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Prep time
1 hour
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Cook time
45 minutes
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Makes
9 squares
Author Notes
Revani as called in Turkey and Greece (I believe) is a delicious semolina based cake that is soaked with a sugar syrup. A variant of it is also eaten in Egypt and other Middle Eastern countries (under the name of Basbousa and Harissa). I found this recipe in www.foodforpoems.blogspot.com, adapted from Binnur’s Turkish Cookbook. But my version is further adapted by me as I only had ½ cup all purpose flour while the recipe called for 2/3 cup, so I ended up using my ½ cup of flour plus 1 tbsp cornstarch to replace the missing 2 or so tbsp of flour. I also added some lime zest (or you can choose lemon or orange zest) to the cake. The cake was surprisingly of a light texture and moist, and not too sweet despite the sugar syrup. You can serve it as is or sprinkled with ground pistachios, and/or grated coconut, and/or whipped/clotted cream. Some recipes for the syrup also replace the water with rose water; some others may add a stick of cinnamon to the syrup. You could even, if you love rum cakes and Baba au rum like me, add a few tbsp of rum to the syrup. D) I would say the possibilities are endless; and in less than 1 ½ to 2 hours or so, this dessert can go from the mixer to the oven to the table. Enjoy! —Regine
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Ingredients
- Syrup
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2 cups
water
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1 cup
and 2 tbsp sugar
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Juice of a lemon, lime or 1/2 an orange
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Optional - a few strips of lemon, lime or orange peel
- Cake
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1/2 cup
all purpose flour plus 1 tbsp cornstarch
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1/2 cup
semolina
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1 tablespoon
baking powder ( yes all that, equivalent to 3 tsp)
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1/2 cup
sugar
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4
large eggs, room temperature
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1 tablespoon
extra virgin olive oil
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1 teaspoon
pure vanilla extract
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1/4 teaspoon
grated zest of a lemon, lime, or orange
Directions
- Syrup
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Grease an 8" x 8" square cake pan. Preheat oven to 375 deg. F. Combine all syrup ingredients, bring to a boil and let it simmer for 10 minutes and take off heat and set aside. Note that this syrup is more on the thin side due to the water/sugar ratio of 2:1 rather than 1:1. I thought to decrease the water from 2 to 1 1/2 cups to make the syrup thicker; but I think this would make the cake more sweet than what it needs to be.
- Cake
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In a bowl mix together the semolina, flour, cornstarch, and baking powder and set aside. Using a hand or stand alone mixer, mix until well combined the sugar, eggs, oil, vanilla, zest and eggs. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and mix until all ingredients are well incorporated.
Pour into greased 8x8 square cake pan, and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the middle of the cake comes out clean. It took me 25 minutes. Let cake cool in pan for ½ hour to 1 hour, then cut into 9 squares, and slowly pour the syrup into the cake. You can serve immediately or wait until the following day, as many think it is best the day after.
You can serve as is or with a dusting of ground pistachios, and/or grated coconut flakes, and/or whipped/clotted cream.
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NOTE:
Semolina is the coarse, purified wheat middlings of durum wheat used in making pasta, breakfast cereals, puddings, and couscous. The one I used was given by my mother and found in the Latin American section of a supermarket. But you can also find it (I think ) either in the pasta or baking section.
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