Gluten-Free Orange Polenta Cake

This moist and tender gluten-free cake boasts a delightful citrus aroma and a satisfying, slightly crumbly texture from the polenta. It's a perfect balance of sweet orange zest and a delicate, melt-in-your-mouth crumb that will have everyone asking for seconds.

Prep: 20 min Cook: 45 min Total: 75 min Serves: 8

At a glance: This medium baking recipe yields 8 servings in about 1h 15m (20 min prep, 45 min cook). It uses 10 ingredients — including fine cornmeal, gluten-free all-purpose flour blend, gluten-free baking powder — and walks through 5 steps. Updated October 25, 2026. Browse more baking recipes or return to all gluten-free recipes.

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Cross-Contamination Warning for Gluten-Free Orange Polenta Cake: When preparing this baking recipe, polenta and fine cornmeal often share mills with wheat, so buy cornmeal labeled gluten-free together with the flour blend and baking powder. Keep any wooden spoon used for this batter separate from one used for wheat batters.

Gluten-Free Notes for Gluten-Free Orange Polenta Cake: This recipe is gluten-free by utilizing fine cornmeal (polenta) and a gluten-free flour blend, avoiding any gluten-containing grains.

Scale Recipe:

servings

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Instructions

1 Preheat your oven to 350°F (175°C) and grease and flour an 8-inch round cake pan with gluten-free flour or line it with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together the fine cornmeal (polenta), gluten-free all-purpose flour blend, gluten-free baking powder, and salt. Ensure these dry ingredients are thoroughly combined for an even texture.
2 In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, eggs, plant-based milk, melted coconut oil, fresh orange zest, and fresh orange juice until well combined and the mixture is smooth. The aroma of the orange zest should be quite fragrant at this stage.
3 Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Stir gently with a spatula or wooden spoon until just combined, being careful not to overmix. The batter will be thick and slightly coarse due to the polenta, which is exactly what you want for this cake's texture.
4 Pour the batter evenly into the prepared cake pan. Gently tap the pan on the counter a couple of times to release any large air bubbles and ensure the batter is level. Allow the batter to rest in the pan for about 10 minutes before baking, which helps the polenta absorb moisture.
5 Bake in the preheated oven for approximately 40-45 minutes, or until a wooden skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean and the top is golden brown and firm to the touch. Once baked, let the cake cool in the pan for about 15 minutes before carefully inverting it onto a wire rack to cool completely. Slicing the cake while warm can cause it to crumble excessively.

Tips & Notes

Buy fine cornmeal or polenta with a gluten-free label. Corn itself contains no gluten, yet many mills grind several grains on the same equipment, so check the bag each time you restock.
Zest the oranges before you juice them, and rub the zest into the sugar before whisking in the eggs so the orange oils spread through the batter.
For a moister cake, simmer 2 tablespoons of orange juice with 2 tablespoons of sugar for 1 minute and brush it over the warm cake. Polenta cakes soak up syrup well.

Common questions

What cross-contamination risk is specific to Gluten-Free Orange Polenta Cake?

Check fine cornmeal, gluten-free all-purpose flour blend, gluten-free baking powder before they go into Gluten-Free Orange Polenta Cake. Polenta and fine cornmeal often share mills with wheat, so buy cornmeal labeled gluten-free together with the flour blend and baking powder. Keep any wooden spoon used for this batter separate from one used for wheat batters.

Which gluten-free swaps does Gluten-Free Orange Polenta Cake use?

Gluten-Free Orange Polenta Cake relies on 1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour blend. Keep those gluten-free-labeled products in place of a gluten-containing flour or sauce.

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