It's impossible to vacation in Turkey without sampling their national desserts and sweets! So where to start? Here are the top 3 national desserts you can enjoy not only while at the resort but also take home and give your family and friends a piece of Turkey.
Baklava
This is one of the most popular desserts in Turkey, a must-have on any dessert table. Many nations fought for the right to call this delicacy their national dish for nearly a century, but it was the Turks who were the first to officially document its recipe in a cookbook kept in the Istanbul palace in 1473.
This multi-ingredient dessert consists of thin, almost translucent layers of dough soaked in syrup or sorbet and filled with various types of nuts or dried fruits. It's typically served in small envelopes or tubes, attracting almost instant attention. Locals still believe that only a true Turkish woman can prepare classic baklava, as the preparation process itself requires considerable patience and effort. Baklava is typically found at any hotel buffet, with a variety of varieties available. It can be purchased at any sweet shop in Turkey for 35-70 lira per kilogram (depending on the type of nut).
Rahat-lukum
In Turkey, it's also known as "soft delight." This dessert is over 700 years old and considered another masterpiece of Turkish confectionery. According to one legend about the creation of Turkish delight, Sultan Suleiman himself ordered his chef to prepare something sweet and delicate for one of his concubines to distinguish her from his harem. Legend has it that he used this dish to declare his love for her, telling her, "You are the one who could melt my heart."
The classic version of Turkish delight is made with only water, sugar, and rose petals, but the preparation itself is quite labor-intensive, taking two to three days. All ingredients are simmered over low heat, stirring thoroughly to prevent burning. Before being transformed into a delicacy, the sweet mixture is cooled for almost a day and only then is it cut into uniform pieces, dusted with powdered sugar before serving.
At the moment, many variations of Turkish delight have already been invented, for example, with nuts, coconut, or lemon, so every vacationer in Turkey will find their ideal taste. You can’t always find it in hotels. But in restaurants, Turkish delight is often included in the list of signature desserts from the chef, which the Turks consider it their duty to offer to every visitor. You can buy it in almost every sweet shop for 20-30 lira per kilogram.
Writing
This dish is an incredible combination of cotton candy, a childhood favorite, and halva, an integral part of Muslim countries. This unusual delicacy consists of sugar fibers shaped and arranged into specific patterns, and the recipe, according to historical records, dates back over seven centuries.
As with most desserts, the story of this dessert's creation is not without a rather romantic legend. Legend has it that it was invented by a poor pastry chef's assistant to win the heart of his master's wealthy daughter. He then decided to invent something that would match the sweetness of her lips and be thinner than her waist. After tasting this unusual delicacy, the girl was delighted and declared to her father that she would marry only this young man, as only he could truly appreciate her beauty.
This dish can be ordered in a restaurant, but most often it is simply bought in a supermarket for 10-20 lira (350 grams) as a gift. Because of its amazing and unusual appearance, many vacationers at first look at this masterpiece of Turkish cuisine with undisguised apprehension, but then, having tried it, they can no longer resist buying a couple of packages for the road.
