Mom's Holiday Dessert

Bayram is the term used in Turkish for holidays celebrated nation-wide, both official and religious. For us it means holiday since schools, government offices, banks and even the private establishments are closed. People clean their houses, they go shopping for candies and chocolate, they prepare traditional pastries like baklava, revani.

Itis very important to look neat and chic, most of the time people even buy new outfits for the occasion.They visit relatives and friends, the younger generation visit the older ones and may also go to the graveyards to pay their respect to the deceased.

The main feature of religious holidays, Kurban Bayramı and Şeker Bayramı is the reunion of families and friends. Families get together and have lunches or dinners which are real feasts.  When we were children my mom used to bake this dessert whenever the family got together to have dinner in Bayrams. The recipe is delicious and not complicated at all. Itis also a never fail recipe, try it, you'll like it.

Ingredients:

• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/3 cups yogurt
• 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tbsp butter, melted
• 3 tbsps orange rind
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 3 1/3 cups powdered sugar
• 3 1/2 cups water
• 1 tsp lemon juice

How To:

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease a rectangular baking dish about 8'' x 12'' with butter.

Put the yogurt in a deep bowl and stir with a whisk until creamy. Add the powdered sugar, stir until smooth and then add the eggs one at a time, continue stirring. There is no beating in this dessert.

Sift the baking powder and the flour together, melt butter and add them to the yogurt mixture. Stir and then add the orange rind. Mix well, pour the batter into the greased baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for about 25-30 minutes, until the cake is golden brown.

Meanwhile prepare the syrup.

Combine sugar and water in a medium saucepan on medium heat. Stir and bring the mixture to the boil. Once it boils, reduce the heat to low and let the syrup simmer uncovered for 10 minutes then add the lemon juice and mix well. Simmer for another 5 minutes. Turn the heat off. The syrup must be thin, not too thick.

Check the cake by inserting a toothpick into the centre of the cake and if it comes out clean, the cake is cooked. If not, bake for a further 5-6 minutes.

Using a large spoon, slowly drizzle some of the hot syrup over the yogurt cake which has just come out of the oven. Add more as it absorbs until you are finished with the syrup. This may take some time. Let the cake absorb the syrup and set aside to cool. Cut the dessert into diamond shapes and serve with clotted cream and pistachios.

Enjoy!

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