• Preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F). Line the base and sides of a 23cm (9 in) round baking pan with baking paper.

For the cake: 

• Place the egg yolks and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat them until they are pale and creamy (this takes a couple of minutes).
• Add the semolina, flour and orange zest and stir until they are just combined with the egg yolk mixture (the mixture will be very firm at this stage).
• In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites until soft peaks form.
• Fold 2 tablespoons of the egg whites into the egg yolk mixture (this will lighten the mixture, making it easier to combine the ingredients), then fold in the remaining egg whites – don’t over-fold as you want to retain the aeration.
• Spoon the batter into the prepared baking pan and bake the cake in the preheated oven for about 30 minutes, or until golden, slightly springy to the touch, and a skewer inserted into the centre of the cake comes out clean. Leave the cake to cool in the baking pan for 10 minutes.
• Remove the cake from the baking pan and leave it to cool on a wire rack.

For the syrup

• Place the water, sugar, orange juice and zest, along with either a vanilla bean (sliced open with the seeds extracted and added in with the pod) or some slightly crushed cardamom pods (if using) in a small saucepan. Slowly bring the mixture to the boil then simmer it for 10-20 minutes, or until the syrup has thickened (you’ll start to see the mixture clinging to the sides of the pan). Take off the heat and take out the vanilla pod or cardamom pods.

To assemble:

• Place the cooled cake on a serving plate with a lip to catch excess syrup. With a skewer, make several holes through the cake (20 or so), and spoon most of the syrup over the cake (reserve a bit for serving), letting it run over the sides of the cake and into the skewered holes. Sprinkle toasted pistachio nuts over top. Serve with yoghurt and drizzle a bit of extra syrup (you may need to reheat it gently if it’s started to set) over top.