Basbousa is a traditional Middle Eastern sweet cake and people would argue that it is from Egypt or Turkey. It is made using semolina and then soaked in simple sugar syrup.
Basbousa has many regional and dialect names like Nammoura in Lebanon, Shamali in Armenian, Ravani in Turkish and Gabelouze in French.
This is my special Ramazan treat. I made it for the first time and turned really good. It was super light, and I adjusted the sugar level with and replaced with honey. You can also add orange, I think it will elevate the dish to another level.
| Ingredients | Quantity |
| Semolina | 2 cups |
| All-purpose flour | ½ cup |
| Desiccated Coconut | 1 cup |
| Eggs | 3 |
| Caster Sugar | 2 tbsp |
| Honey | 3 tbsp |
| Unsalted Butter, melted | ½ cup |
| Yoghurt | 200 g |
| Vanilla Extract | 1 tsp |
| Baking Soda | 1 tsp |
| Dates | 8-10 |
| Almonds (blanched and chopped) | 25–30 g |
For Syrup
| Ingredients | Quantity |
| Caster Sugar | 1½ cups |
| Water | 150 ml |
| Lemon Juice | 1 tsp |
| Rosewater | 1 tsp |
How to cook cook cook!
- Preheat the oven to 190°C.
- Beat the egg with sugar till they are well combined.
- Mix the semolina, coconut, sugar, flour, yoghurt, melted butter and vanilla in a bowl with the egg mixture.
- Grease the baking pan and pour the mixture.
- Let it rest for 20-30 minutes.
- Bake it for 30-35 minutes on 180-200 degree Celsius.
- Meanwhile, make the sugar syrup. Place the sugar and water in a saucepan and bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar dissolves. Stir in the lemon juice and rosewater and remove from the heat. Let it cool.
- Pour the syrup over the cake while the cake is still hot. Serve it cool.
