Cornmeal Rosemary Cake With Lemon Fondant

Total Time: 1 hr 10 mins Preparation Time: 30 mins Cook Time: 40 mins

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup medium-ground yellow cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 tablespoon grated lemon, zest of
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2/3 cup mascarpone
• 4 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cups sugar
• 8 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted,plus more for buttering the pan
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon rosemary (stripped from the stem, not chopped)
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon, zest of

Recipe

• 1 preheat the oven to 350°f.
• 2 butter a 9-inch cake pan, line it with a circle of parchment paper, and butter the paper.
• 3 in a bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, rosemary, zest, baking powder, and salt.
• 4 in a large bowl, briefly whisk the mascarpone to loosen it.
• 5 add the eggs one at a time, whisking to combine.
• 6 add the sugar and whisk until smooth.
• 7 using a rubber spatula, fold the dry ingredients, in two batches, into the wet ingredients, mixing until smooth.
• 8 stir in the butter.
• 9 scrape the cake batter into the prepared pan and bake until a skewer comes out clean, about 40 minutes.
• 10 while the cake is baking, make the lemon syrup.
• 11 combine the lemon juice and the sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat and cook a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves.
• 12 remove from the heat.
• 13 allow the cake pan to cool on a rack for 5 minutes before unmolding.
• 14 to unmold, run a small knife around the cake.
• 15 place an inverted plate over the cake pan and, protecting your hands with a kitchen towel, invert the whole thing.
• 16 the cake should slide right out the plate.
• 17 peel off the parchment paper, then place a 9-inch cardboard circle or an inverted plate over the cake and, again, invert the whole thing.
• 18 remove the top plate and the cake will be right side up.
• 19 with a wooden skewer, poke a few dozen holes all over the top of the cake.
• 20 while the cake is still warm, brush the cake with the lemon syrup.
• 21 continue brushing for several minutes, giving the syrup time to sink into the cake, until you've used all or most of the syrup.
• 22 allow the cake to cool.
• 23 to make the lemon fondant, bring a small saucepan of water to a boil.
• 24 add the rosemary leaves and blanch them for one minute.
• 25 scoop out the rosemary leaves with a small sieve and drop them immediately into a small bowl of ice water.
• 26 drain, and spread the rosemary leaves on a paper towel to dry.
• 27 in a bowl, whisk the powdered sugar, cream, and lemon juice until smooth, then whisk in the blanched rosemary and the zest.
• 28 when the cake is completely cool, transfer it to a rack set over a baking sheet.
• 29 (if your cake is not on a cardboard circle, use a wide spatula to transfer it.) pour the fondant over the top of the cake and allow it to drip off the sides.
• 30 you can gently tilt the cardboard circle or the wire rack back and forth to encourage the glaze to completely flow over the top of the cake.
• 31 while the glaze is still wet, transfer the cake to a cake plate.
• 32 allow the fondant to dry, an hour or more, before serving the cake.
• 33 (if you allow the glaze to dry before you transfer it, the glaze may crack a bit, unless you are transferring it on a cardboard circle.) because this cake is quite moist, you can make it one day ahead.
• 34 after the cake is brushed with the syrup, allow it to cool completely, then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and leave it at room temperature.
• 35 a few hours before you're ready to serve the cake, make the fondant and glaze the cake.