Turkish Sambali (Eggless Semolina Cake with Almonds)

Moist and decadent, the eggless semolina cake with almonds drenched in a lemon-sugar syrup is a popular Turkish dessert quite similar to basbousa and you can find them on the countless street side eateries in Turkey😋

Only 5 ingredients and 10 minutes of prep, it can’t get any simpler to make a delicious yet easy dessert on weekends when you don’t want to toil much in the kitchen.

The sugar syrup to glaze the sambali varies- sometimes it’s rose, sometimes lemon or even orange. I prefer lemon for it’s refreshing citrusy zing.

Try this easy recipe to make your tea time more delicious 🙂

Ingredients:

For the cake:

1 cup granulated sugar (I used brown)

2 cups semolina (preferably fine)

1 cup milk (preferably full fat)

1/2 tsp baking soda

Soaked and peeled almonds for garnish

For the syrup:

3/4 cup sugar

1 cup water

2 tbsp lemon juice (you can switch this with rose water or orange juice)

Method:

In a bowl, mix together the granulated sugar, semolina, baking soda and milk.

Now pour the batter into a baking dish lined with a parchment paper and let it rest for at least 30 minutes to an hour. This will help the semolina absorb all the milk.

Now make cuts on the set batter with a knife into your desired shape and garnish with peeled almonds (soak the almonds in hot water for 15-20 minutes to remove the skin easily).

Bake in a preheated oven for 35-40 minutes at 170 degree Celsius (or until a knife comes out clean, when inserted).

Prepare the sugar syrup in a pot by boiling 3/4 cup sugar and 1 cup water on medium heat. Squeeze 2 tbsp lemon juice in between and let the syrup cool down and all the sugar dissolves.

Now drizzle the syrup over the sambali making sure it glazes the whole cake. You can serve immediately but the best way would be to let it rest for at least 2 hours before serving (so that the cake soaks up the syrup nicely).

Enjoy with your evening tea 🤍

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