What Dessert Looks Like In 33 Countries Around the World

Many of us know that

dessert

s are the ultimate guilty pleasure after a meal. But did you know that before the 17th century in Europe,

what

we know as

dessert

s were used to cleanse the palate between courses? In many parts of the

world

, sugar was a scarce and expensive ingredient. It was not until the colonists generated and expanded the production of the sugar fields using slave labor that the price of sugar was reduced. In the mid-17th century, cookbooks dedicated to desserts were published. With many different textures, colors and flavors, here are some of the best desserts around the

world

.

This candy is named after politician Eduardo Gomes, who ran for president of Brazil in the 1940s. Brigadeiros, which were inspired by Gomes's military rank, brigadier, quickly became a popular gift sold by women who They supported him at rallies. He lost the election, but the little morsel lives on. It's made with condensed milk, butter and cocoa powder and topped with chocolate chips. In Nigeria, the act of repeating a word twice is deeply rooted in the culture. Used for clarity and emphasis. Puff pastry is a fried dough sprinkled with powdered sugar in some cases, and can be served both as an appetizer and as a dessert, savory or sweet.

When I first think of mochi, I think of the boxed mochi ice cream sold at Trader Joe's, but that's just the American version of the famous dessert. Mochi is actually a rice cake made with mochigome. This rice becomes glutinous when boiled and mushy when steamed. Water and air are important factors in the transformation of mochigome into the mochi dessert we know. The water keeps the mochi from being a sticky mess, and the air helps it stretch. The word tembleque is associated with the Spanish word temblar, which means to shake or tremble. This definitely represents the consistency of this dessert.

A coconut pudding, or custard if you wish, templeque is a Christmas dessert that has numerous variations throughout Latin America. But wherever you are, it's best eaten cold. Legend has it that the women of Transylvania invented chimney cakes during the Mongol invasion in 1241. To convince the Mongols that they would survive during a stalemate, the women of Transylvania devised a plan that mixed flour with water wrapped around a stick of wood. This gave the illusion of large portions of bread, but in reality they were hollow inside. Hungry and disappointed, the Mongols left and chimney cakes became popular in both Romania and Hungary.

The next dessert takes us here to Little Cupcake Bakeshop in New York, home of one of my favorite American desserts. And no, it's not apple pie. Many people wonder: is red velvet cake just chocolate cake with red food coloring? And the answer is: not exactly. Although the dessert has cocoa powder as one of the ingredients, it also requires vinegar and buttermilk. The tangy flavors mixed with the cream cheese frosting create a dessert that is definitely not a chocolate cake. The red velvet cake is due to a marketing strategy of an American food coloring company. During the Great Depression, to increase sales, the Adams Extract company added red food coloring to velvet cake to give it the bright, distinctive color we know today.

So, as demand for the dessert increased, so did their income. Banoffee pie is a sweet combination of bananas, caramel, and whipped cream on a thick graham cracker crust. The word banoffee itself is actually a combination of the words banana and caramel. It was invented in a restaurant in Sussex, England, and became world famous. Yakgwa, which means "medicinal sweet", received its name because honey was known in Korea as a healthy medicine. Yakgwa is a deep-fried biscuit soaked in honey for six to eight hours. The history of this dessert is linked to special occasions such as royal banquets or Chuseok.

Although originally enjoyed primarily by the upper class due to the honey, it is commonly eaten today and is still served for Chuseok. Steeped in a series of tres leches, evaporated, condensed, and heavy cream or whole milk, this dessert is incredibly simple yet deliciously complex. Although people aren't entirely sure where the dessert originated, the main consensus is Mexico. It was Nestlé who took the tres leches cake mainstream by introducing the recipe in cans of evaporated, condensed milk and cream. Despite the marketing scheme, tres leches developed its own cultural meaning in families throughout Latin America. Stroopwafel is a sweet, candy-like filling sandwiched between two thin waffle cookies and was invented in the Dutch city of Gouda.

