Sudanese Baseema

In looking for recipes from Sudan, I came across the website of Mark Tanner, a travel writer who documented quite a few recipes along the way. I found this recipe elsewhere on the internet, in sources that seem to predate him, so I'm not sure of its actual provenance.

As I mentioned in a previous post from two weeks ago, traditional Sudanese food seems split between two regions - Arabic influence and East African. This cake is very much more of the northern influence, with a cake similar to this (with slight alterations) made throughout much of the middle east.  I myself have made Egyptian Basbousa, a cake that has many similarities although uses semolina (or farina) and honey instead of this recipe's regular flour and sugar syrup.

This is an easy cake and makes a lot - the yogurt makes it tender and the syrup poured on after it bakes makes it incredibly flavorful.

Ingredients:

5 eggs
1 cup icing sugar
3/4 cup butter / oil
500g yogurt
2 tsp baking powder
2 cups flour
1 tsp of vanilla extract
1 cup of coconut
1 1/2 cups of sugar
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup water

Beat eggs and sugar.  Add oil and yogurt and mix.

In a separate bowl sift flour and add baking powder and coconut, then add to the mixture while stirring. 

Spread mixture onto greased tray (9x13 pan was perfect.)  Bake for 30 minutes 200° Celsius. (This is 400 F, which is hotter than most cakes but is correct for this one.)

In another saucepan, mix sugar and lemon with water, boil until syrup thickens. 

When cake is baked, poke holes in it pour syrup over evenly so it soaks through (while still hot.)