Bibikkan (බිබික්කන්) — Sri Lankan Coconut and Jaggery Cake

• 400 gfreshly grated mature coconut (Grate finely; exclude the hard shell.)
• 300 gkithul jaggery (Chop finely; dark palm jaggery gives the characteristic flavor.)
• 150 mlwater
• 150 gfine semolina
• 75 gwhite rice flour (Use ordinary rice flour, not glutinous rice flour.)
• 2large eggs (Approximately 100 g without shells, at room temperature.)
• 1 tspbaking powder
• 0.5 tspfine salt
• 100 gpitted dates (Chop into 5 mm dice.)
• 50 graisins
• 50 graw cashews (Chop coarsely.)
• 75 gSri Lankan pumpkin preserve (Sweet preserved pumpkin or ash gourd; drain off loose syrup, then chop finely.)
• 25 gcrystallized ginger (Chop finely.)
• 0.5 tspground Ceylon cinnamon
• 4 podgreen cardamom (Remove the husks and finely grind the seeds.)
• 0.5 tspfennel seeds (Grind finely.)
• 0.13 tspground cloves
• 1 tspcoconut oil

Instructions

1. 1

   Heat the oven to 170°C conventional or 150°C fan. Grease a 20 cm square cake pan at least 5 cm deep with the coconut oil, then line the base and sides with baking parchment.

2. 2

   Place the semolina in a dry frying pan over medium-low heat. Stir continuously for 4–5 minutes, until fragrant and very lightly golden, then transfer to a bowl to cool.

3. 3

   Combine the jaggery and 150 ml water in a heavy saucepan and heat gently for 4–5 minutes, stirring until dissolved. Pour the syrup through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl to remove any grit, then return it to the cleaned saucepan.

4. 4

   Add the grated coconut to the syrup and cook over medium-low heat for 8–10 minutes, stirring frequently. Stop when the coconut is evenly darkened and moist, with no separate pool of syrup remaining; do not cook it into a dry, sticky confection.

5. 5

   Remove the saucepan from the heat and stir in the dates, raisins, cashews, pumpkin preserve and crystallized ginger. Add the Ceylon cinnamon, ground cardamom seeds, fennel and cloves, then spread the mixture in a large mixing bowl and cool for approximately 20 minutes, until below 40°C.

6. 6

   Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl until evenly combined, then stir them thoroughly into the cooled coconut mixture. Mix the toasted semolina, rice flour, baking powder and salt together, then fold them into the coconut mixture to make a thick, evenly distributed batter.

7. 7

   Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and level the surface with a spatula. Bake on the middle shelf for 55–65 minutes, until the top is deep brown, the center feels set and a skewer inserted away from a fruit pocket emerges without wet batter; loosely cover with foil after 40 minutes if the surface is darkening too quickly.

8. 8

   Cool the cake in its pan for 30 minutes, then lift it onto a rack using the parchment and leave for at least 2 hours, until completely cool. Cut into 16 squares with a sharp knife, wiping the blade between cuts; expect a moist, close-textured cake rather than a light sponge.