Take the eggs out of the fridge. They need to be at room temperature when added to the cake.

Let’s start by preparing the cocoa polenta cake.

Pour the milk into a saucepan and set it on the small burner over medium heat.

As soon as the milk is warm (not boiling), add the fine cornmeal (make sure it is fine or very fine grain), lower the heat to the minimum, and start stirring with a fork or a steel whisk.

After about ten minutes, add the sugar, the very finely grated zest of a washed and dried orange, the orange flower essence, the liqueur, the cinnamon, and the vanilla.

Continue stirring continuously until the milk is completely absorbed, and you get a consistency similar to soft polenta.

Immediately turn off the heat, remove the pot from the burner, and quickly add the unsweetened cocoa and the instant coffee (which will help enhance the flavor and aroma of the cocoa even more).

To cool the mixture faster, transfer it to a heat-resistant steel or glass bowl.

Let the mixture rest for about half an hour, stirring occasionally, to let it cool down and prevent a crust from forming on the surface.

After half an hour, separate the yolks from the whites and beat the whites for 60 seconds with an electric mixer at the highest speed. The egg whites should remain soft but firm, meaning they should not slide off the whisks.

Preheat the oven to 350°F

Butter and flour a round pan with a diameter of 8 inches and a height of 2.5 inches.

Incorporate the yolks into the cocoa polenta mixture to soften it; then start adding the egg whites, a little at a time, folding them gently with a spatula, with a motion from the bottom (that is, from the bottom of the bowl) upwards and turning the bowl slightly to incorporate them evenly.

When all the egg whites are incorporated, immediately pour the mixture into the mold, tap it gently on the table, and quickly place it in the oven, at mid-height, for about 50 minutes or until done, after performing the toothpick test, that is, inserting a skewer into the cake which should come out dry.

In this case, immediately turn off the oven and remove the mold. Let the cake rest for about 30 minutes before removing it; during this time, the polenta cake will detach from the walls of the mold and will flatten slightly in the center.

While the cake bakes in the oven or cools after baking, we can prepare the jelly and candied orange peels.

1) Wash the oranges very well, scrubbing the outer skin.

2) Extract the juice from the oranges and pour it into a small saucepan. Cut the “caps” of the squeezed oranges into wide strips, including the white part, from which we will obtain the candied peels.

3) Add the sugar, the salt, and the juice from half a lemon, which, besides keeping the color of the jelly and peels vivid, will help enhance their flavor and aroma.

4) Place the saucepan on the smallest burner at medium heat, cover, and wait for it to come to a boil.

5) From the first boil, count approximately 45 minutes to obtain a very soft, fluid jelly, perfect for brushing on cakes or accompanying them as a “sauce.” If you want it thicker, more solid, extend the cooking by only 5 minutes. The boiling jelly, indeed, will still appear semi-liquid, but once cooled, it will become much firmer.

6) Stir the jelly continuously until you notice it starts to thicken. Immediately turn off the heat and pour it into a heat-resistant bowl, along with the peels (which, in the meantime, will have candied perfectly).

7) Remove the peels from the jelly and let them cool on a plate.

Assemble the cocoa polenta cake.

When both the cake and jelly are cold, we can complete the preparation.

Brush the entire cake with the jelly.

Cut the candied peels into even thinner strips and decorate the cake according to your creativity. If you want, you can cut a small orange into thin slices and place it around or on the cake (perhaps adding some crushed pistachios for an extra touch of color and crunchiness) to make the decoration even richer and more scenic.

The cocoa polenta cake is delicious on its own, but to make it even more chic and refined, serve each slice with a teaspoon of orange jelly.

Extra Tip

I recommend preparing the polenta cake a day in advance, as it becomes more delicious and flavorful over time.

If you have leftover orange jelly, you can use it for breakfast, a snack, as a filling for sweets and desserts; or you can transfer it to one or more sterilized jars with airtight lids and pasteurize it.

For pasteurization

– Wrap the jar in a kitchen towel to prevent it from breaking during boiling. Fill the pot with water, so it covers the jar by about an inch. Cover, bring to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer for 30 minutes.

– After the time has passed, turn off the heat and let the jar cool without touching it until it is completely cold. Then you can store it in a cool and dry place.. This way, you can safely use the jelly later.

Bon appetit

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