Polenta Pear Rosemary Cake

BY CAROLE LEVY

While you may not be able to take a trip to the Italian countryside anytime soon, this simple cake will make you feel like you just stepped off a cobblestone street into an old-world bakery. My whole food plant-based recipe does not include any processed sugar, eggs, oil, or salt. The combination of polenta, almond, and fresh rosemary meld to create a uniquely Italian dessert that will make you swoon.

Photos by Carole Levy

Prep Time: 20 minutes Bake Time: 40-45 minutes Makes (1) 8” Cake 8-10 Servings

• 2 firm-ripe pears, peeled, cored, and sliced thinly • ¾ cup polenta

• ½ cup plus 2 Tablespoons almond flour • ¾ teaspoon baking powder • ¾ teaspoon baking soda

• ½ cup date paste • ¼ teaspoon nutmeg • 6 Tablespoons plant-based yogurt • 1 teaspoon almond extract • 2 lemons, juiced plus 1 teaspoon zest • 8 Tablespoons aquafaba, chilled • 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, chopped • ⅓-½ apricot spread thinned with 2 Tablespoons lemon juice Preheat oven to 350°F Line the bottom of an 8” springform pan with parchment paper • Start with handfuls of the salad greens on the

Prepare pears by peeling coring and slicing as thin as possible (1⁄8” thickness), squeeze lemon juice over pears so they don’t brown. Set aside. • In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients: polenta, almond flour, baking powder, baking soda and nutmeg. Set aside. • In a small bowl, combine wet ingredients: date paste, yogurt, vanilla, almond extract, and zest. • Pour aquafaba into a bowl and whisk until stiff peaks form. • Fold the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until fully combined. Take the whipped aquafaba and fold gently fold into the batter, try not to overmix, as you don’t want to deflate the aquafaba. • Pour batter into prepared pan. • Starting on the outside edge, begin to arrange the sliced pears on top of the batter, overlapping slices to make a decorative pattern. Continue layering pears working towards the center until cake is completely covered. • Gently glaze the top of the cake with apricot glaze. Be careful not to move the fruit. • Bake 40-45 minutes, the top will be brown, and the fruit will be cooked. You can use a skewer to test the center of the cake. During the last 10 minutes of baking, sprinkle the cake with fresh chopped rosemary and reglaze the cake, to give a glistening shine.

Chef notes: • This cake can be made with any fresh fruit which is in season. (Peaches, blueberries, figs, apples.). • I use (1) 5.3 oz container of Forager Cashew milk yogurt, unsweetened plain. • The best baking pears are Bosc red pear, red and green D'Anjou pears, Bartlett, Forelle, and Concorde pears.

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