by-2-inch round cake pan, swirling to coat bottom and brushing up sides of the pan. Sprinkle with 2 tablespoons sugar and toasted sliced almonds; set aside.
• Combine butter and remaining 1 cup sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, and beat until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating to combine after each addition. Beat in orange juice and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients, slowly beating just until combined.
• Pour batter into prepared pan, smoothing top with an offset spatula. Bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Transfer baking pan to wire rack to cool for 15 minutes. Remove cake from pan, and cool completely.

CHERRY POLENTA CAKE

Steps:

• Prepare a grill for indirect heat. If using a charcoal grill, build the hot coals on one side only. If using a gas grill, heat one side only to medium-high heat.
• Vigorously whisk together the eggs and 1/2 cup granulated sugar in a large bowl until pale and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the cornmeal, flour and salt, smoothing out any lumps. Whisk in the milk and almond extract.
• Add the butter to a 10- to 12-inch cast-iron skillet over direct heat. When the butter has melted, swirl it around to coat the bottom of the skillet. Right before you are ready to pour the batter into the pan, give the batter another whisk. (Cornmeal tends to sink to the bottom so re-whisking right before pouring it in is important.) Pour the batter into the cast-iron and cook until the batter begins to set, about 5 minutes. Every few minutes, using a rubber spatula, move some of the batter from the edges to the middle, like making scrambled eggs, to help it cook.
• Remove the skillet from the grill and distribute the cherries evenly over the surface of the cake. Place the cast-iron over indirect heat, close the grill and bake until puffed and golden brown, about 30 minutes.
• Remove the cake from the grill and immediately sprinkle it with the remaining teaspoon of granulated sugar. Allow to cool slightly before loosening and sliding it onto a plate. Slice and serve dusted with confectioners' sugar.
• (Alternatively, you can begin to bake the cake over medium-high heat on a stovetop, then finish it in a 375 degrees F oven for 30 minutes.)

FLOURLESS CHOCOLATE & ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/ gas 4 and line the base of a 20cm springform tin with baking parchment. Melt the chocolate and butter in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of just-simmering water, or in the microwave in 20-second bursts. Stir, then leave to cool slightly.
• Meanwhile, tip the eggs and sugar into a second bowl and beat with an electric whisk for 4-5 mins, or until thick and creamy. Add the mascarpone or soft cheese and vanilla, and continue to beat until everything is combined. Lightly fold in the cooled melted chocolate mixture until everything is one even colour, then fold in the almonds. Sift over the cocoa powder and a small pinch of salt, and fold in to combine.
• Scrape the cake batter into the prepared tin. Put the tin on a baking tray and bake for 35-40 mins until the cake is puffed up and has cracked on top. Remove from the oven and leave to cool in the tin for 30-40 mins - it will deflate as it cools. Serve warm as a chocolate pudding, or leave to cool completely and enjoy as a fudgy brownie cake. Dust with extra cocoa powder before serving.

HELEN NASH'S CHOCOLATE ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 300 degrees. Grease the bottom and sides of a 10-inch springform pan with margarine. Line the pan with parchment paper, and grease the parchment. Dust pan with 1 tablespoon potato starch; shake out excess.
• Fill a small saucepan with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and allow water to simmer. Place chocolate in a small heatproof bowl, and set over saucepan. Stir chocolate until melted, and set aside to cool.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream 1 cup margarine on medium speed, and add sugar gradually until the mixture is pale and bubbles appear, about 10 minutes.
• Add egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition. Lower the speed, and beat in cooled chocolate and orange juice. With a large rubber spatula, mix in cocoa powder, cognac, 1 1/2 teaspoons potato starch, lemon zest, orange zest, vanilla, and ground almonds.
• In a clean dry bowl, beat egg whites on high speed until stiff. Fold half of the egg whites into the chocolate mixture with a rubber spatula. Repeat with another quarter of the egg whites, then reverse the process, pouring the batter over remaining whites. Gradually fold together until egg whites are completely incorporated.
• Pour batter into prepared pan, and smooth the top. Bake until a cake tester or toothpick inserted in the center of the cake comes out slightly sticky, about 1 hour. Cool completely, and refrigerate overnight.
• To serve, run a small, sharp knife around sides to loosen, and carefully remove springform ring. Transfer to a serving plate, dust with Passover powdered sugar, and garnish with sliced almonds. Note: This recipe has been adapted from Helen Nash's original to make one cake. To make two smaller cakes, prepare two 9-by-1 1/2-inch round cake pans, and divide the batter between them.

