Pomegranate orange blossom semolina cake

He really had been through death, but he had returned because he could not bear the solitude.

gabriel Garcia Marquez

I was always mesmerized when my mom used to slice a pomegranate and take out the jewels out of it to make a juice for dinner. I used to stare at her hands working like an instrument.It’s so fascinating how a small seed could bring so much flavor.She poured me a glass of pomegranate juice while I was enjoying a slice of a pound cake.I accidentally dropped a bite in my pomegranate juice glass..I simply devoured that piece drenched with pomegranate juice with spoon. !! Not even bothered , in fact it was the best bite I’ve ever had from that slice. I saw my mom slicing pomegranates the other day, she revived my memories, a series of flashbacks which inspired to make a pound cake drenched in pomegranate juice with orange blossom to boost the flavor.The cake is gluten free cake, and it doesn’t require baking soda or baking  powder using Genoese method.serves 8Ingredients:8 eggspinch of salt300 grams caster sugar ( 1 1/2 cups)zest of 1 lemonzest of 1 orange200 grams ground almond ( 2 cups)167 grams semolina flour ( 1 cup)250 ml of pomegranate juice1 teaspoon of orange blossomsPomegranate seedsmethod :Preheat the oven to gas mark 4/180°C/350°F.Mix the ground almond with semolina flour in a bowl & set a side.Separate the eggs, putting the whites into a large grease-free bowl, and the yolks into a separate bowl. Whisk the egg whites then add  a pinch of salt until they are stiff but not dry and then whisk in 100g (1/2 cup) of sugar before putting them to one side.Add the remaining 200g sugar and zest to the yolks and beat until the mixture is light and velvety..then beat in the semolina, ground almonds. This will be very thick and heavy, so add the egg whites and whisk very well.Grease  and line a 23cm/9 inch springform tin. Then pour the batter in and bake for about 40 minutes, though check at 30 as you don’t want this to scorch. If the cake is brown enough, while still gooey in the middle, loosely cover with a sheet of foil. ( if is starts to brown faster)In small sauce pan bring pomegranate & orange blossom juice to boil then low the heat and simmer for 5 - 10 minutes or until the juice is reduced by 1/4pour it on top of the cake once it comes out of the oven.Let the cake cool and absorb the pomegranate juice and leave until cold before unspringing from the tin.top the cake with pomegranate seeds and serve with mascarpone cheese or ice cream.note: the steps here could be a little different from my YouTube video..it’s just the semolina flour and adding orange blossom to pomegranate juice.Use the spatula to fold in the mixture you don’t want to lose the air.If the cake browned too fast cover it with aluminum foil.[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RjpWRDS4oWM[/embedyt]