A blood orange polenta pistachio cake

A simple (pink!) cake, perfect for valentines day

Welcome back to Cooking in Comme where I talk about what I’m cooking and wearing. Today I’m sharing a recipe for a winter cake that’s really delicious but simple enough to make for your loved one(s) on Valentine’s day. Plus the blood orange glaze is pink!

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Cupid image from Emblems of Love from the Public Domain Review

Hi, it’s been a while! How’s your winter going? Mine has been a bit of a blur to be honest! I’ve been reading a lot, started a painting class, and spent a lot of time at home. Baking hasn’t been on my mind as much this year, perhaps due to all the holiday baking I took on at the end of last year.¹ However, I was recently walking along Upper Street and found myself looking longingly at the Ottolenghi window display, craving one of his perfect tiny cakes.² Rather than buy one, I took the opportunity to try to make one myself.

Anyone who’s familiar with Ottolenghi will recognise the highlighted ingredients. In fact, it looks like you can order a very similar cake direct from their Spitalfields location. But I’ve never been one to shy away from copying, so I went ahead and did a bit of research. I referenced an old favourite recipe, the Rose Bakery lemon polenta cake and

Nicola Lamb

’s great article for the FT in which she provides a solid basic formula for cake baking.

Truthfully, there wasn’t much of a “process” in getting this one right. The first one was shockingly good. The polenta and roasted pistachios provided such a robust flavour which grounded the blood orange glaze nicely. The crumb was really tender from the buttermilk and stayed moist for several days after. It was a rare moment where the stars just “aligned” but I shan’t look a gift horse in the mouth and nor do I want to ramble on for longer than necessary so here’s the recipe!

The Recipe

Serves 8³

40g pistachios plus extra for decoration

90g AP flour

35g polenta

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

120g butter

120g caster sugar

zest of one blood orange

2 eggs

1/2 tsp vanilla bean paste

100g buttermilk

1.5 tbsp blood orange juice

70g powdered sugar

flaky sea salt

1. Preheat your oven to 175c (155c with fan)

2. While that’s happening, butter a 19cm round tin and cut a round of parchment paper to line the bottom of the tin

3. Put 40g of pistachios in the oven and toast for about 5 minutes, take them out to cool for about 5 minutes and then blitz in a food processor until they resemble coarsely ground coffee

4. Mix the pistachios with the flour, polenta, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl and set aside

5. Cream the butter, sugar, and most of the blood orange zest (hold back a pinch for the glaze) for a couple minutes

6. Add in the eggs one at a time beating thoroughly after each addition

7. Add the vanilla extract and beat until everything is combined

8. Mix in the dry ingredients using a spatula until no dry bits remain

9. Mix in the buttermilk with a spatula until everything is just combined

10. Pour batter into pan and place in oven

11. Bake for about 35 minutes or until a knife inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Let cool on a wire rack for at least 90 minutes⁴

12. While the cake cools, put the blood orange juice in a bowl and sift powdered sugar into the bowl a few tablespoons at a time mixing with a fork or small whisk as you go along. Once you’ve added in all the powdered sugar add a pinch of flaky sea salt and any remaining zest

13. Chop a small handful of pistachios

14. Brush the glaze over the cooled cake and scatter the chopped pistachios on top

The notes

Let me know if you have any!

The outfit

This has been my go-to outfit as of late. It’s easy to throw on, warm, and special enough that I don’t have to worry about accidentally running into nemeses or past lovers in Clissold Park (though still sufficiently insouciant! crucial!)

The jumper is a recent acquisition from the brand Cecile Tulkens. She’s a small, London-based knitwear designer whose work I first became familiar with at twos, my friend Josh’s shop.⁵ I then went to her AW25 show which further immersed me in her world.⁶ Last weekend while back at twos I finally tried on one of the jumpers and was enamoured by it. The fit is so nice because of the unusual proportions. The long ribbing at the bottom creates a little fold of fabric around my waist which reminds me of really good vintage military jumpers. The seam running down the shoulders works nicely with the high, wide neckline and, of course, the pointelle across the chest and back spelling out ‘CECILE TULKENS’ (yes, I’m happy to be branded) is really beautifully done. Finally, there’s a little silver tag on the body which reminds me of both a security tag and the discreet little silver buttons that identify BLESS items⁷.

Details of the jumper along with a few stray hairs…

The trousers are old ones from the brand Tefkit which a friend of mine, Alek, runs with his mother. The clothing they produce is all really beautiful and well-made. I stopped by their popup in Hastings in autumn 2023 and got to try on these trousers and have them made for my measurements. In addition to fitting me well, it’s the details that really count here. They’re a lovely heavy denim printed with scans of an old pair of Alek’s work trousers.⁸ The drawstrings at the bottom create a pleasant volume but also prevent the hems from being dragged through the mud. Unfortunately they don’t seem to have these exact trousers in stock any more, but they have a similar pair here.

In order to go outside I’ve just been throwing on my Issey Miyake men’s black overcoat, Asics trainers, and my college baseball cap (the only piece of paraphernalia I own from that time. I’m not really a rah-rah kind of person but I like how it looks).

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Kudos if you’ve made it this far! Thank you for reading and, as always, please do let me know if you make the cake and if so who you share it with! Last year I was still in a long-distance relationship so ended up spending Valentine’s with a dear friend of mine. We went to the ballet (we saw Pina Bausch’s Nelken) and I baked him a coconut-lemon layer cake so that’s another option if this one doesn’t appeal! And if you haven’t already please subscribe :)

1. I’ve lost count of how many of batches of Natasha Pickowicz’s pine nut sablés I made! I also made these mousse-filled clementines TWICE. This would be another great option for Valentine’s dessert. I’ve included my method in the replies.

2. Which happen to be the perfect thing to bring to a dinner party where the host invites you to supply dessert. That is if you’re not going to make this cake yourself.

3. A great option for the polycule valentine’s day celebration or dessert for two with plenty left over for breakfast in bed

4. I’m sorry, I really am, but it’s worth it! If you don’t let it cool all the glaze will soak into the cake. It’ll taste nice but won’t be as pretty

5. One of the best clothing shops in London! I’m biased but it’s true! No one has an eye for vintage like Josh. And he’s really created the best atmosphere, every time I go I feel like I meet someone new and very kind.

6. I sadly took no photos, but here’s an image of the sign by the door which carried the name for the collection: I’m Tying Myself in Knots for You. Perfect Valentine’s day sentiment!

7. One day I’ll do a post on BLESS. I have this fantasy for a BLESS-inspired cake so that’s something to look out for...

8. Here’s a close-up of the fabric, you can see the scan of the button on the leg: