I was served this the other morning, asked for the recipe and came home and made it the next day. One mixing bowl and a whisk is all you need for this rich and tender cornmeal cake. Raspberries and lemon zest add lots of flavor. The recipe calls for an optional lemon glaze, which I haven’t tasted. My grandsons thought it was best with lots of whipped cream, but then what else is new. Thanks to Yossy Arefi for a lovely summer cake.
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
2 lemons
3/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tsps.
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sour cream
3/4 tsp. kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) or 1/2 tsp. fine salt, plus more for sprinkling
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup fine cornmeal
6 ounces fresh raspberries
For the glaze:
1 to 2 Tbs. lemon juice (from one of the zested lemons for the cake)
3/4 cup sifted confectioners sugar
Pinch of salt
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.
Zest the 2 lemons into a large mixing bowl. Add 3/4 cup sugar and the eggs, and whisk vigorously until pale and smooth, about 30 seconds. Add the sour cream, melted butter and salt, and mix until smooth and emulsified. Whisk in baking powder and baking soda. Add the flour and cornmeal, and stir until just a few streaks of flour remain. Add 2/3 of the raspberries and fold them into the batter.
Spoon the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top and top with the remaining raspberries. Sprinkle the remaining 2 tsp. of granulated sugar over the top. Bake the cake until puffed and golden brown and a skewer inserted comes out clean, 40 to 45 minutes.
Carefully run a thin knife 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.
While the cake cools, make the glaze: Juice some of the zested lemon to produce 2 Tbs. of juice. To a medium bowl, add the confectioners sugar, a pinch of salt and 1 Tbs. of lemon juice. Whisk until smooth, adding more lemon juice as necessary to make a thin but still opaque glaze. Drizzle the glaze over the cooled cake and let it sit for a few minutes before serving. Store any leftovers at room temperature, loosely covered for up to 2 days. Serves 8.
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