Basbousa {Semolina Cake With Lemon-Rose Syrup}

If you are craving something sweet and decadent, you are in luck! I have just the thing for you today. This is basbousa or basboussa, an Egyptian specialty, also known as namoura, revani or ravani in different countries around the Middle-East. This dessert is sinfully decadent, but at the same time really easy to make and has a heart-warming rustic simplicity to it.

Basbousa is basically a simple semolina cake drenched in sugar syrup. I have flavored the syrup with lemon and rose, a winning combination, don’t you think so? I have come across recipes using fresh orange zest or orange blossom water too. The Lebanese version namoura, is drenched in a honey syrup.

As for the cake itself, there are a million (I mean that literally) variations you will find in cookbooks and websites. Apart from semolina, some recipes call for desiccated coconut flakes, almond meal or even eggs. Some recipes will tell you to rest the batter for a few hours as well. But the recipe given here is a very basic one using semolina, sugar, butter and yogurt. The cake itself is not too sweet, but once you bathe it in the prepared syrup and allow it to be infused for a while, it turns into this luscious and addictive treat.

The amount of sugar syrup will seem a bit excessive, but trust me, the semolina cake absolutely needs it and all of it will be absorbed into the baked semolina cake. Once done, it will no longer be like a traditional “cake”, but have more of a thick pudding or custard-like consistency. It will remind you faintly of another Indian dessert, the sheera or kesari, a rich stove-top semolina pudding.

This post is part of my monthly Cooking With Friends themed blog challenge. When we decided on Middle Eastern cuisine for this month, I knew at once what I would be posting. I have always wanted to record this lovely recipe on the blog, and so, here it is.

You will find semolina in any specialty grocery stores here, like Indian or Middle Eastern stores. In Indian stores, it may be referred to as rava or sooji, and in the latter as farina. You will find coarse and fine semolina, I have used a combination of both here.

As for the syrup, you just need to boil the sugar and water till it thickens enough to be sticky and coat the back of a spoon lightly. The lemon adds a nice burst of freshness and the rose goes perfectly with the flavors of this cake. You can find dried rose petals or rose-water in these specialty stores as well. A little goes a long way and you can use it to make my Indian chai cake or this rose-flavored falooda dessert next.

The recipe is very easy and straight-forward, but please allow at least an hour for the syrup to be fully absorbed into the cake. If you can do that overnight, even better. So if you want to serve this dessert for a special dinner, you can very well make this ahead. Slightly warm the slices in the microwave before serving.

The following recipe has been adapted from Dyna’s Egyptian Cooking Channel.

BASBOUSA {SEMOLINA CAKE WITH LEMON-ROSE SYRUP}

You will need: (Serves 12-15)

For the cake,

• Coarse semolina – 1 1/2 cups
• Fine semolina – 1/2 cup
• Sugar – 1 cup
• Baking powder – 1 tsp
• Yogurt – 1 cup
• Unsalted butter – 1/2 cup, melted
• Blanched almonds – 10-15

For the syrup,

• Sugar – 2 cups
• Water – 2 cups
• Lemon – 1, juiced
• Dried rose petals – 1 tbsp (or use 1 tsp rose-water)

How to:

• Semolina Cake: Pre-heat the oven to 350 deg.F. Grease a 9-inch baking pan with butter or line it with parchment paper. Set aside.
• In a mixing bowl, lightly whisk the semolina, sugar and baking powder together. Add the yogurt and mix well to combine. Then add the melted butter and combine well to make a thick batter.
• Tip the batter into the prepared pan and smooth it with a spatula. Make score marks on the batter with a sharp knife. Arrange a blanched almond in each portion.
• Bake for 35-40 minutes or till it is set. If the cake is pale after baking, simply broil it for 30 seconds or so till the crust is golden. This extra step truly makes this cake a lot better, but watch it constantly while under the broiler.
• Lemon-Rose Syrup: While the cake is baking, take sugar, water and dried rose petals in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook for 5-10 minutes till it thickens slightly and coats a spoon dipped in it. Stir in the juice of a lemon and strain to remove the rose petals. If you are using rose-water, add it along with the lemon juice. Set aside to cool slightly.
• Basbousa: Once the semolina cake is baked, remove from oven and cool in pan for 5 minutes. Run your knife along the earlier score marks and cut the cake into slices.
• Pour the syrup over the still hot cake and allow it to be absorbed, at least an hour. Serve the slices warm with a hot cup of unsweetened black tea or coffee. Enjoy!

Notes:

• You can add vanilla to the cake batter and syrup instead of lemon and rose. You can also use orange blossom water in the syrup instead of the lemon and rose.

Enjoy a slice of basbousa after a delicious meal. It is sinfully decadent and indulgent, but don’t we all need that in our lives sometimes?!!

Like I mentioned above, this blog post is part of the monthly “Cooking With Friends” themed blog post challenge. This challenge was started by a bunch of virtual friends united by their love of food, with the aim of tackling a different food related theme each month. If you want to try this month’s theme, please feel free to do so and link your recipe in the comments section. We’d love to check it out.

Meanwhile, check out what the others in the group have come up with this month.

• Dolphia of Story Of Cooks
• Jayasri of My Veg Fare
• Jyothi of Curry Trail
• Meena fromElephant and the coconut trees
• Sujatha of Spices N Treats

Here is a recap of the previous months’ posts.

• August 2015: Asian/Oriental Cuisine (Baozi {Chinese Steamed Meat Buns})
• July 2015: Cooking with tea (Milk Tea, Cardamom And Rose Cake {With Brown Butter And Cardamom Glaze})
• June 2015: No-bake, no-fuss dessert for Father’s Day (Homemade Chocolate Truffles)
• May 2015: Cooking with a new-to-you produce (Asparagus, Peas And Egg Masala)
• April 2015: Frozen Treat (Mango Ice Cream Sundae)
• March 2015: Beverages/Cocktails (Sunrise Mocktail)
• February 2015: Snacks (Masala Vadai And Cardamom Tea)

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I am sharing this over at Angie’s amazing blog link party at The Novice Gardener and Saucy Saturdays.