 Basbousa topped with walnuts | |
| Alternative names | Harisa |
|---|---|
| Type | Dessert |
| Region or state | Egypt |
| Serving temperature | Cold or warm |
| Main ingredients | Semolina or farina, syrup |
Basbousa (Egyptian Arabic: بسبوسه, romanized: basbūsah) is a sweet, syrup-soaked semolina cake that originated in Egypt.[1][2] The semolina batter is baked in a sheet pan,[3] then sweetened with orange flower water, rose water or simple syrup, and typically cut into diamond (lozenge) shapes or squares.
Basbousa was first made during the 16th Century in the Ottoman Empire, current day Turkey to celebrate the conquering of Armenia. It was called revani and is still referred to as revani by Turkish people today. [4]
Alternatively, the Oxford Companion to Food (3rd edition) says basbousa was developed from a dish called ma'mounia which was created around the 10th century. Ma'mounia was made by cooking rice cooked in fat in syrup. This recipe was later altered to use semolina and the batter was cooked first before being soaked in syrup. [5]
It is found in the cuisines of the Middle East, the Balkans and the North Africa under a variety of names.[6]
Basbousa is the most common name for this dessert in the Middle East but it may be named differently depending on the region; it is often called "hareesa" in the Levant. Note that "harissa" in North Africa is a spicy red sauce. It is a popular dessert offered in many sweets bakeries in the Middle East and especially popular in Ramadan.
Pastūsha (sometimes stylized as pastūçha) is a variant of basbousa that originated in Kuwait in the 2010s.[7] Like basbousa, it is made from semolina soaked in sweet syrup. It is characterized by the addition of finely ground pistachios and orange flower water.
Basbousa bil ashta: a Levantine variation of basbousa filled with ashta cream in the middle.
Vegan Basbousa: Basbusa is also available in vegan form using apple sauce to bind the base mix together instead of dairy and eggs.
Basbousa eem Tapuzim: Israeli variation from the coastal region, it is flavored with orange juice, giving it a sweeter and more aromatic flavour.
Basbousa bil Tamr: Libyan variant of basbousa where date spread is being added between two layers of the basbousa.
Basbousa eem Tmarim: Israeli variant of basbousa with dates, unlike the Libyan variant, the dates are being cooked in ghee then added to the mix in addition to cinnamon and cardamom to flavor, giving it a black color in the process. It is served along with tea after the fasting of Yom Kippur is over.
Tishpishti or Tichpichtil is a Sephardic Jewish variant.[8][9]
Qizha: Palestinian variant of basbousa with nigella seeds paste called Qizha.
Hilbeh: Palestinian variant of basbousa flavoured with fenugreek seeds.
Aflatoon: South Asian varient,made with semolina,eggs,dry fruits, powder milk & sugar syrup.