CHOCOLATE ALMOND CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add sour cream and extracts; mix well. Combine flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt; add to the creamed mixture alternately with buttermilk, beating well after each addition. , Pour into a greased 10-in. fluted tube pan. Bake at 350° until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 50-55 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. , For frosting, cream butter, sugar and extracts in a small bowl until smooth. Add milk until frosting reaches desired spreading consistency. Spread over cake. Decorate with almonds.

LEMON POLENTA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line the base of a 9-inch springform pan with parchment paper and butter sides; set aside.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat together butter and superfine sugar until pale and fluffy.
• In a medium bowl, mix together almond meal, polenta, and baking powder. Add some of the almond meal mixture to the bowl with the butter mixture and beat to combine. Add one egg and mix until combined. With the mixer on low, continue alternating adding remaining almond meal mixture and 2 eggs; mix until well combined. Add lemon zest and mix just to combine.
• Pour batter into prepared pan and transfer to oven; bake until a cake tester inserted into the center comes out with just a few crumbs and cake begins to pull away from sides of the pan, about 40 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
• Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, mix together lemon juice and confectioners' sugar; place over medium heat and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, until sugar is dissolved; remove syrup from heat.
• Using a cake tester, prick holes all over the top of the cake; pour warm syrup over cake and let cool completely. Remove from pan and serve.

STRAWBERRY, ALMOND & POLENTA SKILLET CAKE

Steps:

• Butter a 20cm frying pan or cake tin with a little butter. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4.
• Beat together the softened butter, sugar, vanilla and almond extract for 5 mins, or until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing after each addition to combine, then fold through the flour, polenta and ground almonds. Fold through half the strawberries.
• Spoon the mixture into the skillet or cake tin and smooth over. Dot with the remaining strawberries and bake for 40-45 mins or until golden brown and firm. Serve warm with ice cream or clotted cream.

APRICOT, ALMOND & POLENTA CAKE

Steps:

• Butter a 20-23cm round cake tin. If it has a loose bottom, you will need to wrap the outside with foil to prevent any of the caramel from leaking. Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. For the apricots, put the granulated sugar and 75ml water into a saucepan. Heat slowly until the sugar has dissolved. When the sugar has melted, bring to the boil and watch the syrup until it starts to turn to a deep amber colour. Remove from the heat and add the butter. Stir until it has melted. Pour into the tin, then lay the apricots in it, cut-side down.
• For the cake, beat together the butter and sugar until light with an electric whisk. Add the egg a little at a time, then the zest and almond extract. Mix all the dry ingredients together, then fold them gradually into the egg mixture, alternating with the milk. Spoon this over the apricots and bake for 50 mins. To test it's baked, push a skewer into the centre. It should come out clean.
• Leave the cake to cool for 15 mins, then run a knife in-between the cake and the inside of the tin and invert it onto a plate. If any of the apricot halves get left behind in the tin carefully scoop them up - trying to keep their shape intact and not squash them too much - and put them back, cut-side up, on the cake. Leave the cake to cool, or serve warm if you want.
• Heat the apricot jam with 2 tbsp of water. Once the jam has dissolved, push it through a sieve to remove the bits of apricot. Leave it to cool a little - otherwise it overcooks the apricots, which should be perfectly cooked and not collapsing - then paint the jam thickly on the top of the cake. Leave this to set a little, then serve with crème fraîche or cream, if you like.

ALMOND CHOCOLATE CAKE

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the cake, pudding mix, water, oil, eggs and extract; beat until combined. Stir in 2 cups chocolate chips. , Pour into a greased and floured 10-in. fluted tube pan. Bake at 350° for 65-70 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from pan to a wire rack to cool completely. , In a small saucepan, combine the creamer and remaining chocolate chips. Cook over low heat until chips are melted; stir until smooth. Cool for 45 minutes. Drizzle over cake. Garnish with almonds.