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Sunday 20 September 2009

Polenta Fruit Cake

This recipe is for the most amazing fruit cake. It has an incredible fresh taste to it, and is moist yet light.

I does not rise very high, but don't be tempted to change the ingredients because of this, as its just perfect as it is.

Polenta Fruit Cake

3.5 ozs softened Butter
3.5 ozs Castor Sugar
(superfine)

1.75 ozs Self-raising Flour (sieved)
3.5 ozs Polenta (cornmeal)
2 Eggs, beaten
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
8 ozs mixed Dried Fruit
1 oz Pinenuts (pine kernels)
Grated rind from 1 Lemon (use an organic lemon to avoid the chemical spray on wax they use to preserve non organic ones)
4 tablespoons Lemon Juice
2 tablespoons Milk


1. Prepare a 7 inch cake tin by greasing it well, and then lining the base with greaseproof paper.

2. In a bowl mix together the butter and sugar until it gets a bit paler and is nice and fluffy.

3. Mix in the eggs (beaten) a little bit at a time. Mix well in between each addition.

4. Next fold in the flour, baking powder and the polenta (cornmeal), until it is all well mixed in.

5. Finally mix in the dried fruit, the pinenuts, the grated lemon rind and the milk.

6. Spoon the mixture into the prepared tin and make the top level.

7. Cook at 180C, 350F or Gas Mark 4, for about 1 hour, or until a thin skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean.

8. Leave the cake to cool in the tin before you try and remove it.

You can use all sorts of dried fruit for this. Besides the normal sultanas, currants and raisins, try glace cherries, chopped dates, chopped dried apricots or even figs.

This freezes well... that is if it lasts that long !

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