For a moist cake, be sure to use finely ground polenta labeled "quick-cooking" or "instant"; cooking times listed on the package will be five minutes or less.
Ingredients
Makes 10 servings
Special Equipment
Step 1
Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9"-diameter cake pan and line bottom with a round of parchment paper; butter parchment.
Step 2
Melt ¾ cup butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat, then cook, stirring often, until butter foams, then browns (do not let burn), 5–8 minutes. Pour into a medium bowl; let cool. Chill brown butter until cold.
Step 3
Fit a clean medium saucepan with thermometer and bring maple syrup to a boil over medium-high heat; cook until thermometer registers 265°F (syrup will be thicker and a shade darker). Pour into prepared pan and spread with an offset spatula or a spoon to cover bottom; let cool (syrup will harden as it sits).
Step 4
Whisk almond flour, polenta, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Using an electric mixer on medium-high speed, beat chilled brown butter and ¾ cup sugar until very pale and fluffy, 5–7 minutes. Add eggs 1 at a time, beating to blend between additions. Beat until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Reduce speed to low, gradually add dry ingredients, and mix just to combine. Scrape batter into pan; smooth top.
Step 5
Bake until cake is golden brown and pulls away from sides of pan, 50–55 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack; let cake cool in pan 20 minutes. Turn out onto rack and let cool completely.
Step 6
Using an electric mixer, beat heavy cream, sour cream, and remaining 1 tablespoon sugar in a medium bowl until soft peaks form. Serve cake with whipped-cream mixture.
Do ahead:Cake can be baked 1 day ahead. Store tightly wrapped at room temperature.
How would you rate Brown Butter-Polenta Cake with Maple Caramel?
Leave a Review
Reviews (10)
Back to TopI had great hopes for this recipe, but also some misgivings, which turned out to be merited. My primary concern was how the maple syrup would act once the cake was baked and I was right: the maple syrup melted and flowed under the parchment paper in the bottom of the plan and what didn't flow under burned, even though I baked the cake for less time that suggested. Result: the cake itself was very good but the bottom was thick and tough and stuck to the serving plate. If I made it again, I would skip the maple syrup on the bottom and try some other way to get the maple flavor, maybe by brushing syrup on the bottom of the cake after it comes out of the oven.
debbie41
NH
8/6/2021
I've made this several times now (see previous review re: springform pan), and today I did a tiny variation because I had no whipping cream and I was too lazy for caramel and brown butter. Basically, I used softened butter and skipped the caramel and topped it with lemon curd. Still AMAZING.
nerabene
Pasadena, CA
2/5/2017
Interesting for a gluten-free cake. I would not make it again because it was a lot of work to have fancy corn bread.
robi3
Lake Tahoe, NV
1/24/2017
SO AMAZING and delicious! However, do NOT make this in a springform pan--I thought it would make releasing easier, but instead I wound up with caramel burning on the bottom of my oven.
nerabene
Pasadena, CA
8/22/2016
I made this cake again and this time, I used finer cornmeal, though not instant. The cake was drier this time. Not sure what I did wrong. Also, the caramel wasn't sufficiently hardened because it bubbled over during baking. I still love this recipe (and meant to give it four forks last time), but it definitely requires a sensitive touch.
pattysw
Washington, DC
3/21/2015
It was delicious. I didn't have instant polenta so I tried to grind my polenta to make it more instant--not sure that worked. This meant that the cake might have been chewier than intended, but my knitting group still loved it. My biggest problem was getting the brown butter right. It took a lot longer than I thought it would. And then I decided it wasn't right, so I cooked it some more. Fortunately, it never burned. The cake was totally moist.
pattysw
Washington, DC
3/5/2015
I've made this cake at least five times and it's a big crowd pleaser. Sometimes I brown the butter ahead of time and keep it in the fridge to save a step on baking day. I serve this with regular whipped cream and skip the sour cream. It's still very rich and delicious. Great brunch choice!
frsoup
New Haven, CT
2/4/2015
print with recipe This is an AWESOME, amazing recipe! It's important not to overcook it (or the caramel) so it does not come out too hard. I have made this recipe 5 times since it was printed in January, and every time it's fabulous! I choose to use regular (rather than instant) polenta to add texture, and grind my own almonds in a coffee grinder when I don't have almond meal on hand. It's simply fabulous!!!!!
harriganmb
VIrginia
10/9/2014
This is an AWESOME, amazing recipe! It's important not to overcook it (or the caramel) so it does not come out too hard. I have made this recipe 5 times since it was printed in January, and every time it's fabulous! I choose to use regular (rather than instant) polenta to add texture, and grind my own almonds in a coffee grinder when I don't have almond meal on hand. It's simply fabulous!!!!!
Anonymous
Virginia
10/9/2014
I've reviewed a lot of recipes on epicurious and this is my first 1 star. Do not make this! The only positives I can say is the whipped cream was good and the cake smelled great coming out of the oven. It was a brick once it cooled though and very dry. However, even if I lowered the cooking time it wouldn't have been better. I took this to book club and threw out the 3/4 of it that was left over. I was drawn to it because it was gluten free and there are a couple gluten free people in the group. They are used to eating cardboard and even said it wasn't good!
szeigler
Atlanta, GA
2/2/2014
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