World Map in Desserts
Cooking Around The World,  Food

Desserts from Around the World

Gooey buns, fluffy donuts, eggy tarts, light cakes; each country has their own idea on what a dessert should be. I made it my mission to find out. You will find a clickable list of desserts per country further down in this post.

What started as a lockdown project has now turned into a lifelong hobby. Every week I would challenge myself to bake a dessert from a random country. Time was spent researching their desserts and sourcing the ingredients and baking tools, giving me something to focus on that wasn’t pandemic related. The only difference now is the frequency of the bakes, I now bake once a fortnight.

The criteria is that the desserts must be unique to that country but not one which was widely recognised in the rest of the world. Unless I absolutely have to make it (see Sweden’s princess cake). No unusual ingredient should stop a bake. Fortunately I live in a multicultural city which means I have access to a wide range of international food products. If possible, the recipe used is from a local food blogger. There are those recipes which come from bloggers who have emigrated or I could only find a recipe via a generic website from that country.

Follow me on Twitter or Instagram to get notified when a new dessert has been added! Coming up:

  • Wallis and Futuna – Faikai
  • Syria – Swar as-sitt
  • Algeria – Boussou La Tmessou
  • Western Sahara – Sfouf/Sellou
  • Cyprus – Flaouna
  • Palau – Abrabang
  • Denmark – Brunsviger
  • Samoa – Paifala
  • Bulgaria – TBA
  • St Lucia – Coupe
  • Kuwait – Gers Ogaily

Africa

Angola: Bolo de Ginguba
Burkina Faso Biscuits à l’ananas à la poêle
Burkina Faso: Biscuits à l’ananas à la poêle
Cameroon: Banana Cake
Eritrea & Ethiopia: Himbasha
Ghana Atadwe Milk, pudding in glass bowls with tiger nuts on top
Ghana: Atadwe Milk
Guinea-Bissau Raivas squiggly biscuits
Guinea-Bissau: Raivas
Kenya: Mahamri
La Réunion: Gâteau Patate Douce
Liberia: Rice Bread
Libya: Magrood
Mauritius: Gateau Napolitaine
Namibia: Fat Cakes
Republic of the Congo: Mikate
São Tomé and Principe: Açucarinhas
Cinq Centimes cookies
Senegal: Cinq Centimes
Tunisia: Kâak Warka
Zambia: Tobomutwe

Americas

Tamarind balls in a bowl surrounded by fresh shelled tamarind
Anguilla: Tamarind Balls
Aruba: Tert di pruimu
Barbados: Sweet Bread
Bermuda: Banana Fritters
Bolivia: Tawa Tawas
Brazil: Bolo de Rolo
Costa Rica: Torta Chilena
Curaçao: Bolo di Cashupete
Dominican Republic: Habichuelas con dulce
French Guiana: Dizé Milé
Greenland: Kalaallit Kaagiat
Grenada: Grenadian Turnover
Guatemala: Rellenitos De Platano
Haiti: Gateau Au Beurre
Jamaica: Gizzada
Mexico: Coyotas
Duckna, dessert from Montserrat
Montserrat: Duckna
Paraguay: Torta de Miel Negra
Peru: Suspiro de Limeña
Puerto Rico: Flancocho
St. Kitts & Nevis: Jam Cake
St. Martin: Sweet Potato Cake
St Vincent & The Grenadines: Arrowroot Cakes
Suriname: Bojo Cake
Six biscuits on a cooling tray. Each biscuit has been sprinkled with sugar. Biscuits are slightly browned.
Trinidad & Tobago: Biscuit Cake
Cake with ice cream on a plate
Turks & Caicos: Rum Cake
A slice of coconut tart with a lattice top a patterned white place. A full coconut tart is in the background with a slice missing
Virgin Islands: Coconut Tart

Asia

Armenia: Gata
Azerbaijan: Badambura
Bhutan: Khabzey
Brunei Darussalam: Pinjaram
China: Bing Pi Yue Bing
Hong Kong: Egg Tarts & Pineapple Buns
Iran: Kolompeh
Jordan: Kanafeh
Laos: Nam Wan
Macau: Almond Cookies
Maldives: Cream Jehi Banas
Pastry rolls drenched in sugar syrup on a floral plate
Palestine: Mutabak
Qatar: Esh Asaraya
Turkmenistan: Pishme
Khanfaroush Middle Eastern Doughnut
United Arab Emirates: Khanfaroosh

Europe

Albania: Shendetlie
Austria: Punschkrapfen
Czechia: Koláče
Faroe Islands: Karamel Marengskaka
Finland: Mustikkapiirakka
French tart with cross pattern
France: Tarte Conversation
Germany: Donauwelle
Gache Melee
Guernsey: Gâche Melée
Jersey – Du Soyli
Liechtenstein: Teeringli
Cake made of waffles with lashings of cream, pilled with berries
Svalbard: Vaffelkake
Sweden: Prinsesstårta
Switzerland: Zuger Kirschtorte
Cake with colourful decorations
Ukraine: Kyiv Cake

Oceania

Fiji: Purini
Kiribati: Buatoro
Cornmeal pudding in colourful spotted bowl, with cream being poured onto the pudding
New Zealand (Maori) – Kānga Waru
Norfolk Island: Passion Fruit Pie
Solomon Islands: Cassava Snacks
Plain doughnut on rectangle plate, with cup that has a face with a rainbow smile
Tokelau: Puta