Gerard Kamphuisen, who is credited as the inventor, took the leftover breadcrumbs and mixed them with a thick syrup. He heats the caramel by letting the stroopwafel sit over a cup of coffee or tea before consuming it and you won't regret it. Halo-halo, a Filipino word meaning "mix-mix," is a popular dessert in the Philippines composed of shaved ice, condensed milk, and fun sweet toppings such as fruits, jellies, beans, ube ice cream, or sweet custard. This sweet is derived from the Japanese dessert kakigori. With the combination of the Japanese occupation before World War II and the ice plant built by the Americans in the Philippines in 1902, it was only a matter of time before the Filipinos redesigned ice cream to make

what

is known today as halo- halo.

The origins of this dessert are a bit confusing: the Catalans say their crème brûlée preceded the French crème brûlée, and Britain says its crème trinidad was the first. However, thanks to chef François Massialot, France has the oldest written recipe, dating back to 1691. Crème brûlée is a custard topped with sugar that is burned to create a hardened, caramelized top layer. Unlike crème brûlée, where eggs curdled or piled up in the custard are a sign of a mishap, baked custard appreciates the light cooking of the egg.

Instead of including just the egg yolk, like most custards, baked custards include the whole egg and can be served hot or cold, depending on your preferences. Did you know that the correct way to eat a Belgian waffle is with your hands? The Belgian waffle, originally called the Brussels waffle, is one of two types of waffles originating in Belgium. Americans know the Belgian waffle as a delicious breakfast, but not many of us eat the waffle as intended. Belgian waffles are not eaten with a knife and fork, but with your hands. And no syrup. Maybe fruit or whipped cream at most.

Maurice Vermersch was the one who changed the name of Brussels waffle to Belgian, because Americans didn't know where Brussels was. Partly influenced by the British colonial occupation, this dessert actually has health benefits. Currants are rich in fiber; manganese, which helps strengthen bones; potassium; and copper, which helps with metabolism. Trinidadians eat the rolls casually as a snack or sometimes as breakfast. Actually, this dessert is not pudding at all. Malva pudding, like many other desserts, has an unknown origin story. Some say Dutch, while others say South African. Similar to butterscotch pudding, its warm, fluffy texture topped with a warm cream sauce is a delicious recipe.

And how can I forget the key ingredient? Apricot jam. The name of the cake comes from the liquor from the mountainous region of the Black Forest, known as Schwarzwälder Kirschwasser. The liquor is distilled from tart cherries. The Black Forest cake was invented in 1915 by the pastry chef Josef Keller. Some people suggest that the look of the cake is a visual pun on the traditional bollenhut worn by women in the Black Forest. As popular as this dessert is in India, according to food historian and former chef Michael Krondl, it is derived from a fritter belonging to the Turkish invaders of Central Asia.

Indian folklore says that gulab jamun was accidentally created by a Persian priest and presented to the people as a royal dessert. Although it shares similarities with Arabic luqaimat, a staple during Ramadan, gulab jamun is unique because it is covered in a rosewater-scented syrup. As someone who took out loans to pay for college, the story of this next dessert really hit me. If you're looking for an easy, no-bake dessert option, look no further. The Nanaimo bar consists of three layers. The base is made up of wafer, nuts and grated coconut, the middle is custard and the top layer is chocolate ganache.

The bar is named after the city of Nanaimo in southwestern Canada. The first recording of the name "Nanaimo bar" was in 1953. Susan Mendelson popularized the dessert and marketed it in the 1970s to help pay for her tuition. She then opened her own cafe, The Lazy Gourmet, and sold dessert. Khao niaow ma muang most likely originated in northern Thailand. This traditional Thai dessert is made with glutinous rice, coconut milk, a pinch of salt, sugar and mangoes garnished with toasted sesame seeds or split mung beans. The best time to eat this dessert is during the peak mango season in Thailand, from April to June.

