Bolo de milho in the Air Fryer
Moist Brazilian corn cake with plenty of corn flavour – the batter is blended in just a few minutes and baked golden in a ring tin in the air fryer. Made without wheat flour and perfect with your afternoon coffee.
Equipment
- 1 Air fryer
- 1 Blender
- 1 Sieve
- 1 Cake pan ring tin with a hole in the middle, 18-20 cm
- 1 Pastry brush
- 1 Dough scraper
- Aluminum foil
- 1 Toothpick
- 1 Cooling rack
Ingredients
200 g sweetcorn canned, drained
2 pcs eggs
150 ml milk- 75 ml rapeseed oil or another neutral oil
125 g sugar- 100 g cornmeal fine, not cornstarch
2 tsp baking powder
1 pinch salt
For the tin
1 tbsp butter softened- 1 tbsp cornmeal for dusting
Instructions
Preparation
- Grease the cake tin thoroughly with 1 tbsp butter using a pastry brush – don't forget the tube in the middle. Dust the tin with 1 tbsp cornmeal, tilt and turn it so the whole inside gets a thin coating, and tap out the excess.
- Blend 200 g sweetcorn (well drained in a sieve) with 2 pcs eggs, 150 ml milk, 75 ml rapeseed oil and 125 g sugar for 1-2 minutes, until the sweetcorn is completely broken down and the mixture is smooth.
- Add 100 g cornmeal and 1 pinch salt, and blend again for about 30 seconds, until everything is evenly mixed. The batter is thin and runny – that's how it should be.
- Finally, stir 2 tsp baking powder into the batter with a dough scraper, or blend it in with 2-3 short pulses. Don't blend any longer than that, so the cake keeps its rise.
Cooking in the air fryer
- Preheat the air fryer to 160 °C fan.
- Pour the batter into the tin, and scrape the blender clean with the dough scraper. The tin should be no more than two thirds full, as the cake will rise. Place the tin in the basket.
- Bake the cake at 160 °C for 15 minutes, until the surface is golden brown.
- Cover the cake loosely with aluminium foil, and tuck the foil firmly around the rim of the tin so it can't blow up against the heating element. Turn the tin half a turn so the cake browns evenly, and keep baking at 160 °C for another 15 minutes.
- Check the cake by inserting a toothpick into the thickest part. If it comes out without any sticky batter, the cake is done. Otherwise, bake it for another 3-5 minutes at 160 °C.
Serving
- Let the cake cool in the tin on a wire rack for about 15 minutes. It is fragile while warm, and releases from the tin more easily once it has set.
- Turn the cake out onto the wire rack. Serve it warm or at room temperature, cut into slices – ideally with a cup of coffee.
Notes
Tips for a perfect result:
Use fine cornmeal – not cornstarch and not coarse corn grits or polenta. The fine meal gives the soft, lightly grainy crumb that bolo de milho is known for. The hole in the ring tin lets the hot air reach the cake from the inside, so it bakes through without drying out at the edge. The heating element sits close to the top of the cake, so covering it with foil after 15 minutes is important – otherwise the top gets too dark before the cake is done in the middle. Gluten-free:
There is no wheat flour in the cake. If you are baking for someone with coeliac disease, choose cornmeal and baking powder that are labelled gluten-free. Variation:
Blend 25 g coconut flour into the batter, or stir in 1 tsp fennel seeds at the end – both are popular additions in Brazil. If you want whole sweetcorn kernels in the crumb, set aside 2 tbsp of the sweetcorn and stir it into the batter just before it goes into the tin. Serving:
In Brazil, bolo de milho is a fixture on the breakfast table and at afternoon coffee. Serve it warm or at room temperature, optionally dusted with a little cinnamon or icing sugar. Portion size:
The cake makes about 8 pieces (4 servings of 2 pieces each). If a ring tin of 18-20 cm doesn't fit in your air fryer, you can bake the batter in muffin moulds instead – check them with a toothpick after about 15 minutes at 160 °C.
Use fine cornmeal – not cornstarch and not coarse corn grits or polenta. The fine meal gives the soft, lightly grainy crumb that bolo de milho is known for. The hole in the ring tin lets the hot air reach the cake from the inside, so it bakes through without drying out at the edge. The heating element sits close to the top of the cake, so covering it with foil after 15 minutes is important – otherwise the top gets too dark before the cake is done in the middle. Gluten-free:
There is no wheat flour in the cake. If you are baking for someone with coeliac disease, choose cornmeal and baking powder that are labelled gluten-free. Variation:
Blend 25 g coconut flour into the batter, or stir in 1 tsp fennel seeds at the end – both are popular additions in Brazil. If you want whole sweetcorn kernels in the crumb, set aside 2 tbsp of the sweetcorn and stir it into the batter just before it goes into the tin. Serving:
In Brazil, bolo de milho is a fixture on the breakfast table and at afternoon coffee. Serve it warm or at room temperature, optionally dusted with a little cinnamon or icing sugar. Portion size:
The cake makes about 8 pieces (4 servings of 2 pieces each). If a ring tin of 18-20 cm doesn't fit in your air fryer, you can bake the batter in muffin moulds instead – check them with a toothpick after about 15 minutes at 160 °C.
Nutrition
Calories: 487kcalCarbohydrates: 62gProtein: 8gFat: 24gSaturated fat: 4gPolyunsaturated fat: 6gMonounsaturated fat: 13gCholesterol: 100mgSodium: 400mgPotassium: 230mgFiber: 2gSugar: 36gVitamin A: 360IUVitamin C: 2mgCalcium: 62mgIron: 1mgNet carbohydrates: 60g
