Nabk Hreesa Cake
A Syrian Nabk-style hreesa made with medium semolina, a moderate amount of sugar, and syrup mixed into the batter, then left for 12 hours before baking. It is spread in a greased tray, topped with Aleppo pistachios, baked from the bottom first, then browned on top after brushing with ghee. Finally, it is soaked with boiling syrup while very hot and left for 2 hours before serving.
A Nabk-style harissa cake or dessert.
Like a syrup-soaked semolina cake.
Ingredients
- 600 grams Medium semolina
- 150 grams Sugar
- ¼ cup Syrup
- ¼ tsp Sodium bicarbonate
- 400 ml Warm water
- 200 grams Aleppo pistachios
- 4 tbsp for greasing the surface of the tray Ghee
- 3 cups (450 grams) Sugar for the syrup
- 2 cups (400 ml) Water for the syrup
- 1 tbsp Tahini
- 1 tbsp Arabic ghee for greasing the bottom of the tray
- 1 hour Cold water for soaking the Aleppo pistachios
- a little Water for moistening the pistachios on top
- 1 slice A slice of lemon for the syrup
- 1 squeeze A squeeze of lemon for the syrup
Instructions
- Place the medium semolina, sugar, and sodium bicarbonate in a bowl, and stir the dry ingredients together.
- Add the ¼ cup of syrup to the bowl and rub the semolina mixture between your fingers until the semolina grains absorb the syrup.
- Add the warm water to the bowl in two additions, until the consistency is between thick and thin, mixing lightly with your fingers without kneading.
- Cover the bowl and leave the hreesa mixture in the bowl for 12 hours, until the semolina grains absorb the water and expand.
- Grease a 35 × 20 cm tray with Arabic ghee and tahini.
- Pour the hreesa mixture into the tray, wet your hand with water, then spread the mixture in the tray until it is an even thickness.
- Soak the Aleppo pistachios in cold water for 1 hour.
- Distribute the Aleppo pistachios over the surface of the hreesa in the tray.
- Sprinkle a little water over the Aleppo pistachios on the surface of the tray to lightly moisten them, without pressing them into the hreesa.
- Place the tray in the oven on the lowest rack, with bottom heat only at 180°C, until the hreesa takes on color underneath.
- Remove the tray from the oven after baking it from the bottom, and cut the hreesa in the tray into pieces that are not large.
- Brush the surface of the hreesa in the tray with ghee.
- Return the tray to the oven on the middle rack or slightly above it, with top heat only at 180°C, until the surface browns.
- Place the sugar and water for the syrup in a pot over the heat.
- Add a slice of lemon or a squeeze of lemon to the pot, and leave the syrup in the pot until it boils.
- Remove the lemon slice from the pot when pouring the syrup.
- Remove the hot tray of hreesa from the oven and pour the boiling syrup over it.
- Run a knife between the pieces in the tray after pouring on the syrup, so the syrup penetrates to the bottom.
- Leave the hreesa in the tray for 2 hours before serving.