Blueberry Polenta Upside-Down Cake Recipe (2024)

Why do you stipulate olive oil, not Virgin olive oil for this recipe?

I was determined to use what I had. So I substituted frozen blueberries, butter and grapeseed oil, and whole wheat ffour and corn flour. I cut the formula in half and used a small, round cast iron pan because that's all I had. I also forgot the wax paper, and probably overcooked it given the halved formula. And it still turned out very well. This is a forgiving, hard-to-screw-up formula/recipe.

so you did not even come close to following the recipe and just made one up? not helpful at all, If I was interested in a cake made with chickpea flour and applesauce and artificial sweetener and ginger I would have searched for one.

Cornmeal and frozen blueberries (thawed, slightly drained) worked perfectly for me. Normally I prefer stoneground cornmeal but I tried it both ways, and here, regular/fine-ground cornmeal is better because the stoneground stayed a bit undercooked/crunchy. Not bad but not ideal!

I substituted the zest of 2 lemons for the orange zest, and also added a sprinkling of lemon zest to the blueberries themselves. This is insanely delicious. I disagree with reviewers who find it too sweet, I would say it's not very sweet at all, perfect for breakfast or tea. Fine-ground cornmeal works best; stone-ground will leave a few crunchy bits. I've used several different kinds of oil, I honestly don't think it matters much. Finally, this cake is best the next day.

A perfect quick recipe for an impromptu dessert. I substituted all-purpose flour for chickpea flour, applesauce instead of oil, and brown sugar Truvia for a healthier and slightly more savory twist. And added minced ginger! Definitely will keep experimenting with a range of fruit toppings.

Super easy, super good, super GONE!!!! Also plan to try the recipe with pineapple (duh!), cherries, plums, apples, rhubarb, or other types of fruit.

EEVO is too "Good" for baking, you won't get the subtle taste differences. Just a good, decent, more affordable olive oil is used for these sorts of applications.

Because EVO is the first press so has the most olive flavor... which won't pair well in a cake. When you get into further pressings, you lose the strong olive flavor.

Made this with fresh blackberries using the zest of one small lemon in place of the zest of a large orange. Used Bob's Red Mill Polenta (aka grits) for the cornmeal. At first blush, I didn't love it—thought maybe the cornmeal was too gritty or something else not quite right—but I put it in a tight container in the fridge and it tasted wonderful the next day. And the next, actually. A new favorite.

Taking note of others who said the cake was too sweet, I substituted 1/2 cup chopped rhubarb into the blueberry mix (and i measured the sugar a little skimpily). The result was delicious. Also, as others have noted, if you use coarse polenta or grits, then put the cake in the fridge for a day. You will love it.

Used a cast iron skillet with no parchment as suggested below. My glass pan was too small and based on some of the comments, didn't want the fruit to be runny. It came out perfect, baked for 50 minutes. Used lemon zest instead of orange, and I use an oil that is combination of coconut and canola. Guests loved it, no one thought it was too sweet. I had the leftovers for breakfast the next day with plain Greek yogurt to cut the sweetness. Will make again.

I used fresh blueberries and safflower oil, didn't want to use my expensive olive oil. The cake was good, but it tasted more like an orange cake than a blueberry cake. Next time I will only use one teaspoon of orange zest. The large amount of zest from a whole orange dominated the cake and the fresh blueberry flavor was lost.

loved the cake & used fine polenta which gave it enough crunch. sugar added to blueberries was too sweet for my taste; they're in season & taste better on their own-maybe add some zest to berries

This was in the oven in under 10 mins flat. So easy, fresh and moist. I do feel it was a little orangey and would recommend using a smaller orange or less zest. I will be making again!!

This is a hit every time I make it.

Delicious! Mine came out a lot darker looking but still really good. I squeezed a lemon wedge over the blueberries after I took it out of the oven which really helped give it an extra kick!

A new favorite, with these adjustments to suit my tastes and cupboard. Only EVOO available, so I used half that and half avocado oil. No oranges, so used lemon zest and juice (about half a cup). I used half polenta and half cornmeal and loved the crunch level. As others report, excellent the day after, and maybe better after that. Can’t wait to try with peaches or maybe strawberries and rhubarb!

This was DELICIOUS!!!! Made with fresh blueberries from our garden. used sunflower oil, not olive. Served with fresh whipped cream. So moist!

In my version I've substituted lemon for the oranges. Comes out very nicely tart. And yes I did make it as written but prefer the lemon.

Can someone convert this to a loaf pan recipe?

Every year after I have exhausted all ways to use up stalks of rhubarb, and any other fruits that will go bad, and am left trying to figure out what to do with them, I cook them into a slightly sweetened mush and stick them in the freezer with the intention of making something. This cake will be a recipe I will keep for my cartons of such unknown fruit mush. Lasts a long time.

I really like the cornmeal cake, and the whole thing fit perfectly in my 10” cast iron skillet, and turned out nicely. The quality and sweetness of the fruit layer depends on the fruit used. With blueberries, lemon zest and lemon juice might be a nice substitute. I think I will try that next time.

I substituted Bob's Red Mill 1:1 Gluten Free Flour and mixed half EVOO and half Avocado oil. Turned out absolutely perfect. I didn't find this too sweet as others have mentioned - I found it well balanced with the acidity from the orange. Will def make again!

Use cornmeal instead of polenta

I followed the recipe as written and the cake was delicious. I did use EVO and it tasted fine.

Made this exactly as written. Used yellow corn meal (not labeled as course or fine, just corn meal). It was not gritty. Cooked 60 minutes.

Are used frozen cranberries because that’s what I had. Worked out splendidly and will do this again.

I would prefer a version of this without cornmeal/polenta. I know that's not the point, but I found the crunchy kernels distracting. I did like the flavor and did not find it too sweet. I used zest from half and orange and all of a lemon. I sprinkled some lemon zest on the berries as one reviewer suggested, but that wasn't particularly discernable. I combined the juice of the orange and the lemon, then measured the 2/3 C needed. This may have cut some of the sweetness others commented on.