GLUTEN-FREE LEMON BUTTERMILK CAKE WITH CARAMEL GLAZE

Try this: a bright lemony cake, tender and light, with a hot caramel sauce poured on top. This wheat-free cake has a delicate crumb, just a little smoother than a pound cake. If you don’t tell people it’s gluten-free, they may not know. Because of the oats and buckwheat flour, the cake is best served in its first twenty-four hours. It becomes a little gummy if it sits around too long. Unfortunately, it also doesn’t freeze very well. You’ll just have to eat it up!

For the cake

16 tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature, plus additional for the sheet pan

1 cup certified gluten-free yellow cornmeal

1 cup buckwheat flour

1 cup certified gluten-free rolled oats

½ cup cornstarch

½ cup white rice flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

2 cups granulated white sugar

4 large eggs, at room temperature

1⅓ cups regular cultured buttermilk

¼ cup fresh lemon juice

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1. Position the rack in the center of the oven. Heat the oven to 350°F. Generously butter the inside of a 13 × 18-inch lipped sheet pan.

2. Whisk the cornmeal, buckwheat flour, oats, cornstarch, rice flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl until uniform.

3. Using a handheld electric mixer or a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the sugar and eggs in a large bowl until you can make wide ribbons, about 5 minutes.

4. Beat in the melted butter until smooth. Turn off the mixer; pour the cornmeal mixture evenly on top of the batter. Beat at low speed while slowly pouring in the buttermilk, lemon juice, and vanilla; continue beating until smooth. Use an offset spatula to spread and smooth the batter evenly into the prepared pan.

5. Bake until lightly browned, and until a toothpick or cake tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Cool in the pan on a wire rack to room temperature, about 1½ hours.

For the glaze

1 cup packed light brown sugar

8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

½ cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ teaspoon salt

1. Stir the brown sugar, butter, cream, lemon juice, vanilla, and salt in a large skillet set over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Reduce the heat to low and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes.

2. Set the skillet off the heat and cool until thickened but still pourable, stirring occasionally, 10 to 15 minutes. Pour over the cake and spread smooth with an offset spatula.

TESTER NOTES

Oats and buckwheat are indeed gluten-free—provided they have been processed or milled in a certified gluten-free facility. The problem with both is that they are often handled in facilities that also process wheat. It’s nigh unto impossible to get rid of its dust. Search out grains processed in certified facilities, if this matters to you or yours. In North America, baking powder is almost always cut with cornstarch as a drying agent; in the United Kingdom, however, it can use a wheat-based additive. Check the manufacturer’s websites if you’re in doubt.