Sweet Peach Cornmeal Cake - Bolo de Fuba

Peak peach season is the optimal time to make this ultra-moist sweet peach cake. Ripe fresh peaches are quickly blanched, skinned, then sautéed in brown butter and sugar. A whole peach is chopped and folded into the batter, for double peach delight! The cornmeal in the cake base lends texture and a subtle flavor that contrasts the sweetness of the peaches quite nicely.

Use canned peaches to simplify the recipe. Gluten and dairy free instructions in the recipe notes.

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Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 35 minutes

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American, Brazilian

Keyword: bolo de fuba, cornmeal cake, easy cornmeal cake, easy summer dessert, how to skin peaches, peach cake, peach cornmeal cake, peach dessert, spring dessert, stone fruit dessert, summer dessert recipe

Servings: 9" cake

Author: Lauren Harvey

Ingredients

For the Cake

2 whole eggs
¼ cup vegetable or canola oil
½ cup milk of choice
¼ tsp vanilla extract
1 cup granulated sugar
½ cup regular or finely ground cornmeal
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ tablespoon baking powder
pinch salt

For the Peaches

5 ripe peaches washed clean and patted dry
¼ cup unsalted butter
¼ cup granulated sugar

Instructions

Peaches

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.
Score the peaches with a small knife. Make an X on the bottom of each peach.
As soon as the water boils, prep an ice bath in a separate bowl by adding lots of ice and cold water. Fill the bowl about halfway.
If you don't have a bowl large enough to fit all the peaches, you can use another pot, cold and off heat.
Using tongs, carefully add the peaches to boiling water. Let boil about one minute, until the skin on the bottom looks like its starting to peel back at the corners.
Remove peaches from boiling water using tongs and add directly into the ice bath. Wait about 5 minutes to allow the peaches to cool.
Remove the peaches from the water and set out to dry. Remove the skin from one peach by gently pushing away at the X mark at the bottom. The skin should easily peel off.
Once all peaches are peeled, it's time to cut!
Dice ONE peach into small pieces. This will go into the cake.
Slice the other four peaches nicely. This will be for the top of the cake. You want the slices to be about medium thickness -- enough to hold their shape but thin enough to eat easily.

Cornmeal Cake

Heat the oven to 325°F. Line a 9" round cake pan with parchment on the bottom.
In a clean bowl, add eggs, oil, milk and vanilla extract. Whisk vigorously to combine.
In a separate bowl, sift baking powder and flour. Add in cornmeal and pinch of salt. Whisk briefly to combine.
Pour the wet ingredients into the bowl with the dry ingredients. Whisk vigorously by hand to combine. Batter should be smooth.
Add in the one diced peach to the batter. Fold in gently with a spatula.
Pour thee batter into the prepared cake pan. Bake in the oven for about 35 minutes.
Baking times may vary. Check the cake at the 30 minute mark. If a toothpick is inserted and comes out clean, the cake is done. If not, leave in for another five minutes.
Be advised, the top of the cake will brown considerably, no worries! The inside will be just fine :)

Assembly

In a large saute pan, add the butter. Let it melt. When it begins to bubble and emits a nutty aroma, add sugar. Stir to combine.
Add the remaining sliced peaches to the pan in a single layer. Let the peaches cook for about 5-7 minutes over medium heat. They should be soft and caramelized but not falling apart.
Remove from pan and set in refrigerator (after cooling) until ready to use.
Once the cake is finished cooking, turn it out onto a cooling rack. Once room temperature, place in the fridge to cool for about 30 minutes.
Remove cake from fridge and level the cake, using a large serrated bread knife to even out the surface of the cake.
Arrange the peaches in a circular pattern, working from the outside in. Use the best-looking slices first, then fill in the gaps with smaller slices.
Let the decorated cake sit in the fridge for about an hour. This will allow the juices from the peach to absorb into the cake.
Slice and serve! Whipped cream optional.

Notes

TO MAKE GLUTEN FREE: Replace flour with Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour. Available from Bob's Red Mill, King Arthur or Trader Joe's! To be safe, ensure the cornmeal package you use says Gluten-Free. Cornmeal, by nature, is gluten free, but you never know what may be added in certain products.

TO MAKE DAIRY FREE: Use unsweetened oat milk or almond milk in the recipe. Use dairy-free butter.

USE CANNED PEACHES FOR A SHORTCUT: If you don't have good quality fresh peaches available, using canned is perfectly acceptable. Skip the first section of the directions, since canned are already peeled. Instead of sautéing peaches for 5-7 minutes, melt down the butter and sugar, then quickly throw the peaches in the pan to coat, for about a minute.

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