Basbousa
Basbousa is a cake in which grittiness is a virtue. Semolina does not dissolve the way flour does — it swells, so the crumb stays slightly coarse and can drink a lot of syrup without going to mush. The same rule applies as in baklava: cold syrup onto a hot cake. And like baklava, basbousa is better the next day.
Your own work in that: 0 min.
- Syrup 15 min
- Batter 15 min
- Semolina swelling 20 min
- Baking 35 min
- Soaking 25 min
Step by step
0 / 7 doneMake the syrup and cool it
Boil the sugar with the water for 8 minutes, adding the lemon juice for the last 2 minutes. Take it off the heat, stir in the rose water and leave to cool completely. The lemon is not just for flavour — in the hot syrup the acid inverts some of the sucrose and stops it crystallising.
Ingredients: 300 g sugar · 250 ml water · ½ pcs lemon · 1 tbsp rose water
Mix the semolina with yogurt
Combine the semolina with the coconut, sugar, baking powder and salt, then add the yogurt, melted butter and vanilla. Stir just until combined — this is not a batter that needs beating, it should stay thick and grainy.
Ingredients: 300 g semolina · 60 g desiccated coconut · 120 g sugar · 250 g natural yogurt · 120 g butter · 2 tsp baking powder · 1 tsp vanilla extract · 1 pinch salt
Thick and grainy — do not beat it.Rest for 20 minutes
Leave the mixture for 20 minutes. The semolina has to swell in the yogurt before it goes into the oven — otherwise the grains only take up moisture in the heat and the crumb turns dry and sandy. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180°C.
Ingredients: 300 g semolina · 60 g desiccated coconut · 120 g sugar · 250 g natural yogurt · 120 g butter · 2 tsp baking powder · 1 tsp vanilla extract · 1 pinch salt
Spread and score before baking
Spread the mixture evenly in a greased 22×30 cm tin and score it into diamonds right down to the base, pressing an almond into the centre of each. Cuts made now are the route for the syrup — once baked, the cake crumbles.
Ingredients: 300 g semolina · 60 g desiccated coconut · 120 g sugar · 250 g natural yogurt · 120 g butter · 2 tsp baking powder · 1 tsp vanilla extract · 1 pinch salt
Diamonds scored to the base, an almond in each.Bake 35 minutes at 180°C
Bake until deep gold on top with browned edges. Pale basbousa tastes of raw semolina. You can switch on the grill for the last 5 minutes to push the colour.
Ingredients: 300 g semolina · 60 g desiccated coconut · 120 g sugar · 250 g natural yogurt · 120 g butter · 2 tsp baking powder · 1 tsp vanilla extract · 1 pinch salt
Pour cold syrup over it straight from the oven
Take the tin out and immediately pour all the cold syrup over it, slowly, along the cuts. It will hiss. Hot cake and cold syrup give a moist crumb with its structure intact; the other way round gives sodden paste.
Ingredients: 300 g sugar · 250 ml water · ½ pcs lemon · 1 tbsp rose water
Cold syrup onto hot cake, slowly along the cuts.Leave it half an hour
Leave it in the tin for at least 25 minutes so the syrup reaches the bottom and spreads evenly. Basbousa is good warm, but best the next day, once the moisture has fully redistributed.
Ingredients: 300 g semolina · 60 g desiccated coconut · 120 g sugar · 250 g natural yogurt · 120 g butter · 2 tsp baking powder · 1 tsp vanilla extract · 1 pinch salt
Before you start
Coarse semolina, not fine
Coarse semolina gives the characteristic slightly rough texture. Fine semolina absorbs syrup faster and turns claggy — if that is all you have, reduce the syrup by a quarter.
How much syrup it takes
The whole batch should disappear within 20 minutes. If liquid is still standing after half an hour, the cake was too compressed — next time spread the batter gently rather than pressing it into the tin.
Coconut is optional
The Egyptian version is often coconut-free, just semolina and yogurt. In that case add a teaspoon of ground cardamom or some orange zest — without coconut the cake needs a second aromatic.
