Amor Polenta (cornmeal Cake)

Amor Polenta (Cornmeal Cake) will be the sweet ending to our Valentine’s
Day Dinner. I can’t resist this cake. It’s simple, but rich like a fine
pound cake with the subtle flavor and crunch of cornmeal. So forget about
the calories and cholesterol and celebrate the “day of amour” with Amor
Polenta.

from “The Italian Baker” by Carol Field

Cream the butter and cup of sugar with a whisk, if you have one, of an
electric mixer until very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes at medium
speed. Add the eggs and egg yolks, one at a time, beating thoroughly after
each addition. The batter should be lemony yellow. Stir in the liqueur.
Sift the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt together and fold into
the batter, smoothing out any lumps but taking care not to deflate the
batter. Butter 2 rehrucken (saddle of venison) pans (I use one 9×5 loaf
pan…honestly, how many of us have a rehrucken pan just waiting to be used
🙂 and coat with cornmeal. Pour the batter into the 2 (or one) prepared
pan(s). Place in a preheated 375 degree oven and bake until a skewer
inserted in the center comes out clean, about 30 minutes. Cool on rack and
unmold while cake is still slightly warm. Sift confectioner’s sugar on top,
if desired.

In the summertime I like to serve a slice of this cake with fresh
strawberries that have marinated in sugar and balsamic vinegar
(approximately 1 pint of sliced strawberries mixed with 3 tbs sugar and 1
tbs balsamic vinegar) and a big dollop of cool whip (yes, I know…it’s not
REAL whipped cream, but I like it anyway!). My husband loves raspberries
and I am a chocoholic so for Valentine’s Day I am going to place a slice of
cake on a pool of raspberry sauce (frozen raspberries, thawed and then
placed in the blender with sugar and lemon juice to taste and then strained
to remove seeds). A dollop of cool whip and a piece of Godiva chocolate on
the side will complete this lovely desert.