This zest of happiness is doubling as teacake or breakfast delight, if served with some milk or even better, a thick Greek yogurt. Gluten and dairy free, packed with almonds that will give you lot of energy to start the day, polenta that helps regulate and speed your metabolism and coconut oil, which is loaded with good fats that ironically decrease sweet cravings and help loose weight, but all this aside, it is terribly delicious!

This is my version, inspired by John Torod’s cake from the book ‘My kind of food’.

Ingredients:

Cake:
2 oranges • 2 lemons • 180g almond powder • 150g polenta • 10g baking powder • 4 eggs • 170g granulated sugar • 80ml coconut oil • 10 pieces crushed pink berries •
Pinch of fleur de sel

Syrup:
150ml fresh mandarin juice • 75g granulated sugar

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 170 degrees.
Grease a 23 cm baking ring.
Place  an orange and lemon in the pot and cover with water.
Boil for 30 min and than drain and leave to cool before cutting it into small pieces (zest and all).
Pick out the seeds and place it into blender with crushed pink berries and the squeezed juice of the remaining lemon and orange. Blend it into a smooth paste.
Mix eggs with sugar until pale, then add the paste, coconut oil and sifted almond powder. Continue beating for 2 min.
Mix the polenta with baking powder and gently fold this into the mixture.
Pour into the baking ring and bake for about 45 min, or until a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.
In the mean time prepare the syrup by placing water and sugar in a sauce pan and boil down to a thick syrup.
Unmold and turn the cake out on a cooling rack.
While still warm, pour over with syrup and leave to cool.

Bon appetit!