15 Popular Moroccan Desserts to Try
on Mar 09, 2022, Updated Apr 02, 2022
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In addition to its gorgeous vistas, beautiful fabrics, and fascinating architecture, Morocco is known for its food. Your taste buds are guaranteed to come alive with the wonderful array of flavors and textures. Today we’re sharing 15 popular Moroccan Desserts for you to try in your own kitchen.
Because of the abundant amount of aromatic spices available in this Northwestern African country, the desserts of Morocco are truly something special.
Best Traditional Moroccan Desserts
1. Moroccan Orange Cake
Moist with the flavors of oranges and vanilla, this traditional Moroccan cake is easy to make. Add because it’s ready to eat in about an hour, you can enjoy it for dessert on a busy weeknight!
2. Basbousa (Coconut Yogurt Semolina Cake)
Featuring a variety of textures, this cake is moist, chewy, and sweet! You’ll only need a small piece because it’s quite rich. Serve it with a hot cup of tea or coffee!
3. Moroccan Lemon Cake
This pretty and light cake serves 10-12 and would be great served to guests at brunch. It has the delicious flavor of lemon in both the cake and the glaze.
4. Maamoul Cookies (Date Filled Cookies)
These delicate bite-sized treats are often served during the holidays to celebrate Eid. Naturally sweetened with dates, there’s very little sugar added to the dough, so go ahead and indulge in a few!
5. Moroccan Almond Snake Pastry
There’s nothing scary about this flaky pastry! The name comes from its traditional snake-like shape. The recipe does have a lot of steps but they are clearly laid out and explained. This would be a fantastic dessert to serve at a special occasion celebration.
6. Baklava
Filled with delicate layers of phyllo and a sweet walnut and cinnamon filling, this delicious dessert is perfect for those with a sweet tooth. Be sure to have a pot of hot tea ready to enjoy along with it.
7. Almond Briouat
Filled with a mixture of almonds, sugar, and cinnamon, these deep-fried treats are flaky and delicate. Serve them with a scoop of creamy vanilla ice cream for a delicious contrast of flavors and textures.
8. Qatayef Asafiri with Ashta
Somewhat similar to crepes or thin pancakes, these scrumptious treats are stuffed with a variety of fillings and then drizzled with honey or sweet syrup.
9. Moroccan Beghrir (Semolina Honeycomb Pancakes)
These tender and spongy treats are called honeycomb pancakes because of their unique appearance and texture. Enjoy them dipped in hot syrup for amazing flavor!
10. Sellou
Grab a few family members to help you with this dessert. These treats are not baked, but do require quite a bit of preparation. Be sure to add a dusting of powdered sugar to the sellou before serving.
11. Moroccan Chebakia (Sesame and Honey Cookies)
Traditionally served on special occasions, these sweet-tasting sesame cookies are shaped like flowers, and then fried and coated with honey. They take quite a bit of time to prepare but are well worth the effort.
12. Cinnamon Oranges
Here’s a simple dessert that takes just 5 minutes and only has 2 ingredients. Juicy slices of orange are dusted with cinnamon and sprinkled with orange flower water if desired. It’s easy to make and very refreshing!
13. Sfenj: Moroccan Doughnuts or Fritters
This popular street food is a cross between a fritter and a doughnut. Enjoy them as is, or add a dusting of powdered sugar if you prefer something a little more sweet.
14. Halwa dyal Makina – Piped Moroccan Biscuits With Chocolate
These will be a hit with chocolate lovers. The cookies are flavored with vanilla or lemon zest, baked until lightly colored, and then each end is dipped in dark chocolate! Enjoy them with a hot cup of coffee or tea.
15. Ghoriba
You can prepare these traditional Moroccan shortbread cookies plain, or add some crunch with ground almonds, sesame seeds, and granulated sugar. Either way, they’re a sweet and delicious treat!
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Moroccan Baklava Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 ounces phyllo pastry dough
- 2 sticks unsalted butter, melted
- 4 cups walnuts, finely chopped
- 1 cup sugar
- ¾ cups water
- ½ cup honey
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon, ground
Instructions
- Grease a large glass baking dish with 1 tbsp of the melted butter and set aside.
- In a saucepan over medium-high heat, combine the water, sugar, honey and lemon juice to make a syrup, bringing it to a boil before reducing it to a simmer for 5 minutes, and setting it aside to cool.
- In a medium bowl, mix the walnuts and cinnamon.
- In the buttered baking dish, lay a sheet of the phyllo pastry dough, and brush with the melted butter. Repeat this with 8 more layers of the dough.
- Evenly spread ¾ cup of the walnuts over the top of the dough.
- Layer another 5 sheets of the dough on top of the walnut layer, remembering to brush with butter for each layer.
- Evenly spread another ¾ cup of the walnuts over the top of the dough.
- Repeat the last 5 steps until all the walnuts are used, and then layer a final 10 sheets of the phyllo pastry dough over it.
- Brush the top layer with butter.
- Slice the pastry into 1½ inch strips, then diagonally in both directions to make diamond shapes.
- Preheat oven to 325F degrees.
- Bake for an hour and a half until golden brown.
- Immediately after removing it from the oven, pour the cool syrup you set aside over the pastry.
- Let the pastry cool, cover overnight to soak the syrup. Serve and enjoy!
Nutrition information provided is an estimate only and will vary based on ingredient brands and cooking methods used.
