“Knowing trees, I understand the meaning of patience. Knowing grass, I can appreciate persistence.”- Hal Borland.
Its Monday… I don’t really dread mondays like some do (not on a regular basis atleast ) as I pretty much love my job ( again, not on a regular basis !) . But the week that passed was pretty much mundane and unspecial with unpredictable rains , unnecessary power cuts and driving through ridiculous potholes. Added to all these small irritations of life , I can see more trees being cut down each day in my neighbourhood to make room for some railway construction thats coming up and that always puts me in a sore mood. So , I am actually looking forward to the new week , hoping it will be brighter and cheerier than the last.
One good thing that came out of this week, was this awesome orange semolina cake. I experimented a bit with it and was extremely happy with the outcome . Its a really simple cake but is big on flavour . And although low on effort , it can pass off for dessert or a tea time cake in a pinch. You can check out a step-by-step Youtube tutorial here.
The cake is another of my hot milk recipes – like the white chocolate sponge cake and the hot milk sponge cake – which seem to work so well for many who try it . The semolina is soaked in the hot milk and butter mixture which fluffs it up a bit. Yoghurt gives the cake some tang and some zest added in gives it that citrus boost. The punch of the orange comes from the syrup of course .
This cake is almost Mediterranean in its feel – with the syrup and the semolina and the orange. Quite unintentional of course. In fact , I was using the most indian of ingredients – oranges , yoghurt and good old rava !
Orange syrup semolina cake
Ingredients
- 120 ml or 1/2 cup milk
- 56 grams or 1/4 cup butter
- 165 grams or 1 cup semolina rawa
- 100 grams or 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 120 ml or 1/2 cup yoghurt or curd
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp orange zest optional
For the syrup
- 1/2 cup fresh orange juice from one orange
- 50 grams or 1/4 cup granulated sugar
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 160 C / 325 F . Butter and flour a 6 inch round pan , line the bottom with parchment (optional).
- In a saucepan , heat the milk and butter together until the butter is melted.
- To the hot mixture , add the semolina while whisking. The mixture will become thick and clumpy.
- Whisk in the sugar.
- Whisk in the yoghurt until smooth.
- Add the zest , baking soda and baking powder and whisk it into the batter well.
- Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for 32-40 minutes until top is well browned and the cake springs back when pressed gently. A toothpick inserted in the centre , comes out clean.
- As soon as the cake is out of the oven , prepare the syrup.
- Heat the orange juice and sugar until the sugar is melted.
- Poke holes into the still warm cake all over using a toothpick or skewer.
- Pour the hot syrup over the warm cake.
- Let cake rest until it comes to room temperature.
- Unmould and serve !
Notes
You can double the recipe and bake in a 8 inch or 9 inch pan.
The cake can be stored in an airtight container for 3-4 days.
You can make the syrup before hand but it thickens as it cools. So heat it up to get it to a good pouring consistency .
Adjust the sugar in the cake as per your taste.
I used fine semolina but you can use coarse as well.
My cup measures 240 ml.
Semolina cakes can turn quite crumbly , but this one surprisingly isn’t. Its moist and scrumptious . And the syrup-y yumminess elevates it up a notch. You can swap out the orange for lime or lemons or any other citrus that catches your fancy! The syrup can be skipped but I would recommend trying this cake with the syrup atleast once. It can be served warm or at room temperature , but i will tell you its a cake for a complete sweetaholic!
Affiliate links : Just so you know, I have baked this orange cake in my trusty Morphy Richards 52 Litre Oven 
How to bake a Orange syrup semolina cake :
Ma’am agar semolina chocolate cake egg ke saath banana ho to recipe me kya changes karenge please bata dijiye
Hi
Just a question has the sugar and curds to be added while the mixture is hot or need to cool it.
To the hot mixture , add the semolina while whisking. The mixture will become thick and clumpy.
Whisk in the sugar.
Whisk in the yoghurt until smooth.
Butter replacement?
Hi Rekha.. U could try using oil.. But butter works a lot better!
Hey there,
Thanks for the great recipe.
I am definitely going to try it.
I am just a beginner in baking and wanted to bake something healthy for my kids.
Actually, I am trying to make a rainbow cake with fruit colors only no artificial food coloring.
I tried with whole wheat cake but because could not get the color right.
I think using semolina will solve my purpose. I have a question before I start.
What if I decrease the quantity of ingredients by half or more like 1/4?
As I am going to make a layered cake, I don’t want it to be a big one in diameter/width, I would like to cut quantity to 1/4th of original for each layer. What will be the baking time in such case where I bake each layer individually or 2-4 layers in one go [using partitioning! I am gonna make in rec/square instead of round :D] ?
Hi ! Sorry for the late response- was travelling for a bit ! In case you are still looking for suggestions , colour wouldn’t b too vivid in wholewheat cakes. The semolina cake is a small recipe in itself.. the full recipe cN be baked in a 5 or 6 inch square pan and that cake can be sliced into two or three horizontal layers ( depending on your experiencs in slicing). Also, Sprig does have a few natural colours if you want to look into that… Hope this helps !
Hey! I baked this cake today, doubled the recipe, added in 1 tsp of orange oil and reduced sugar in the syrup. I left the cake overnight before indulging it. It was a TOTAL HIT!! Everyone loved the cake so much. I’ve been told to bake this again in the near future too!
Thank you! Thank you so much!!! ❤
Wow… some amazing review of the cake that is Preejashini ! Thank you so much for trying and sharing !
Hi Akshatha, I baked this cake yest for my guests n the response i got is”heavenly” … tats the perfect word for this cake…. loved it.. keep rocking
Thats some lovely feedback to hear Deepthi !! Thanks for trying the cake and i am really glad you and your guests enjoyed it so !
Can I use oil in the place of butter
You can if you wish Jyoti, but the flavour will differ…
Hey, Can I use buttermilk in place of the yoghurt?
Hi Ann… Yes you can..
Wow, this cake turned out amazing! It just needed a pinch of salt, so I added it to the syrup and poured all over! Perfect!
Thats great to know Fathima… the pinch of salt sounds like a good idea!
So so tempting. But where did you find fresh oranges this time of the year? I will have to wait at least another month, if not more, for fresh oranges to bake this one.
I just used the ones I found in the market.. they were imported I think.. but not expensive .. You could try it with limes if you wish Anjali !
Thank you. So should I use half cup lemon juice?
Yes , but do increase the sugar in the syrup as per your taste!
Nice flavoured cake Akshata. I always loved ur cakes as is. Baked many cakes from ur blog. Is this cake to be eaten as is or can be decorated with filling n frosting as well.
Thanks in advance
Thanks so much for the lovely comment Maithri…! This cake is to be eaten by itself , as the syrup makes sure its sweet enough – its more of a plate and fork kind of cake 🙂