Almond Basbousa/Hareesa/Nammoura Semolina Cake

What is Nammoura / Basbousa / Hareesa? It is a sweet, spongy, semi-soft semolina cake garnished with almonds. Nammoura [nam-mou-rah]. Ingredients: sugar, semolina, butter ghee, almonds, shredded coconut, baking powder, yeast. Characteristics Nammoura is your best choice when you are ready for an extra sweet treat. It is probably the sweetest cake you can get. The yeast gives it its spongy texture, and the sugar syrup gives it its distinctive extra sweet taste. It is relatively easy to prepare, and it is thus often homemade. Meaning and Pronunciation: the sweet with multiple names. This piece is called differently in different Middle Eastern cultures. Nammoura, pronounced (nam-mou-rah), is also called "Basbousa" (bas-bu-ssa) in Egypt and "Harissa" or "Hareesa" (Ha-ree-ssa) in Syria. The word "Basbousa" comes from the Arabic word that means "soaked" and it is named as such because it is soaked in sugar syrup.