Semolina Coconut Cake with Sugared Rose Petals
This semolina cake soaked in flower water syrup is one of my favorite versions of the many traditional Lebanese and Middle Eastern semolina cakes (such as namoura and sfouf). You’ll need semolina farina and semolina flour, desiccated coconut, and flower waters along with organic roses for the sugared petal decoration. All roses are edible, by the way, but only unsprayed roses are suitable for eating; most grocery store or florist roses are sprayed. Any organic edible flower will be beautiful for sugaring and decorating.
There were rose bushes in the flowerbed along the side of the house on Wagon Wheel Lane, just near the big patch of nana, the mint. Mom planted them, and we’d take a walk around the house to linger over them.
I’d say it was there, as we inhaled their sweet perfume with our noses all the way into the center of the flower, that Mom told her girls that her grandmother’s name was Rose, Rose Elum, and that this Sitti was all rose sweetness. And there that we learned why Mom, Maryalice, like her own mom Alice, is truly in love with all things rose. I became a daughter like my mother in this way.
My rose devotion has never waned, forming a perfect arc of memory and nostalgia right up until the day I stood at my San Francisco stove cooking strawberries with rose water and knew here would be the title of my life going forward (oh, and my blog and my book).
Admittedly, I harbor a never-spoken jealousy of the name Rose, given to my cousin as Rosemary (and she is all that). Sometimes Dan will call me Rose for fun, but he doesn’t know that his knowing to call me this makes me complete, and his.
The rose is my perfect connection to my mother, and her mother, and hers, so that if I see anything of roses, I must have it for them, and for me.
The perfume is of roses, the windowsill is of roses, the sky is of roses, the china and silver are of roses, the phone and the clothes are of roses.
And of course, the food. The food is ever so gently, and sweetly, of roses.
Semolina Coconut Cake with Sugared Rose Petals
Ingredients
For the rose petals:
- Petals of two unsprayed roses
- 1 egg white
- 1 cup superfine sugar
For the cake:
- 10 tablespoons 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted (I like cultured butter for this, such as Plugra)
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 cup unsweetened full-fat yogurt
- 1 cup fine semolina (semolina flour)
- 1 cup coarse semolina (farina, or Cream of Wheat)
- 1/2 cup desiccated coconut, toasted, plus ½ cup for garnish
- 1/3 cup whole milk
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
For the simple syrup:
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup water
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons orange blossom water
- 1 teaspoon rose water
Instructions
- Make the sugared rose petals ahead so they can dry for at least one hour. Whisk the egg white in a small bowl until it is frothy. Place the superfine sugar in a small bowl. Use a pastry brush to lightly but thoroughly coat a rose petal with the frothed egg white. Be sure to cover the edges completely. Dredge the petal in the sugar, gently shaking off extra sugar. Place the petal on a parchment lined sheet pan. Repeat this with all of the rose petals and set them aside to dry.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9-inch springform pan, and line the bottom with parchment. In a large mixing bowl, mix the sugar, salt and yogurt with a large spoon. Stir in the semolina, ½ cup of the coconut, baking powder, milk, and melted butter, continuing to stir until combined.
- Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, and bake for about 45 minutes, or until golden. Then place the pan under the broiler for just a few seconds, until the top is deep golden brown (take care; it can burn easily).
- Make the simple syrup while the cake is baking. In a medium saucepan, combine the water and sugar over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the lemon juice and flower waters. Cool the syrup to room temperature; this can be done swiftly by placing the pan in an ice water bath.
- When the cake comes out of the oven, slowly pour the cool syrup over the hot cake, allowing the syrup to absorb completely. Cool for at least one hour before unmolding the cake from the pan.
- Transfer the cake to a serving platter. Arrange the sugared rose petals on the cake to form a flower shape, starting with an outer circle of petals, then and interior circle of petals overlapping the outer circle, and a couple of petals in the middle.
- Dust the petals and the perimeter of the cake with the remaining toasted coconut. Serve slices of cake at room temperature.
13 Comments
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I'm so glad you're here! You'll find among these pages the fresh and classic Lebanese recipes we can't get enough of! My mission is to share my tried + true recipes -- and to help our Lebanese food-loving community keep these culinary traditions alive and on the table. What recipes are you looking for? Let me know!
O o o besides salivating over the cake I am practically in tears over the whole rose deal. So sweet and connected to the ages. How wonderful it all is. Not a usual thing that families can stay so lovingly close. A tribute to you all.
Ps what is desicated coconut Love jill
Thank you dear Jill! And for your question, thank you–unsweetened desiccated coconut is in the baking aisle at the grocery, and it’s like granulated coconut, little crumbs of coconut. You can also whiz flaked coconut in the food processor for the same result!
Hi Maureen,
I, too, am Lebanese American. My childhood roots are Massachusetts. My grandparents and great grandparents
came to the US when they were young. One of my grandfather’s owned restaurants in Boston which I visited, maybe,
two times, at most, during my years.He was the chef! One of grandfather Moses’ restaurants and mall complex was on/next to the land which houses the JFK Library, today. Like you my mother, grandmother and I would take long walks
around our summer house neighborhood, picking sweet grape leaves, rolling them and savoring the delicious taste.
Many many of your recipes are unfamiliar to me, including the semolina cake you, so beautifully, prepared for your blog. So, your book and blog are, particularly, interesting to me.
I can not wait to try the cake. In truth I have never tasted semolina, although I loved cream of wheat with toasted Syrian bread and butter mixed in the bowl, as a young school girl!
I do wish I had a Lebanese recipe to share with you and your readers, but, I think you know all of the great recipes!
Well, like you I majored in English Literature and enjoy correspondance and communicating. Four years after graduating from college, I earned an MBA degree from University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton Graduate School. My life in those two years included a hot plate for cooking and a toaster oven– dinner consisted of one pot casseroles to meet my budget!
Semolina cake is my next go to project and the origins of the rose petals shall remain undisclosed!
Beautiful beautiful Elaine! I bet those restaurants were something fantastic…. Thanks so much for sharing!
The cake sounds amazing! And look beautiful!
I live in South-East Michigan which is ethnic. I go to a Indian Market to purchase desiccated Coconut. I keep it in the refrigerator. I use it for fruit salad, baking and in green beans, which is serviced in IndIa.
I make a Semilina cake that’s Greek in a rectangle pan with 2 cups semilina plus the syrup. I plan on making
yours one day soon.
Fantastic Sylvia, thank you!
So, there is no egg in the cake itself, huh? 🙂 I am going to try this for my mother-in-law’s birthday. Thanks!
No egg! Enjoy!
wooow that cake is absolutely delicious. I made it and it was a hit, everyone loved it.
I be made so far many recipes from your blog and it’s a winner every time.
I love your lebanese passion, thanks for sharing.
Thank you!
What a beautiful post in every way! The recipe, the photos, the words, and most of all, the beautiful rose, Maureen. Thank you!
Thank you Reem!