Dessert

Cocada amarela is a sweet Angolan custard or pudding that was originally brought over to the country by the Portuguese, and was then modified by the locals. It consists of water, sugar, salt, grated coconut, and eggs. The dessert is characterized by a vivid yellow color, which is the result of a large amount of egg yolks, hence its name that can be translated as yellow cocada. This flavorful pudding is one of the only Western-style desserts that one can find on Angolan tables.

Cocada amarela

Mexico

Cocadas are sweet coconut treats originating from the state of Colima, Mexico. Traditionally, the concoction is made by combining grated coconut, sugar, eggs, and water, although some modern versions incorporate flavorings such as cloves, vanilla, or almond extract. The dessert is also very popular throughout Latin America, in countries such as Peru and Colombia. Sometimes, cooks like to add food coloring to cocadas in order to symbolize the flag colors of a specific country, making the soft and chewy dessert both patriotic and tasty. Cocadas can be found throughout the streets and beaches of Latin America, usually sold out of baskets or in batches from big, aluminum trays.

Cocadas

Spain

Coca de San Juan is a popular, festive Spanish cake consisting of flour, sugar, lemon zest, eggs, butter, milk, and yeast. Cherries, pine nuts, and crystallized ginger are dispersed throughout the cake, giving it a unique visual appearance. The cake is traditionally consumed on the feast of San Juan, hence the name. It is recommended to serve the cake with a cup of tea on the side.

Coca de San Juan

Cocktion is a Jamaican sweet dessert that is made with sugar and parched corn. It is typically rolled into the shape of a ball. Food coloring is often added to cocktion in order to make it look more visually appealing.

Cocktion

United States

Traditionally associated with the American South, this creamy cake usually consists of at least two thick sponges coated with a coconut-flavored pastry cream or a simple meringue. The whole cake is decorated with buttercream or a cream cheese frosting and a sprinkling of desiccated coconut. Once an irreplaceable element of every birthday party, the traditional coconut cake nowadays appears in numerous versions, which often employ citrus or almond flavors, or the slightly tart lemon curd.

Coconut Cake

Coconut drops are traditional Jamaican treats made by boiling tiny pieces of coconut in a combination of brown sugar and spices such as vanilla, salt, and powdered ginger. The lumps produced by the mixture are left to cool on a flat surface to form rough cakes with an unusual shape and visual appearance. These treats are one of the first snacks that were sold at the school gates in Jamaica.

Coconut Drop

This daifuku variety consists of a chewy outer layer made with mochi and a creamy coffee-flavored bean paste. The dessert comes in different variations that are available in Japanese pastry shops. Usually, each coffee dafiku will include a filling made with fresh cream, while some will also combine mochi with coffee, which provides additional coffee element and gives the cake a distinctive brown color.

Coffee daifuku

Italy

Colomba pasquale is a traditional sweet bread that is prepared for Easter. It is shaped to resemble a dove, covered in sugar, and studded with almonds. The dough is usually made with sugar, flour, eggs, yeast, and butter. The name of the dessert means Easter dove, referring to its shape. Spongy, buttery, and sweet, the bread is often stuffed with candied fruit or lemon zest on the interior.

Colomba Pasquale

Cơm rượu is a traditional rice wine dessert made from fermented rice. Besides rice, the only other ingredient for this dessert is yeast. The yeast and cooked rice are mixed and rolled into small balls, which are then left to ferment for a few days. The rice wine that is a byproduct of the fermentation is usually served with the dessert. According to tradition, Vietnamese people eat cơm rượuo on the fifth of May of the lunar calendar, for the Vietnamese Mid-year festival.

Cơm rượu

Conconetes are traditional cookies originating from Dominica. These rustic cookies are usually made with a combination of grated coconut, flour, sugar, baking powder, cinnamon water, ginger, and salt. The cinnamon water is made by boiling cinnamon sticks in water. The ingredients are mixed together into a homogenous mass, and scoops of the mixture are then placed on cookie sheets and baked in the oven until golden brown and crunchy. They can easily be found in most colmados (corner stores) in the country. It's recommended to serve them with fruit shakes, coffee, or cocoa on the side.

Conconete

Conejitos or conejos are popular Chilean sweet treats consisting of pastry dough made with sugar, flour, milk, eggs, leavening agents, and butter, which is then filled with crema pastelera, a type of pastry cream made with milk, sugar, egg yolks, corn starch, and vanilla. The pastry is typically dusted with powdered sugar before consumption. When translated, the name conejitos means rabbits.

Conejitos

Conkies is a traditional dish of the West Indies that's especially popular in Barbados, and Saint Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago (where it's called paime). It's made with a combination of cornmeal, spices (cinnamon, nutmeg), grated pumpkin, coconut, sweet potatoes, raisins, flour, sugar, butter, and sometimes eggs. The mixture is wrapped in banana leaves, then steamed until it solidifies. Conkies are served on their own as a dessert or as a side dish accompanying fish cakes or fried fish. They can also be served for breakfast with a cup of tea or coffee on the side. Traditionally, they're prepared during November to celebrate Barbados' independence, or late October to celebrate Creole Day on Saint Lucia.

