Easy vegan Gluten Free Orange Polenta cake. This cake is somewhat influenced by Spain, with its distinctive flavours of orange and almonds.
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The orange particularly holds strong symbolism for the Spanish Jewish because it was they who originally cultivated it in Spain back in the Roman Times. They were considered experts in the growing of citrus plants, and during the 18th Century, Jaffa Oranges were first grown in Israel by migrated Jews. They are considered by many to be the sweetest oranges in the world.
The cornmeal gives the cake a delicious crunch which enhances the soft orange almond texture beautifully. The cake is incredibly easy to make but benefits from resting overnight to let all the flavours mature. Because this is a flourless and, indeed, fatless cake, it is not a light fluffy sponge, instead it is dense and rich with the wonderful texture of the cornmeal mingling with the delicate flavour ground almonds and the bold orange zest holding the flavours together.
What Makes This Cake Gluten Free?
This cake is effortlessly gluten free because it contains no traditional flour. Instead it uses naturally gluten free ingredients like cornmeal and ground almonds. Just make sure that your baking powder is gluten-free!
I like to use these ingredients:
What Makes This Cake Vegan?
A cake like this, fat-free, would get it's lift from eggs, and usually quite a lot. However, the egg element here is replaced with a combination of vegan yogurt and applesauce!
What Kind of Oranges Can I Use?
I just used normal "large" oranges from the supermarket. I think they may have been Seville or Navel oranges, but were unmarked. I wouldn't worry too much about using fancy oranges in this recipe. You'll be boiling them up anyway, so please just use whatever you can find!
How Do I Serve Polenta Orange Cake?
My absolute favourite way to serve this cake is with a generous dollop of whipped coconut cream, lightly sweetened with vanilla extract, and then a dusting of icing sugar.
If you liked this cake, you'll love my vegan Rhubarb Cake, here!
📋 Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1¾ cups Cornmeal or Polenta, fine
- 1½ cups Ground Almonds
- 3 Whole Oranges I used Naval
- ½ teaspoon Almond Extract
- 1 cup Brown Sugar soft
- ½ cup Vanilla Yogurt or plain, plant-based
- ¾ cup Apple Sauce
- 2 teaspoon Baking Powder
Instructions
- Place your whole oranges in a large pan. Cover with water and bring to a brisk simmer before turning down to a gentle simmer. Cook for one hour. Remove from pan to cool.
- Preheat oven to 190c.
- Cut your oranges into quarters and blend until you have a thick, bright orange puree. Pour this into a separate bowl.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the ground almonds, cornmeal and baking powder.
- Using the same blender as before (no need to rinse), add the yogurt, brown sugar, applesauce and almond extract and blend until smooth. Pour into the blended oranges and stir well to combine.
- Pour the liquid mixture into your dry and mix gently, until thoroughly combined.
- Pour into your prepared cake tin and bake at 190c for half an hour.
- Turn down your oven to 180c and bake for another half an hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Leave to cool completely in the tin on a wire rack, before serving, cut into slices with a little dusting of icing sugar and a dollop of coconut cream.
Lexa says
I tried this orange polenta cake this week and it turned out amazing! We really loved it and it vanished in in no time! Thanks for the detailed background information. Loved your post!
Jere Cassidy says
I have never had a polenta cake and this recipe looks amazing especially since I love orange. Gotta make this.
Anaiah says
Love this orange polenta cake. It was so easy to make and delicious. Plus it's gluten free and vegan!?
Jeri says
This delicious orange polenta cake was so moist, and it had a wonderful orange flavor. It was delicious served with coconut cream. Yum!
Andrea White says
How delicious and unique! This is such a special recipe!
Karen says
Such a great recipe. Thanks Freya
Joshua says
This gluten free and vegan polenta cake turned out amazing. The oranges gave it delicious flavors and the applesauce made it so moist. It's the first plant based cake I didn't mess up!
Alexandra says
This is such a beautiful cake and so delicious. Love the orange flavour.
Natalie says
Lovely summer cake. Looks delicious and full of flavor. I can't wait to make this for my family.
Kirby says
Freya does it again! This orange polenta cake is absolutely perfect. Polenta cakes have become one of my favorites since going GF, and this one does not disappoint!
Andrea White says
Love this so much!
Kristina says
MY kids loved this cake!
Brian says
Hi there. This cake looks amazing. Just a question - does one leave the orange skin on, and after simmering them for an hour, blend them with the skin on? When I get your answer I'll make it for the party tomorrow hopefully 😀🌈
Freya says
Hi Brian! Yes! Do leave the skin on, although if you find a few pips when you cut it, pick those out as they can be a little bitter. Enjoy your party!
Brian says
Thanks for the quick reply. I'm going to make it now, and will let you know the outcome.....
😀🙏🏻