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Coconut Semolina Cake

from An Edible Mosaic

Ingredients

For the sugar syrup:

  • 1 cup 225 g sugar
  • ½ cup 125 ml water
  • ½ tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • ½ tablespoon rose water or orange blossom water

For the cake:

  • 1 tablespoon tahini to grease the baking pan
  • 2 cups 305 g semolina flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ cup 115 g sugar
  • ½ cup 115 g unsalted butter, room temperature
  • 1½ cups 375 ml milk
  • 1 cup 75 g desiccated, unsweetened coconut
  • 3 tablespoons blanched almonds

Instructions

To make the sugar syrup:

  1. Add the sugar, water and lemon juice to a medium, thick-bottomed saucepan, and bring
  2. to a boil over medium heat, giving the pan an occasional swirl and skimming off any foam on the surface.
  3. Turn heat down slightly and boil 2 minutes (if you want thin syrup) and up to 5 minutes (if you want thick syrup), swirling the pan occasionally. (The syrup will thicken more upon cooling.)
  4. Turn off heat and stir in the rose water or orange blossom water; cool to room temperature, then use.

To make the cake:

  1. Preheat oven to 375F (190C); brush the tahini on the inside of a 10-inch (25 cm)
  2. round baking pan.
  3. Whisk together the semolina, baking powder, and sugar in a large bowl. Stir in the butter and then the milk until combined, and then fold in the coconut.
  4. Transfer the batter to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly; let it sit for 10 minutes.
  5. Score the batter into 1-inch (2.5 cm) square or diamond shapes with a sharp knife, periodically dipping the knife in hot water and drying it off before continuing to score the batter; place 1 almond in the center of each diamond.
  6. Bake until the sides and top are golden brown, about 30 minutes. (If the sides are brown but the top isn't, you can broil the cake for a couple minutes to brown the top.)
  7. Once out of the oven, cut the cake along the lines you scored. Slowly pour the cooled syrup onto the hot cake. Let the cake sit at room temperature 2 hours to absorb the syrup before serving.