French Friday with Dorie: Caramel-Topped Semolina Cake

I have to admit, when I saw the list of recipes that we were to vote on for this month's French Fridays with Dorie, I thought this sounded really good, but when I looked it up in Around My French Table and saw the main ingredient was Cream of Wheat, I kind of gagged. I didn't just dislike Cream of Wheat as a child, I HATED it. Needless to say, it was not one of the recipes I voted for and so was less than thrilled when it made the top four. 

But I thought about it and decided that one of the reasons I joined this cook along was to cook and bake recipes that I have never tried before, so I went shopping and bought a box of Cream of Wheat. Dorie says that traditionally the semolina cake has golden raisins and so I used a little bit of light rum to plump them up. She also suggested adding some dried fruit, so I chopped up some dried apricots. Since this seemed like a flan to me with the caramel, I made two small cakes in 4 inch ramekins. I thought the smaller size would make it a little easier to invert onto plates.

The recipe couldn't have been easier to make. I really liked Dorie's tip of warming the cake pan in the oven before pouring the caramel in to coat the pan. This made it so much easier to swirl and coat the pans before the caramel hardened. 

I couldn't have been more surprised when I tasted the cake - I LOVED it! We both loved it. If this is what grown-up Cream of Wheat tastes like then I am going to have it for breakfast. Often. It is moist and yet has a slight grainy texture because of the Cream of Wheat. The raisins and apricots were delicious with the caramel. Truly a delightful dessert - morning, noon, or night. I am happy that I bought a whole box of Cream of Wheat because I will be making this again when the kids are home during the holidays.

Next French Friday: Roast Chicken for Les Paresseux (Lazy People)