We got sick… all four of us we got a terrible virus which left us helpless and weak! It’s hard when you have to parent when all you feel like doing is sleeping! Having no ‘village’ around me is proving really hard for me and I just wish we were blessed with our family or even sweet friends who actually care if we are losing the plot or not. A soup, a phone call or even baby sitting would have been more than welcome ha! Unfortunately, we don’t currently have that in our life so we are very thankful we have each other…and desserts! This dessert called Politiko Thessalonikis is comfort food at it’s finest! It has a semolina cake infused with mastic and drenched in syrup as a base and creme patisserie engulfing it from the top! It is just oh delicious you will definitely want to make another one before you even finish the first.
Right, let’s get baking my darlings!
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 1/2 cups semolina, coarse
- 1/2 tsp mastic, powder
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 280 gr milk, full fat
- For the syrup
- 2 cups water
- 2 cups sugar
- For the creme patisserie
- 1L milk
- 200 gr sugar
- 120 gr flour
- 4 eggs
- 40 gr. butter
- vanilla
Instructions
Step 1
Prepare the syrup by adding the water and sugar in a small saucepan. Bring to the boil and as soon as it starts boiling wait 3 more minutes and remove from the heat. Let it cool
Step 2
Pre -heat the oven at 190°C. In a big bowl add the semolina, baking powder, sugar and mastic. In another bowl, mix together the milk and baking soda. Combine everything together and mix well. You will end up with a sort of stiff mixture. Butter a baking tin and pour the mixture in. Bake for 35-45 minutes depending on your oven.
Step 3
Whilst the cake is hot, pour the cold syrup on top and let it soak it all up (around two hours).
Step 4
When the cake has completely cooled, prepare the creme patisserie. Pour the milk in a saucepan and warm it up slightly. In another bowl mix the rest of the ingredients apart from the butter. You will end up with a thick paste consistency. Pour some of the milk in the bowl and stir quickly. Continue to add some milk in the bowl and when you have no more milk left, return everything in the saucepan and mix well on a low heat until the creme thickens. Remove from the heat and add the butter. Stir well for it to melt and get incorporated.
Step 5
Spred the creme patisserie on top of the semolina cake and chill overnight. Serve with some sprinkled cinnamon powder.
Notes
If you don't like mastic or can't find some you can always substitute it with vanilla.
Thanks for your comment Christine. Yes, there is a lot of sugar in this dessert but it’s a traditional recipe which originates from Poli. Desserts that originate from Constantinople are traditionally more rich. It’s lovely to enjoy and indulge every now and then x