Basbousa (coconut and suji cake)

Name: Basbousa (coconut and suji cake)
Total time: 4500 s
Yield: 4 people
Cuisine: Indian
Ingredients: 1 cup fine semolina or sooji; 1/4 cup dessicated coconut; 1/3 tsp baking soda; 1/4 cup powdered sugar; 75 gms salted butter, melted; 1/3 cup thick fresh yoghurt; 15 blanched almonds; 1/2 tsp Orange zest; 1 tbsp sour cream; 1/3 cup water; 1/2 cup sugar; as required Saffron a few strands; as needed Kesar essence

Priya @zestygastronome

Vadodara

#boxweek2
Basbousa has been inspired by the scrumptious photos I saw on the internet while looking for something else. So when I bought a packet of dessicated coconut from the store, it was finally time to try it out.

Priya @zestygastronome

Saved

Ingredients

1 hr 15 minutes

4 people

1 cupfine semolina or sooji
1/4 cupdessicated coconut
1/3 tspbaking soda
1/4 cuppowdered sugar
75 gmssalted butter, melted
1/3 cupthick fresh yoghurt
15blanched almonds
1/2 tspOrange zest
1 tbspsour cream
For the syrup
1/3 cupwater
1/2 cupsugar
as requiredSaffron a few strands
as neededKesar essence

Saved

Steps

1 hr 15 minutes

1

Blanch the almonds by putting them in a bowl of boiling water for 10 minutes. The skin can then be easily removed. Keep it aside.
2

In a saucepan add the ingredients for syrup and let come to a boil. Lower the flame and let it simmer for 7-8 minutes. Turn off the gas and add saffron strands and saffron essence. Let it cool completely.
3

Take the sooji and baking soda in a bowl. Add the dessicated coconut and mix.
4

Add the yoghurt, cooled melted butter and the powdered sugar. Add the sour cream and orange zest. Mix well. The batter will be quite thick. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
5

Pour the batter in a greased cake pan and make small halfway cuts in the batter dividing it into small diamond shaped pieces. Put one almond each in the pieces.
6

Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for 20 minutes. Remove the pan after that and make the cuts all the way through. Bake for another 20 minutes or till the edges turn brown.
7

Let the cake cool down. Once it is warm, pour the sugar syrup all over the cake. It tastes best when eaten after a few hours once the syrup has soaked through.
8

Enjoy!!