The Healthy Lemon Semolina Cake is low-fat, low-sugar and low-calorie, yet it’s extra-moist, super-sweet and very easy to prepare!
Hi, Sweet Friend!
How are you doing this beautiful summery day? I so hope that life hasn’t given you too many lemons (unless of course, you’ve been literally picking some ripened lemons off the lemon trees!). But even if it did, (’cause no one gets to go through life without it) let’s turn all the sad times around a bit by sweetening it all up with a Healthy Cake! (‘Cause that’s what I usually do when I start feeling blue 🙂 )! 
Especially since this is a…
Beautiful Lemon Semolina Cake that is also…
- Healthy (featuring lots of healthy low-fat buttermilk, the whole-wheat semolina flour, and, of course the vitamin-C rich lemons!)
- Low-Fat (believe me, guys, this cake doesn’t need to be baked with more fat than what’s in the recipe because it comes out super-moist!)
- Low-Sugar (once again, it does not need too much sugar to taste great, just trust me on that!)
- Low-Calorie (because where do all the calories come from? Sugar and fat, right?)
- Easy to make! (real easy: mix it up, pour it, bake it, et voila!) It does take a bit of time waiting for the batter to rest (but that means that the batter can be mixed in advance), but it’s just the waiting! No advanced cooking-skills needed!
So what makes all this beautiful low-calorie but super-flavorful yumminess possible? The semolina and the soaking syrup! Yes! The soaking syrup is the key to all the magic! Semolina is grainier than the regular flour and it creates a perfect spongy texture that lets the syrup soak into the cake. And since the syrup is both sweet and sticky – the cake itself does not need lots of sugar and fat to come out gooey and moist!
…It was the first time that I tried making a semolina cake which is an Eastern European cuisine staple, but since it’s considered to be one of the healthiest cakes in Eastern Europe, I just had to make it!
And you know what I liked best about this lemon semolina cake? Well, perhaps it’s because at the kitchen a feel a bit like a chemist who mixes the textures and the flavors to see what comes out 🙂 ? (Especially that there’s a purpose to all this mixing-upping: the result should end up being both healthy and tasty!)
…I loved pouring that hot lemon syrup over the cake and see the cake soak in the syrup to become sticky, moist and super-flavorful!
I so hope that you’ll like this new recipe and also… that your summer days will fill up with joy, love and laughter! (Only the real vitamin-C rich lemons for us, right?) 🙂
And as always, I’d love to hear what you think of it in the comments below!
The Healthy Lemon Semolina Cake is low-fat, low-sugar and low-calorie, yet it's extra-moist, super-sweet and very easy to prepare!
- 1 cup whole wheat semolina
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 cups low-fat buttermilk
- 1 tbsp oil
- 3 eggs
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tbsp lemon zest
- 1/4-1/3 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/2 lemon
Whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, oil and vanilla extract. Add all the dry ingredients in and mix well until all the ingredients are incorporated.
Put the dough in the fridge and let it rest for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day, covered.
When you're ready to bake preheat the oven to 350F.
Line a 9X9 baking dish with parchment paper or drizzle with oil and dust with some flour. Pour the dough in the dish and bake for about 45-50 minutes.
To make the syrup pour the water over the sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Let it boil for about 5 minutes until the syrup beings to thicken. Slice the lemon thinly and add the the syrup. Let the lemon cook in the syrup for about 3-4 more minutes.
Poke the top of the cake in several spots with a fork and pour the syrup over the cake, Top with the caramelized lemon slices.
*The 1/4 cup of sugar was plenty to make the cake very sweet. If you have a major sweet tooth, increase the amount of sugar to 1/3 cup and use 2 tbsp more water to make the syrup.
It sounds pretty yummy. It made me think of Lemon Meringue Pie .
Thanks, Bryce! And Mmmm… I love Lemon Meringue Pies! You just gave me an idea for my next recipe project! 🙂