Revani Elbasani — Traditional semolina cake with sweet syrup

Revani is a traditional dessert of Albanian and Ottoman cuisine, known especially in Elbasan, where it is prepared for the Summer Day celebration. Its base is semolina, which gives it a soft, spongy structure, while the lemon syrup makes it moist and aromatic.

Ingredients (for a ~24 cm pan, 8–10 servings)

For the batter:

• 4 eggs
• 150 g sugar
• 200 g semolina
• 100 g flour
• 120 ml sunflower oil (or melted butter)
• 200 g natural yogurt
• 1 teaspoon baking soda (or baking powder)
• grated zest of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

For the syrup:

• 400 g sugar
• 500 ml water
• juice of half a lemon
• 1 cinnamon stick (optional)

Preparation steps

1. Prepare the syrup: boil the sugar with the water and the cinnamon stick for 8–10 minutes, add the lemon juice, remove from the heat and let it cool completely.
2. Heat the oven to 180°C and grease the pan with butter or oil.
3. Beat the eggs with the sugar until pale and fluffy.
4. Add the yogurt, oil, lemon zest and vanilla; mix well.
5. Combine the semolina, flour and baking soda; add to the mixture, stirring gently until homogeneous.
6. Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 30–35 minutes, until golden and a wooden skewer comes out dry.
7. The golden rule: pour the cold syrup over the hot revani (one always hot, the other cold) and let it rest 1–2 hours so it absorbs well.
8. Cut into cubes and serve with a spoonful of yogurt on top or with chopped walnuts.

Preparation time: ~20 minutes. Baking time: 30–35 minutes. Resting: 1–2 hours. Servings: 8–10.

Tip: to make it more aromatic, add a spoonful of orange blossom water to the syrup.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0