Lemon Raspberry Cornmeal Cake
This rich and tender cornmeal cake is punctuated by bright, tart raspberries and lots of lemon zest. The whole thing is topped with a drizzle of puckery lemon glaze, but the cake is also great on its own, so you could just as easily leave it off. Serve this cake as is for an afternoon treat, or add more fresh raspberries and whipped cream to dress it up for dessert.
- Total:
- Serves: 8 persons
Ingredients
- ½cup/113 grams unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
- 2lemons
- ¾cup/150 grams granulated sugar, plus 2 teaspoons
- 2large eggs
- ¾cup/185 grams sour cream
- ¾teaspoon kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) or ½ teaspoon fine salt, plus more for sprinkling
- 1 ½teaspoons baking powder
- ½teaspoon baking soda
- 1 ¼cups/160 grams all-purpose flour
- ½cup/70 grams fine cornmeal
- 1(6-ounce/170-gram) container fresh raspberries
- 1to 2 tablespoons lemon juice (from about ¼ of one of the zested lemons from the cake)
- ¾cup/75 grams sifted confectioners’ sugar
- Pinch of salt
Instructions
Step 1
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch round or 8-inch square pan, then line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.Step 2
Zest the 2 lemons into a large mixing bowl. Add ¾ cup/150 grams of sugar and the eggs, and whisk vigorously until pale and smooth, about 30 seconds.Step 3
Add the sour cream, melted butter and salt, and mix until smooth and emulsified. Whisk in the baking powder and baking soda.Step 4
Add the flour and cornmeal, and stir until just a few streaks of flour remain. Add ⅔ of the raspberries and fold them into the batter.Step 5
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top and top with the remaining raspberries. Sprinkle the remaining 2 teaspoons of granulated sugar over the top.Step 6
Bake the cake until puffed and golden brown and a skewer inserted comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.Step 7
Carefully run a thin knife or offset spatula around the edge of the pan, then set the pan on a wire rack and let the cake cool completely in the pan. When the cake is cool, remove it from the pan, gently peel off the parchment and set it on a serving plate.Step 8
While the cake cools, make the glaze: Juice some of the remaining lemon to produce 2 tablespoons of juice. To a medium bowl, add the confectioners’ sugar, a pinch of salt and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice. Whisk until smooth, adding more lemon juice as necessary to make a thin but still opaque glaze.Step 9
Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake and let it set for a few minutes before serving. Store any leftovers at room temperature, loosely covered for up to 2 days.