orange honey corn cake

Cake suitable for breakfast.

Or a snack.

Or a simple dessert.

Cake with a little orange zip!

By now, I’m sure you have all caught wind of the romantic feelings I have for cornbread.  I could go on for days about it.  While I realize there are some very strict opinions and methods to making cornbread—no sweetness, a little sweetness, with corn, no corn, etc.—I truly believe the options are endless.  I’ve tried combinations like blueberries + cornbread, bananas + cornbread, and pumpkin + cornbread, just to name a few.  All delicious in their own cornbready way.

But this.  This opens the door to a whole new world of possibilities.

It’s much lighter and fluffier.

It’s corn CAKE!

Thanks to talented Erin, from Naturally Ella, for inspiring this idea. I adapted my go-to cornbread recipe and cornbread doughnut recipe to come up with a gluten-free corn cake studded with orange zest and lightly sweetened with honey. The almond meal is key in the to the soft texture of this cake.

The first trial included a small amount of sweet rice flour but it ended up weighing the cake down.  It was still more than edible, but I was looking for something a bit fluffier.  In the second trial I took out the sweet rice flour, added a bit more almond meal, and increased the applesauce to help lend a more cake-like texture. 

After two trials the recipe was exactly what I hoped for.

Print this!

Orange Honey Corn Cake

gluten-free, dairy-free // yields one 9x9 pan

inspired by naturally ella’s blueberry maple corn cake, adapted from my cornbread doughnuts

• 1/2 cup masa harina
• 1/2 cup gluten-free oat flour
• 6 tablespoons almond meal
• 1/4 cup medium/fine grain cornmeal
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1/3 cup orange juice [fresh squeezed or no sugar added]
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 2 teaspoons orange zest
• 1/3 cup honey
• 2 + 1 tablespoons unrefined coconut oil, melted

1. Preheat your oven to 350* F.
2. Stir the masa harina, oat flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl.
3. Whisk the eggs then whisk in the milk, orange juice, applesauce, and zest.
4. In a small bowl whisk the honey and melted coconut oil together until fully combined.
5. Vigorously whisk the honey mixture into the egg mixture until fully combined.
6. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir with a large spoon until just combined.  Avoid over stirring.
7. Let the batter sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
8. Thoroughly grease all sides of a 9x9 pan with 1 tablespoon of melted coconut oil.  There will be excess left on the bottom, which you want.
9. Pour the batter into the pan and spread evenly, then place in the oven for 24-28 minutes until a toothpick comes out fairly clean but with a few small bits of cake attached [not gooey/wet].  The center should spring back when lightly touched and the edges will be golden brown.
10. Let cool for 10 minutes then slice with a knife and serve plain or with a drizzle of coconut oil and/or honey.

notes:  It’s best to let the eggs, milk, juice, and applesauce sit on the counter for about 30 minutes for easier combining of the coconut oil and applesauce.  You want the coconut oil melted and warm but not hot.  Feel free to use an 8x8 pan or a 8-9” circular pan.  The 8” pans will have a slightly longer bake time.  Altitude around 5,000’ set your oven to 370* and decrease baking powder by 1/4-1/2 teaspoon.

Why hello there, favorite new breakfast.  I cannot wait to enjoy you tomorrow morning.

Ashley

psst! New post over on the photography blog!  Melissa + Jeff, engaged!

cornbread doughnuts

Exciting things are happening over here in doughnut-land, as I like to call it.  I hit 51 doughnuts today, which means I’m HALFway done with recipes! 

And with that I think we need to celebrate with one of my latest creations.

I wasn’t sure what the response would be to a cornbread doughnut.  A savory doughnut?  Yes!  Actually, there is a complete savory chapter.  This doughnut falls in between sweet + savory because I like to top it with honey butter and a pinch of cinnamon.  I thought maybe it would help ease you into the idea.

You all seemed highly intrigued + excited when this photo was posted to Instagram, so I figured I better share.

This is a little sneak peak to the photo that you’ll see in the book, but for today’s post I snapped a few new shots.

That means I had to make another batch.  Poor me.

I could live off these for breakfast for the entire next year.

Are you wondering where the hole is in this doughnut?

My pans were occupied with another recipe, so I used my doughnut twist pan. 

The “twist” is on the bottom which you can sort of see in the photos.  I wanted to keep these rough side up to look a bit more like cornbread.  They’re a good mix between doughnut and cornbread in both taste and texture.  Fluffier and lighter than typical cornbread, while still holding onto that comforting, distinctive flavor.

Print this!

Cornbread Doughnuts

gluten-free // yields 9 doughnuts in the Wilton doughnut pan, or 3 loaves in the twist pan

• 1/3 cup fine ground cornmeal
• 1/3 cup masa harina [or corn flour]
• 1/3 cup gluten free oat flour
• 3 tablespoons sweet rice flour
• 2 tablespoons almond meal
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
• 2.5 tablespoons honey
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt

Honey Butter

• 1/4 cup butter, softened
• 3 tablespoons honey
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• pinch of salt

1. Preheat your oven to 350* and grease you doughnut pan thoroughly with butter.
2. Mix together all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
3. Whisk together all of the wet ingredients in a separate bowl until well combined.
4. Pour the wet into the dry and mix with a large spoon until just combined.  Avoid over stirring. 
5. Let sit for 5 minutes.  The batter should thicken a bit.
6. Carefully spoon the mixture into each mold, smoothing it needed.  Leave about 1/8 – 1/4” space from the top of the pan.
7. Place in the center of the oven and bake for 15-18 minutes.  Test with a toothpick for doneness.  It should be moist, but not gooey or bone dry. 
8. While baking, mix the butter, honey, cinnamon, and salt together until combined. 
9. Store in the fridge until ready to use.
10. Let the cornbread doughnuts cool for 5 minutes in the pan, then remove with the help of a small silicone spatula.  Slide it around all of the edges and it should slide right out.
11. Let cool 5 more minutes to set.
12. Top with honey butter and eat.  -- Or, melt the butter and whisk the honey, cinnamon, and salt into it, to use as a melted topping.

notes: For altitude around 5,000’ set your oven to 370* and decrease the baking powder to 1.5 teaspoons.  Bake time may decrease by a minute or two.  You can also make these with a muffin pan, but bake time will differ.

Think you can handle a savory doughnut?

Ashley