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"Ravani" Greek Semolina Cake with Blood Orange Sauce

A traditional cake made with semolina and the delicious addition of blood oranges and sauce.You can use any citrus to your liking, try cranberries or cherries during the holidays.
Course Dessert
Cuisine California Greek
Keyword blood oranges, cake, ravani, semolina
Servings 10
Author Mary Papoulias-Platis

Ingredients

Cake

  • 1/2 pound sweet butter, room temperature
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 6 eggs
  • 1 cup sifted flour
  • 1 tablespoons double-acting baking powder
  • 3/4 cup semolina

Syrup

  • 2 cups sugar
  • 2 cups water
  • juice and rind of one blood orange
  • 2-3 cinnamon sticks
  • 6-8 whole cloves
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla

Blood Orange Syrup

  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 cup water
  • juice of 2 blood oranges
  • 2-3 sprigs fresh lemon-thyme, optional or basil optional or substitute basil
  • 1 stick cinnamon

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. Butter a 8x8 baking pan and set aside.

  3. In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter with an electric mixer until fluffy. Slowly add the sugar, continuing to beat.

  4. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well but at low speed after each addition.
  5. Sift flour and baking powder together, then add to the mixture.
  6. Add semolina slowly and mix well until batter is fairly thick.
  7. Spread batter evenly into a greased square 8x8 inch cake pan.
  8. Bake for 40-45 minutes.
  9. Remove from the oven and keep cake in pan.

Syrup

  1. While cake is baking, prepare syrup.
  2. In a saucepan, combine sugar, water, vanilla, cinnamon, juice, rind, and cloves.

  3. Bring to a boil and simmer for around 30 minutes, or until slightly thickened. Strain syrup into small bowl.

  4. Once cake is done, cut into desired pieces, and ladle hot syrup over hot cake. (Keep cake in pan)

  5. Cover and let cool before serving.

Blood Orange Syrup

  1. Place sugar and water in a small saucepan. Add cinnamon stick and juice.
  2. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring until thickened, about 15 minutes.
  3. Remove from heat and add thyme and set aside. Strain sauce before serving.

Plate

  1. Prepare orange slices.
  2. Place cake on a dessert plate, add blood orange syrup, and serve.