Translated from Italian as “pick me up,” this espresso- and alcohol-infused dessert is sure to do a little of that and more. Pastry chef Loli Linguanotto was identified as its creator in the 1970s. However, Italian food writers discovered evidence that chef Mario Cosolo first combined the same ingredients and called them "tirime su" in the 1950s. This, Of course, it generated a lot of controversy, but anyway, the origin remains Italy. The origins of Baklava are still debatable. Both Türkiye and Greece claim ownership of the dessert. In Turkey, baklava is traditionally made with pistachios, walnuts, almonds or hazelnuts, and in 2008, the Turkish patent office registered a certificate for Antep baklava, or baklava with pistachios.

And in Greece, traditionally, baklava is made with 40 filo sheets to represent the 40 days of Lent. Similar to the famous baklava, galaktoboureko is filled with semolina custard and topped with several layers of filo. It is soaked in syrup, making it a light, sweet dessert that can take the form of rolls or squares. Either way, it's undeniably delicious. Kicking my sugar addiction during Lent was my choice when I was a child. But for Dominicans who observe Lent and/or have eaten it as children, know that this dessert will teleport you back to your childhood. Sweet beans is a star dish in the Dominican Republic during Lent.

Traditionally, the delicacy is garnished with milk cookies, or small round cookies engraved with a cross. It is made up of kidney beans, sweet potatoes, milk, cinnamon, and sometimes raisins. In the 18th century, monks and nuns in Lisbon had leftover yolk after using egg whites to stretch their clothes. Legend has it that monks used this leftover yolk to create delicious desserts and potentially sold them to help them in times of financial hardship. These financial difficulties eventually led the monks to sell their recipe to a bakery in the capital of Lisbon in the 1830s. In its peak season, this bakery today makes up to 50,000 cakes a day.

Since Viking times, skyr has remained relatively unchanged. Its recipe has been passed down among women from generation to generation. What sets skyr apart from other yogurts is its consistency, which is thick compared to the yogurt you usually eat with fruit and granola. Skyr comes in many different flavors and has health benefits that may make you want to ditch yogurt. Sopa borcha, which translates to drunken soup, does not make you drunk nor is it a soup. It is a delicious sponge cake bathed in a liquid mixture of raisins and plums boiled with cinnamon, sugar, rum, sherry and lemon zest.

This is a festive dessert and is served on special occasions. I don't think any dessert has as much controversy as the Australian lamington, or is it the New Zealand Wellington? What started as an April Fools' Day joke by The Guardian has sparked a lot of controversy over whether this famous dessert belongs in Australia or New Zealand. To clarify speculation, the chocolate-covered sponge cake covered in coconut shavings is Australian. But the controversy over whether jam should be included may not be resolved anytime soon. Syrniki, or fried quark pancakes, date back to 10th-century Russian texts. Quark is a dairy product made by heating sour milk until it curdles.

It is dried and ground, rolled in flour and then fried to create a crispy exterior and soft interior. Top it with sour cream and fruit and you can enjoy a syrniki. Picarones are a mixture of sweet potato and pumpkin, flour and salt, they are shaped and fried with syrup on top. Enslaved African cooks who were brought to Peru by the Spanish created this delicious delicacy inspired by Spanish buñuelos. Although the spelling, pronunciation, and exact recipe for this dessert change throughout the region, kanafeh is traditionally a favorite.among the people of the Middle East. Think shredded filo dough or semolina dough with melted cheese, cream, or nuts topped with sweet rosewater syrup.

This stacked dessert features eight thin layers of dulce de leche dough sandwiched together and topped with whipped Italian meringue. This dessert gets its name from alfajores, Argentine shortbread cookies that the dessert resembles. The three colorful layers of che ba mau are yellow mung beans, red beans, and green agar gelatin mixed with pandan, which gives the gelatin a chewy gummy bear-like flavor. Topped with crushed ice, condensed milk, and coconut milk, this dessert is not as sweet as you might think, but it is refreshing and perfect for hot days in Vietnam. Although many of these desserts have unknown, dark or legendary histories, each place has truly made them their own.

Our memories associated with these desserts make each one unique to us. So go and make a new and exciting memory by trying any of these desserts and let us know how it went in the comments below.