This baked dessert is best served with dondurma, that is mastic ice cream!

Serves: 1 tin 28×38 cm Prep. time: 5′ + 2 h waiting Cooks in: 50′ Ready in: 55′

Ingredients
3½ cups fine semolina flour
1½ cups sugar
2 cups strained yogurt
1 tsp baking soda, powder
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp mastic, powder
1 tbsp sunflower oil
½ cup butter, melted

For the syrup:
2½ cups sugar
2½ cups water
2 tbsp lemon juice
¼ cup mastic liqueur

Method
Step 1
For the samali: Heat sunflower oil and mix with mastic powder using a spoon, until dissolved. When cold, add in a bowl with baking soda mixed with yogurt.

Step 2
Mix semolina flour with sugar and baking powder and stir in yogurt mix.

Step 3
Transfer mix in your buttered tin. Leave for 2 hours to allow the semolina flour to rise and then bake in a preheated oven at 180ºC/fan for 40 minutes.

Step 4
Syrup: In a saucepan boil sugar with water and lemon juice until sugar dissolves. Remove pan from heat and add liqueur.

Step 5
Remove the samali from the oven and brush it with melted butter. Then drizzle with the hot syrup using a spoon. When it comes to room temperature, cut in squares and serve with dondurma (mastic ice cream) or vanilla ice cream.

Photo: George Drakopoulos – Food styling: Tina Webb

Και η συνταγή στα ελληνικά: Σάμαλι