This is a traditional Lebanese namoura (semolina) cake, made with a fermentation twist! It is rich, sweet, tangy, and full of Middle Eastern flavours like rosewater and honey.
Typically it is topped with a flavourful syrup that soaks into the cake, turning into a sweet, gooey sponge. However, this time I decided to top it with the syrup as I served it for a fancier dessert! The only trick with pouring the sauce over after the cake cooled was that the syrup wasn’t soaked up in, making the cake a bit dense rather than spongy.
PrintSemolina Cake (Namoura)
This is a traditional Lebanese namoura (semolina) cake. It is rich, sweet, tangy, and full of Middle Eastern flavours like rosewater and honey.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: Serves 16 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Fermented
- Cuisine: Lebanese
Scale
Ingredients
Preferment
- 2 cups coarse semolina (not flour)
- 1 1/2 cups yogurt (kefir or buttermilk)
Remaining Cake Ingredients
- 2 tbsp butter
- 1/2 cup sugar
- Zest and juice from 1 lemon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soad
Syrup
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 tsp rose water,
- 1/2 tsp orange blossom water
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 4 tbsp butter
Instructions
- Mix the semolina and yogurt in a glass bowl, and leave it to ferment for 6-12 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 350, and grease an 8″ square baking dish.
- Beat together the butter and sugar for the cake, then mix in the remaining cake ingredients, including the prefermented semolina.
- Bake until the cake is golden (around 25 minutes).
- In the meantime mix the honey, sugar and water for the sauce and bring to a boil.
- When the sugar is dissolved, remove from heat and stir in the remaining ingredients.
- Allow sauce to cool to room temperature.
- When the cake is cooked, pour the sauce over it immediately (while still hot) to allow it to soak in.
Keywords: semolina, namoura, soaked, rich
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