Vanilla Polenta Pound Cake

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 cup polenta (not instant)
3 1/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Tahitian vanilla extract
12 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 eggs

Preparation:

Mix together buttermilk and polenta; let soak for 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour two 8 inch tube cake
pans.

Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Cream
together butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs one at a
time, beating well after each addition. Stir in vanilla extract.

Fold soaked polenta and dry ingredients alternately into creamed
mixture, in 3 additions.

Divide batter between prepared pans. Bake about 40 minutes, or until a
toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean.

Let cakes cool 5 minutes before turning out on a wire rack to cool.

Sift vanilla powdered sugar over cakes as soon as you remove them from
pans. When cakes are completely cool, sprinkle vanilla powdered sugar
over them again.

The cakes may now be wrapped and stored for at least four days. They
can be frozen for as long as a month. If you freeze them, dust with
powdered sugar again before serving.