Hareesa or Basbousa is a sweet cake that is made of semolina or farina that is soaked in a delicious tasty syrup. In the Levant countries of the Middle East, it is referred to as Hareesa, and in Egypt it is called Basbousa. It is also known as Revani in Turkish and Ravani (southern Greece) or Revani (northern Greece) in Greek. In some cultures, this treat is served during special celebrations, funerals or even as a religious offering.
Ingredients:
- 4 cups farina (cream of wheat or semolina)
- 1 1/4 cups (2.5 sticks) butter
- 1.5 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 cup plain yogurt for mixture
- 1/4 cup almonds, toasted
- oil for greasing pan and toasting almonds
- 3 tablespoons yogurt for smoothing
- 3 cups of syrup (recipe Below)
How To:
1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Mix farina, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, yogurt and melted butter together and blend well.
3. Grease baking pan with butter or oil and pour mixture onto pan.
4. Smooth the top of the mixture with yogurt.
5. Toast the almonds (place oil in a frying pan and toast almonds in there for about 5 minutes). Remove from oil. Cut mixture into pieces (~20-30) Place a toasted almond on each piece.
6. Bake at 400F for ~30 minutes or until brown. Let stand for 10 minutes.
7. Pour a thin layer of syrup over the surface and allow to penetrate the entire baked dish. (Syrup recipe below)
8. Enjoy!!
Serves: 20-30 pieces
Syrup Recipe
Ingredients:
- 3 cups white sugar
- 2 cups water
How to:
1. Place sugar and water into a small saucepan.
2. Stir well over stovetop until all sugar is dissolved.
3. Go to step 8 above.
Tips:
Can use other nuts such as a walnut in place of the almond. Can top with coconut for a nice addition. Can also add rose water or orange blossom water to the syrup to give a richer flavor.
June 7th, 2011 at 12:31 pm
It looks really pretty how you placed an almond in the top of each one. Love that idea! I think I am going to try that in my baking more often for a beautiful decorative look.
June 7th, 2011 at 1:03 pm
i jus don know why your URL doesn open in my blog window..i miss out on your recipes!
this one is decadent and almond and butter is a perfect comb..semolina is a prime ingredient in Goan cooking too (our next posting in Goa)!!
June 7th, 2011 at 2:41 pm
In Macedonia we call this Ravanija … I make it all the time because it is my dad’s favorite. Great recipe! I love the addition of almond on top.
June 7th, 2011 at 6:43 pm
mine never looks this good but i assure you, it tastes super! i like your almond decoration on top.
June 7th, 2011 at 6:54 pm
Suzy, this looks soo delicious! Hope you are having a great start to your summer! 🙂
June 7th, 2011 at 8:13 pm
Love this, I am sure this is as good as it looks. I will try it soon. Middle Eastern food is one of my favorite kind of food. I will try to buy some orange blossom water, as I can feel that it will bring even more awesomeness to the cake.
June 7th, 2011 at 9:30 pm
This looks simple enough and really really good! I adore semolina, the grittiness and the sweet nuttiness. I wonder if you can turn this into a savory dish by soaking it in…bacon grease? Or a savory buttery sauce…
June 7th, 2011 at 9:48 pm
Looks beautiful and yummy, love the way you decorate them…
June 8th, 2011 at 7:46 am
Thanks Wendy!
June 8th, 2011 at 7:50 am
wonder why it does not open….glad you still stopped by. love your site !
June 8th, 2011 at 7:51 am
o wow. thanks for sharing!!! my dad loved it too 🙂
June 8th, 2011 at 7:51 am
thanks!!
June 8th, 2011 at 7:52 am
would love to know if you do….and would love to see how it turns out.
June 8th, 2011 at 7:52 am
Thanks!
June 8th, 2011 at 7:53 am
yes…it definitely helps make the flavor amazing!
June 8th, 2011 at 8:03 am
Thanks Michele!
June 9th, 2011 at 10:43 am
What a wonderful recipe….I’d love this for breakfast right now.
June 9th, 2011 at 12:43 pm
Glorious cake! I really dig the little almonds in each slice. Well done! Buzzed 🙂
June 9th, 2011 at 1:21 pm
A few weeks ago, I made a Lebanese cake with semolina, lemon, and pistachios. I loved it. And now, I really want to try yours — I’m all about topping cakes with syrups 😉
June 10th, 2011 at 4:05 pm
This looks wonderful. Thanks for sharing the recipe. I am going to try this very soon.
June 10th, 2011 at 8:17 pm
This looks moist and delicious! Wonderful job!
June 11th, 2011 at 7:34 pm
That looks so soft and tasty. I agree with everyone else…the almond decoration is just beautiful!
June 12th, 2011 at 1:57 pm
This looks so good Suzy, perfect sweet time pick me up without alot of fussy frosting.
June 14th, 2011 at 7:41 pm
thanks for the buzz 🙂
June 14th, 2011 at 7:42 pm
wow that cake sounds great.
June 23rd, 2011 at 12:29 pm
I’ve never heard of the dessert before, but it looks fantastic. The almonds are a nice touch.
July 10th, 2011 at 4:13 pm
Oh, I LOVE this stuff. I learned to make a similar cake in a Turkish cooking class. Actually I had a request on my site for a vegan version of this…still working on it…hard to replicate without butter.
January 1st, 2012 at 2:44 pm
Hi there! Does anyone know how the recipe would turn out if I used salted butter? That’s all I have on hand, and I forgot to pick up the unsalted type on my trip to the store. Thanks!
January 1st, 2012 at 5:08 pm
FYI, just sitting down to make the cake, and I realized that you left out the measurement of sugar for cake portion. I see 3 cups are used for the syrup, but maybe I’m missing something here….
January 1st, 2012 at 7:47 pm
Hi Charlene,
There is no sugar in the actual cae. The sugar is only used in the syrup. Hope that helps!!
Suzy
January 1st, 2012 at 7:47 pm
Salted butter would be fine 🙂 I have used it before.
January 29th, 2012 at 11:45 pm
What size pan do you use? Thanks!
February 14th, 2012 at 1:59 pm
I used a 12×17 pan. You can use any pan size depending upon how thick you want the dessert. 🙂
January 1st, 2013 at 12:40 pm
I think you need to revise the directions… You state “mix farina, sugar, baking soda…” But there’s no sugar in the cake –just the syrup.
January 17th, 2013 at 8:52 am
thanks i just added the sugar. it is 1.5 cups.
June 16th, 2013 at 7:01 pm
i did it yaaay itcame out the same wish i know how to post a pic <3 <3