Conkies

Originating from Minnesota, cookie salad is a simple dessert beloved by children made by combining fudge stripe shortbread cookies, buttermilk, vanilla pudding, whipped cream, and mandarin oranges. Additional ingredients may include berries, but Oreo cookies are strictly prohibited.

Cookie Salad

Cookies 'n cream ice cream is a beloved frozen dessert made by blending vanilla-flavored ice cream with crushed or chopped chocolate sandwich cookies, typically Oreos. Its creamy texture and the bittersweet crunch of the cookies create a balanced and indulgent flavor. First created in the late 1970s or early 1980s, with origins claimed by Dairy Queen, Blue Bell Creameries, and South Dakota State University, it quickly became one of the most popular ice cream flavors. Widely available from major ice cream brands, it can be enjoyed on its own or enhanced with toppings like hot fudge, whipped cream, or extra cookie crumbles. It pairs well with brownies, pies, or as a filling in ice cream sandwiches. Combining the simplicity of vanilla ice cream with the nostalgic appeal of chocolate cookies, cookies 'n cream remains a timeless favorite for all ages.

Cookies 'n cream ice cream

Coppetta or cupeta is a traditional dessert from Valtellina. It is a type of nougat made with a mixture of honey, and nuts that is tucked between two wafer sheets. The nougat is made with a mix of chopped walnuts, crushed cookies, and honey. The combination is slowly cooked until it thickens and is then spread onto thin wafers. Coppetta is a soft and chewy nougat that is usually cut into smaller rectangle-shaped pieces. It is a festive dessert traditionally prepared and enjoyed on special occasions and religious holidays. It is now mostly sold as a sweet souvenir.

Coppetta

Copulette are traditional Sardinian cookies that are usually enjoyed on special occasions (most often weddings). They are decorated with royal icing and consist of a pastry shell and a light almond-based filling that incorporates ground almonds, eggs, sugar, and lemon zest. The pastry shells are baked in traditional metal cookie molds. They can vary in shapes&mdash;from small to larger or elongated versions&mdash;but are usually very thin. These festive cookies are always coated in a thin layer of royal icing, which is also used to decorate the top with various decorative patterns. The icing is sometimes flavored with orange water, while the filling can be enriched with a dash of grappa.

Copulette

Cornish fairing is a traditional cookie originating from Cornwall. The cookies have been made for many years by a baker's firm called Furniss, founded in 1886 in Truro, and the recipe is a trade secret. The ingredients for these biscuits include sugar, flour, butter, syrup, spices such as ginger and cinnamon, and raising agents. The ingredients are formed into a dough, which is then cut with a wire futter before baking to give the cookies a rough surface. These dark brown, circular, spicy biscuits have long been associated with fairs in the South West, where they were bought and given as gifts to friends or relatives, hence the name Cornish fairing.

Cornish fairing

Hevva is a cake from Cornwall consisting of spelt flour, butter, sugar, milk, lard, and raisins or currants. The name hevva is linked to the landing of a shoal of fish, and then the huer would shout &ldquo;hevva, hevva&ldquo;, giving a cue to the fishermen's wives to go home and start baking. Traditionally, the dough should be scored diagonally before baking, in order to resemble a fishing net. It is recommended to pair this unleavened cake with a cup of hot tea on the side.

Cornish hevva cake

France

Cornuelle is a traditional cookie originating from Villebois-Lavalette in Charente. The cookies are usually made with a combination of flour, sugar, butter, salt, eggs, baking powder, and anise seeds. The dough is shaped into triangles with ribbed edges, and a hole is made in the center of the cookies before they're baked and nicely golden. The top is brushed with egg yolks and sprinkled with anise seeds. Nowadays, small pink and white aniseed sweets are often used instead of the anise seeds. The three angles of the cookies represent the Holy Trinity, and the hole in the center is made for inserting branches during the Blessing of the Palms. The cookies are traditionally made for Palm Sunday.

Cornuelle

Corollo is a traditional cake originating from the island of Elba. The cake is made with a combination of flour, butter, sugar, eggs, milk, grated lemon peel, baking powder, and a bit of aniseed liqueur. The dough is thoroughly kneaded before it's placed into a ring-shaped mold and baked in the oven. Once done, the corollo is left to cool and sprinkled with icing sugar before serving. This dry donut-shaped cake is often prepared for festivals, special events, Easter, and Christmas. It is believed that the tradition of baking corollo dates back to the May festival in Campo, when single young men sang songs to the unmarried local girls, and the next day, the girls would bake corollo with a hole in the middle, which was placed on poles and delievered to the young men.