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I had our retail investment team over for dinner and I always like a theme with my meals.  With that said, I had no idea, nor do I think I have ever seen what a Middle Eastern dessert looks like.  So I googled for a Middle Eastern dessert and came across this Basbousa recipe.  I wanted a traditional, authentic, dessert and this seemed pretty real to me.
Ingredients (Adapted From Mideast Food):
Syrup Ingredients:
- 2 1/4 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 cups water
- juice from 1 lemon (or 2 tablespoons orange juice)
- 1 teaspoon honey
Cake Ingredients:
- 2 cups semolina
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 stick butter, softened
- 1/2 cup skim milk
- 3 tbsp 1% plain Greek yogurt
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon baking powder
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 2 eggs
- Raisins
Preparation:
Prepare syrup first. Â Dissolve sugar in water in a medium saucepan. Â Add lemon juice and bring to a boil. Â Once the syrup begins to boil, add in honey. Â Reduce heat and allow to slowly boil for about 8-10 minutes. Â Remove from heat and set aside.
Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Â Lightly spray with flour a 9×13 baking dish. Â Take the butter and sugar and cream together in a mixing bowl. Â Add eggs and the vanilla. Â In a separate bowl, combine semolina, baking powder, and baking soda. Â Slowly add to butter and egg mixture. Â Stir in milk. Â Pour mixture into baking dish and smooth with spatula.
Take a soft bladed knife and make diagonal lines from left to right and complete to make diamond shapes. Â Place raisins in the center of each diamond. Â Bake for 20 – 25 minutes.
Remove cake from oven and pour syrup over cake until no more can be absorbed. Â I baked this earlier in the day and reserved some syrup that I put on right before serving.
Serve and Enjoy!
Looks very good, I have not seen this before!!