- 300g/10½oz semolina
- 175g/6oz soft brown sugar
- 175g/6oz plain flour
- 40g/1½oz ground almonds
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 1 orange, zest only
- 75g/2½oz butter, melted and cooled slightly, plus extra for greasing
- 225ml/8fl oz milk
- 16 blanched almonds
- 110g/4oz dark soft brown sugar
- 110g/4oz butter
- ½ tsp sea salt
- 175ml/6fl oz double cream
- 200g/7oz crème fraîche
- 4 sprigs fresh mint
- For the semolina cake, preheat the oven to 180C/160C Fan/Gas 4 and grease a 20cm/8in loose-bottomed square baking tin with butter. (If you don’t have a square baking tin, a 23cm/9in round cake tin will also work.)
- Mix the semolina, sugar, flour, ground almonds, baking powder and orange zest together in a bowl until well combined.
- Gradually stir in the melted butter and milk until you have a smooth batter.
- Pour the batter into the greased tin and arrange the almonds on top in four rows.
- Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until the cake is golden-brown on top and a skewer inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool in the tin for a few minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack to cool completely.
- For the caramel sauce, place the sugar, butter and salt in a saucepan and heat until the sugar has melted, then stir in the cream. Bring it to the boil and let it simmer for 3 minutes until thick. Set aside to cool slightly before serving (the sauce can also be served cold).
- To serve, serve the cake in slices with the caramel sauce and a dollop of crème fraiche. Garnish with a few mint leaves.