Apricot Cornmeal Cakes

Note: I find regular coarse cornmeal to be too gritty and overly crunchy in baked goods so I use fine ground cornmeal for a nice, slightly crunchy texture. I substituted some corn flour to give the cakes a little more corn flavor.

Preheat the oven to 350 F. Line a 12-count muffin tin with paper liners or lightly spray 4 individual 6-inch pans with non-stick cooking spray.

Combine granulated sugar and 1/2 teaspoon orange zest in a small bowl and press down with a spoon to release the oils in the zest.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugar/orange zest mixture until extremely light and fluffy, approximately 5 minutes. Add the eggs and extracts and mix until well incorporated, scraping the bowl with a spatula as needed.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients: flour, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and 2 teaspoons Chinese five-spice powder. With the mixer running, slowly add the dry ingredients to the butter/egg mixture until just combined. Do not over mix.

Scoop the batter into the muffin tin or individual pans. Place apricot slices on the top.

Mix the topping ingredients in a small bowl then sprinkle over the apricot cakes.

Bake for approximately 30-35 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove pan(s) from oven and set on a rack. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Adapted from A Spicy Perspective.