Polenta Cake with Olive Oil and Rosemary

Name: Polenta Cake with Olive Oil and Rosemary
Yield: makes one 10-inch (25-cm) cake; 10 to 12 servings
Ingredients: 1 tablespoon plus 1/2 cup (4 ounces/115 g) unsalted butter, at room temperature; 2 teaspoons plus 4 teaspoons finely minced fresh rosemary leaves; 2 tablespoons (20 g) plus 3/4 cup (130 g) polenta or stone-ground yellow cornmeal; 1 cup (140 g) all-purpose flour; 2 teaspoons baking powder; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/2 cup (125 ml) olive oil; 5 large eggs, at room temperature; 2 large egg yolks; 1/2 teaspoon almond extract or 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1 1/3 cups (265 g) sugar

December 9, 2011

Cornmeal is often thought of as purely an American ingredient, probably because of our infatuation with cornbread, but Italians love cornmeal as much as we do. It’s not unusual in Italian bakeries to see rows of golden cakes and baskets of crumbly cookies made with polenta and sometimes flavored with a pour of olive oil, just in case you forget you’re in Italy. A bit of minced fresh rosemary infuses this cake with a familiar, yet elusive flavor. I wouldn’t dream of leaving the rosemary out. Polenta gives the cake a rustic feel; you can use stone-ground cornmeal instead to make a cake with a more refined texture that retains that agreeable crunch. As for the olive oil, use one that’s strong and fruity; its flavor is more important than its provenance.

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