Isabelles Semolina Cake Recipes

SEMOLINA YOGURT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350°F / 177°C
• Lightly grease an 8"x8" (20 cm x 20 cm) baking dish with cooking spray or lightly rub it with cooking oil.
• Make syrup: Combine water and 3/4 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and boil for 1 minute to fully dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice (if using). Set aside to cool completely.
• Make the cake: In a large mixing bowl, whisk together eggs and 1/2 cup sugar until sugar dissolves. Add yogurt and vegetable oil and whisk again until evenly combined. Add semolina, all-purpose flour, vanilla extract, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Stir just until everything is combined (do not overmix). Pour batter into prepared pan.
• Bake: Bake until the center of the cake is set and the edges are golden brown and start to pull away from the sides, 30 to 34 minutes. (Note: Gently press on the cake in the center to be sure that it has cooked all the way through - it should have a springy but firm texture.)
• Add syrup: Remove the cake from the oven and slowly pour the syrup over top, making sure to pour syrup evenly over the entire surface. (Note: much of the syrup will drip down the sides which is fine. The cake will absorb the syrup from the bottom as it sits.)
• Let the cake cool completely before slicing and serving. (The cake is also great served chilled. If not serving immediately, store it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.)

SEMOLINA CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13-inch baking pan. Sift together the flour, semolina flour, and baking powder. Set aside.
• Cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Add the egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition, until incorporated. Stir in the orange juice, orange zest, vanilla extract, and brandy.
• Beat the egg whites in a clean, dry bowl until medium peaks form. Fold 1/3 of the beaten egg whites into the butter-sugar-egg yolk mixture until combined. Gently stir in 1/3 of the flour mixture. Continue adding the remaining egg whites alternately with the flour, folding in until just combined.
• Stir in the coarsely chopped and finely chopped almonds. Pour batter into the prepared baking pan and sprinkle with sliced almonds.
• Bake in preheated oven for 30 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) and bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 15 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle with the tablespoon of brandy, if desired. Allow to cool completely before serving.

ISABELLE'S SEMOLINA CAKE

Steps:

• 1. Preheat the oven to 400°F (200 °C). Have ready a 6-cup (1 1/2 l) soufflé dish or charlotte mold.
• 2. Make the caramel: Place the 6 tablespoons sugar in a small heavy saucepan over medium heat. It will gradually dissolve, and as it does so, swirl it around in the pan. When it is a pale caramel color, after 4 to 5 minutes, quickly pour it into the mold, swirling the mold so the caramel completely covers the bottom. Use the pastry brush to brush the sides of the mold with the melted butter.
• 3. Whisk the eggs in a small bowl until they are blended and set aside.
• 4. Place the milk, 3/4 cup (150 g) sugar, and vanilla bean in a medium-size heavy saucepan. Stir, and heat over medium heat until the milk is steaming and small bubbles have formed around the edges. Immediately remove from the heat, cover and let infuse for 10 minutes. Then remove the vanilla bean, rinse it well, and reserve it for another use.
• 5. Return the milk to medium heat, and when small bubbles have formed around the edges, add the salt and the semolina, lightly sprinkling the semolina over the milk and stirring constantly. Continue to stir constantly as the semolina cooks (it will thicken dramatically), until it has become like a paste, at least 10 minutes.
• 6. Remove the semolina from the heat and whisk in the eggs until they are thoroughly combined. Then whisk in the nutmeg and stir in the raisins.
• 7. Pour the mixture into the prepared mold and bake in the center of the oven until the cake is puffed and golden, 45 minutes.
• 8. Remove the mold from the oven and let it cool for 10 minutes. Then unmold the cake onto a serving platter.

NAMOURA (SYRUP-SOAKED SEMOLINA CAKE)

Steps:

• In a small saucepan over high heat, boil sugar and 1 cup/240 milliliters of water, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Reduce the heat to a simmer, add lemon juice and extract, and stir to combine. Simmer until thickened into a syrup, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool.
• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Coat a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with butter. Place the semolina, melted butter and sugar in a large bowl and stir until well combined; set aside.
• Place the yogurt and baking soda in a medium bowl and stir to combine. Set aside until the mixture has nearly doubled in size, about 10 minutes.
• Pour the yogurt mixture over the semolina mixture and mix well to combine. Transfer to the buttered baking dish and press into an even layer. Using a knife, score the surface of the namoura on the diagonal into 2-inch diamond-shaped pieces. Top each diamond in the center with an almond. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.
• Place baking dish on a wire rack and drizzle the cooled syrup over the top of the hot namoura. Let cool to room temperature before recutting along the scored lines and serving.

BASBOUSA (SEMOLINA AND ALMOND DRIZZLE CAKE)

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 350°F or 180°C and grease an 8-inch (20-cm) square baking pan with the tahini.
• Put all the dry ingredients for the cake into a large mixing bowl and mix to combine. Add the milk, yogurt, and melted butter, then use an electric whisk to beat until it forms a smooth, creamy batter.
• Pour the batter into the prepared pan, then arrange the almonds in a 4 x 4 grid pattern on the cake, so that each slice will have an almond in the center when sliced. Bake in the hot oven for 40 minutes.
• While the cake is cooking, make the syrup by putting all of the ingredients into a saucepan with ½ cup (4 fl. oz. or 120 ml) of water. Let the sugar dissolve over a moderate heat, then turn the heat up and boil until it has a syrupy consistency (about 10 minutes). Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
• Remove the cake from the oven and, while it's still hot, pour the syrup all over it. Allow the cake to stand in the pan for 20 minutes to absorb the syrup, then slice into 16 squares and serve.