Khobz Tounes (Tunisian Cake)

Ramadan is coming to an end. How do I know this? Well, because my husband starts asking for Khobz Tounes, or, Tunisian Cake. There is nothing healthy about this cake, it is probably the most unhealthy thing I've ever made which is why I only make it once or twice a year. But at the end of Ramadan, they usually serve this cake or something similar to it. You could probably reduce the sugar in the cake if you want, but really, you won't save enough calories to matter. The cake will have a lot of syrup. When you lift a piece out, some syrup should remain in the pan. If you want, you could probably reduce the syrup total at the end to 2 or 2 1/2 cups and I definitely would not exceed 3 cups. After it soaks in, if you poke the cake gently with your finger then a tiny bit of syrup will appear, that's how you know that you have enough.

Since the last post was so insanely long, I think I will keep this one short and sweet (ha! sweet). Plus, I am exhausted. I worked and then came home to cook like crazy. I think tomorrow will be another busy cooking day (yes, I am actually excited hehehe).

Oh! And cut the pieces VERY SMALL. The picture above is big, mostly because I wanted a good picture. But they are sweet and only meant to be eaten in tiny portions.

Grind up the biscotti

Grind up the almonds

Pour into a baking dish

Remove from oven and poke holes in the top

The syrup has soaked in

Khobz Tounes (Tunisian Cake)


Cake

• 2 cups ground biscotti (I made my own, see recipe here, makes about 4 cups)
• 2 cups ground blanched almonds, not too fine though
• 1 cup of sugar (can leave out to have a normal sweet cake, but I prefer to add at least a 1/4 cup)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 sticks (1 cup) of unsalted butter, melted
• 2 1/4 teaspoons yeast
• 5 eggs
• Zest of 1/2 a lemon

Syrup

• 2 cups sugar
• 4 cups of water

1. Cake: I made the biscotti. It doesn't have to look perfect since you're going to grind it up. The biscotti recipe above makes about 4 cups. Preheat oven to 350F. Grind the almonds with a food processor, but not too fine. Grind the biscotti in the food processor too (more fine than the almonds). Mix everything together for the cake and place into an 8x11 inch pan. Bake for 40 - 45 minutes. It will have almost a spongy feel when done and will bounce back up.
2. Syrup: Bring water and sugar to a boil, reduce heat to medium and boil gently for 20 minutes or so (it will not thicken that much). When you are done, you should have about 3 1/2 cups of syrup. Measure it out and pour over cake. (You can stop at 2 or 2 1/2 cups and wait a few minutes to see if it's enough.)
3. Assemble: Remove cake from oven. Using a toothpick, poke several holes in the cake. Pour the warm syrup over the cake. Let it absorb and then serve at room temperature. Store in fridge when done. (You can cut the cake into small pieces and then pour on the syrup or wait and cut it after. I've done both and it didn't seem to matter.) You can garnish the cake with almonds.

PS: My favorite way to eat this is cold from the fridge. :)

Linking to: Hearth and Soul