Basbousa or Basboosa is a Middle eastern Dessert which is basically sweet semolina cake. It is also called revani or namoura in some parts. Here is how to make it at home.
You might have tried a lot of savory Middle eastern Dishes like Hummus, Pita, or Mutabal. Now try this dessert as well.
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About This Recipe
Basboosa or Basbousa is a soft and super moist Turkish dessert that is quite popular in Middle Eastern countries and each country has its own way of making this irresistible dessert.
This traditional Turkish dish is pronounced as ‘Bass-b-ouza’.
This is basically a sweet semolina cake which is flavoured with coconut and orange zest.
Another beauty of this cake is sugar syrup. Once the semolina cake is prepared, the sugar syrup is poured over the cake, making it more delicious. The cake soaks up the syrup and makes it very moist.
Coconut is one of the essential ingredients in this dessert, but you can skip the coconut and make a Basbousa Dessert recipe without coconut too.
You don’t require any fancy ingredients for this Arabic dessert, you will easily find them in the grocery store nearby.
So if you also love Middle Eastern desserts as much as I do, learn how to make this Besbousa recipe and surprise your friends and family with this delectable homemade dessert.
This Basbousa is,
- Delicious
- Moist
- Easy to make
- Made with fewer ingredients
- Perfect dessert for your Middles Eastern meals
Ingredients
All-Purpose Flour & Semolina – This Middle Eastern Cake is mainly prepared with semolina, with a little quantity of all-purpose flour which gives this cake a soft texture.
Use only fine semolina, for this Middle Eastern dessert.
Desiccated Coconut – This is one of the main ingredients in this traditional recipe. It complements the semolina so well and gives it a beautiful coconut flavor.
Orange Zest – Orange Zest gives it a slight hint of tanginess, that makes this dish delicious. So do not miss this one.
Blanched Almonds – Soak the almonds on the hot water and then use it to top your Basbousa. It also makes the Basbousa look appealing.
Eggs and Yogurt – These two ingredients make sure that your dessert comes out soft and moist. You can avoid adding eggs, for an eggless version.
Other Ingredients – Apart from these, we will need some more ingredients such as sugar, melted butter, vegetable oil, and baking powder.
You can adjust the amount of sugar, according to your taste and preference.
Step By Step Recipe
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C). Line and grease a 9×11 inch baking tray.
Add eggs and sugar in a bowl and whisk well.
Add yogurt and whisk until combined.
Now add melted butter and vegetable oil and whisk well.
Add vanilla extract, baking powder, all-purpose flour, desiccated coconut, semolina, and orange zest.
Mix everything well.
Pour the batter in the prepared tray.
Using a sharp knife, make diamond shape marks on the batter. Arrange almond halves over the cake. Bake for 35-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. Remove the pan from the oven.
To make the sugar syrup, add in the sugar and water in a saucepan. Let it cook till the sugar melts.
Run a sharp knife over the marks once again. Pour sugar syrup over the warm cake and let the cake cool down completely. Take out the diamond shape pieces and serve.
Frequently Asked Questions
If you are looking for an easy Eggless recipe, then you can skip eggs in this recipe and increase the quantity of yogurt. It will give you a soft and moist Basbousa.
The original and traditional recipe of Basbousa calls for Blanched Almonds, but you can use Raw Almonds too if you like its earthy taste and texture.
You can use silken tofu and unsweetened soy milk/non-dairy yogurt instead of yogurt and eggs to make a soft vegan Basbousa. Instead of Butter, you can use coconut oil or vegetable oil.
To make it Gluten Free, you can use a combination of Almond Flour, Rice Flour, and Corn Flour instead of All Purpose Flour and Semolina.
Storage Suggestions
Basbousa can be stored in an airtight container for about a day at room temperature. Further that, you can refrigerate it for about 4-5 days.
If you are storing it in the fridge, you have to reheat it for a few seconds, as it turns hard in the fridge. Just take the amount you are planning to serve and microwave it for a few seconds. Heating the whole Basbousa, again and again, will decrease its shelf life.
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Recipe Card
Basbousa Recipe
Ingredients
For the Syrup:
- 1 cup Water
- 1 cup Sugar
- 1 tablespoon Lemon Juice
For the Cake:
- 2 Eggs
- ½ cup Sugar
- ½ cup Yogurt
- ½ cup Melted Butter
- ½ cup Vegetable Oil
- 1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract
- 2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- ½ cup All Purpose Flour
- ½ cup Desiccated Coconut
- 1-½ cup Fine Semolina
- 1 tablespoon Orange Zest
- 10-12 Blanched Almonds
Instructions
For the Syrup:
- Add sugar and water in a pan.
- Cook until sugar is dissolved. Sim the heat and cook for 5 minutes.
- Add lemon juice and mix well. Remove the pan from heat and keep aside.
For the Cake:
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (180 degrees C).
- Line and grease a 9×11 inch baking tray.
- Add eggs and sugar in a bowl and whisk well.
- Add yogurt and whisk until combined.
- Now add melted butter and vegetable oil and whisk well.
- Add vanilla extract, baking powder, all purpose flour, desiccated coconut, semolina and orange zest and mix everything well.
- Pour the batter in the prepared tray.
- Using a sharp knife, make diamond shape marks on the batter.
- Arrange almond halves over the cake.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.
- Remove the pan from the oven.
- Run a sharp knife over the marks once again.
- Pour sugar syrup over the warm cake and let the cake cool down completely.
- Take out the diamond shape pieces and serve.
Ruby
One of the most delicious desserts tasted so far. The recipe is perfect.
Thank you v.much for sharing.
Rukshana
Hi, with the amount of sugar 1/2 cup , is the dessert moderately sweet or richly sweet. i want to try this but don’t want it to be overly sweet 🙂
Neha Mathur
It’s moderately sweet.
Rukshana
Thank you Neha, I made this for Eid and was a superhit. It wasn’t too sweet and everyone loved it . This will be my permanent Basbousa recipe. The orange zist added a nice flavour to it