plum and rosemary polenta cake

plum and rosemary polenta cake

• 26 Jan 2026

My first post of the year was an apricot rosemary and polenta cake which was very well received by my neighbours. I wanted to make a plum version so as soon as blood plums appeared in the fruit shop I bought half a dozen.

I knew I'd have to change the recipe a little. The apricot cake was topped with halved apricots cooked in a rosemary flavoured caramel. Plums are very difficult to halve cleanly and if cooked in the caramel would have fallen apart. Instead I quartered the plums then just before baking I poured the rosemary caramel over the plum topped cake. As plums go well with hazelnuts, I swapped out some of the almond meal for hazelnut meal.

Here's the recipe for you which makes a 17cm cake. For all my recipes, I use a 250 ml cup and a 20 ml tablespoon. All eggs are 60 grams and my oven is a conventional oven not fan forced, so you may need to reduce your oven temperature by 20°C.

Plum and rosemary polenta cake – makes a 17-cm cake
Plum topping
5 plums, stoned and quartered 
1 tbs caster sugar 

Cake
65g full cream milk
15g polenta or medium cornmeal
75g whole egg (1 and ½ eggs)
75g unsalted butter, softened
75g caster sugar
½ tsp vanilla extract
75g almond meal and 20g hazelnut meal
25g medium cornmeal
Scant ½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp flaky sea salt

Caramel
20g butter
20g caster sugar
½ tsp finely chopped fresh rosemary needles

To serve 
Crème fraîche

Plum topping 
Halve the plums, remove the seeds then cut again into quarters. Sprinkle the plums with the caster sugar and set aside for 30 minutes, reserving any juice that forms.

The polenta
Heat the milk to a simmer and add the polenta. Whisk over a medium-low heat until thickened, then continue to whisk for a few minutes until creamy and smooth - taste it and check for hard lumps. Once it is tender, leave to cool. Once cooled, blend the polenta with the eggs and set aside.

Cake
Preheat the oven to 190°C/170°C fan. Line the 17-cm cake tin with baking paper.
Cream the butter and sugar together for 2-3 minutes until slightly lightened. Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the eggs/polenta mixture slowly until well combined.

Mix the dry ingredients together - the almond and hazelnut meal, cornmeal, baking powder and salt - then stir them through the butter/sugar mixture. Spoon into the cake tin and smooth out. Nestle the plum quarters into the batter then prepare the caramel. 

Caramel
Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the sugar and heat until bubbling and browning slightly. Add the chopped rosemary and bubble for 30 seconds or so, then add any plum juices that have formed. Cook the caramel gently for 3-5 minutes then turn off the heat. Pour the still warm rosemary/butter/caramel over the top of the plums.

Place the cake on the centre rack and bake in the preheated 190°C/170°C fan oven for 60 to 70 minutes. The plums will have sunk into the cake and the cake will be deep golden. If you insert skewer into the cake, only a few moist crumbs should hang on. 

Leave to cool in the tin before serving slightly warm with a spoonful of crème fraîche. The cake will last in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

This was so different from the apricot version. It was a lovely moist cake but the hazelnut flavour was quite dominant, overshadowing the polenta. If there's a next time I'd just use almond meal.

See you all again next week with some more baking from my kitchen.

Bye for now,

Jillian