Upside Down Blood Orange & Polenta Cake

Serves 8

Blood orange season is fleeting, so make the most of it with this cake, which is a bright, zesty treat. Blood oranges are sharper and more intensely flavoured than typical oranges, making them an ideal ingredient for sweet cakes.

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• 5 blood oranges  
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 125g Ivy’s Reserve Salted butter  
• 125g golden caster sugar, plus 1 tbsp
• 70g plain white flour
• 60g quick cook polenta
• 50g ground almonds
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp vanilla paste
• 3 eggs

1. Grease and line a 23cm round loose-bottomed cake tin. Preheat your oven to 180C.
2. Wash, zest and juice one of the blood oranges into a small bowl with the lemon juice and set aside.  Next, prepare the remaining oranges for the base of the tin by using a serrated knife, cut the remaining four oranges into thin, 1/4cm slices. Use any ends of blood oranges to squeeze into a small saucepan along with 1 tbsp of sugar. Simmer until the mixture thickens, then arrange the orange slices in an attractive pattern on top of the syrup.
3. Beat together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Mix in the flour, polenta, almonds, baking powder, orange zest and juice, vanilla and eggs. Mix well and pour into the prepared tin over the orange slices.
4. Bake in the middle of the oven for 35 minutes, until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
5. After the cake has cooled for about 20 minutes, lift it from the pan, peel away the paper, carefully upend it onto a plate and serve with yoghurt or clotted cream.