Dessert

Croatia

Rozata is a type of custard pudding made with a few basic ingredients &mdash; eggs, milk, and sugar, which are flavored with a local rose liqueur known as Rozalin. The creamy mixture is baked in caramel covered ramekins, and the process results in a custard that is generously covered with a sweet caramel topping. The dessert originates from the town of Dubrovnik where it has been prepared since the Middle Ages, but the simplicity of ingredients and the method of preparation is what helped in keeping this dessert unchanged for centuries. Due to the refreshing combination of lemon zest, rose liqueur, and caramel, rozata is a dessert that is best enjoyed on hot summer days.

Rozata

Inexpensive and easy to prepare, roze keuk is a simple Dutch dessert consisting of eggs, flour, butter, and sugar, resulting in a sweet and tender cake. It is characterized by the pink icing on top (hence the name), made with powdered sugar, berry juice, milk, and optional red food coloring. When the cakes are done and the icing has dried, roze koeken are often paired with a cup of coffee or tea. Sometimes, these small treats are sold in other colors such as orange, which is especially popular during football matches.

Roze Koek

Ruam mit is a popular Thai dessert made with ingredients such as coconut milk, sugar, tapioca pearls, corn, lotus root, sweet potatoes, beans, and jackfruit. Each bowl typically includes starchy noodles that are flavored and colored with various ingredients, and which may come in the shape of thin strips or more elaborate decorative forms. There is no set recipe for ruam mit, so each cook or street vendor adds their own ingredients to the mix. It is often consumed as a cool refreshment on hot summer days, topped with shaved ice. In Thailand, it is one of the cheapest desserts, and each bowl typically costs around 15 baht. Interestingly, in Thai language, ruam means get together, and mit refers to friends, so it can be said that ruam mit is a meeting of many desserts in one simple, flavorful dish.

Ruam mit

Finland

Named after the acclaimed Finnish poet, the Runeberg cake is a small, cylinder-shaped delicacy prepared with a combination of wheat and almond flour. The cake is characterized by strong ginger and cardamom flavors, and a tender, dense texture. This dessert comes in various shapes, and the essential addition to each cake is a dollop of raspberry jam, enclosed by a layer of plain white icing. Believed to have been invented by the poet&rsquo;s wife, this flavor-packed national treat is usually enjoyed throughout January leading up to Runeberg&rsquo;s birthday, celebrated on the 5th of February.

Runebergintorttu

Rupjmaizes kārtojums is a traditional and fairly simple Latvian dessert consisting of dark rye bread, whipped cream or cream cheese, and cranberry jam. Most traditional recipes suggest cranberry jam because of its sourness, but other fruit jams can be used instead. The dark rye bread is finely grated, flavored with cinnamon and sugar, and pan toasted. The ingredients are then layered in a glass trifle dish or a parfait glass and garnished with whipped cream or fresh fruit. Before it&rsquo;s served, the dessert should sit in a fridge for a few hours so that the flavors soak into each other.

Rupjmaizes kārtojums

Called rurki or rurki z kremem in Poland, this sweet specialty is a type of cream roll consisting of thin pastry that&rsquo;s typically filled with whipped cream or pastry cream. It is often dubbed torpedo dessert due to its characteristic shape, and apart from Poland, there&rsquo;s also a long-standing tradition of preparing this dessert in other countries. The origins of rurki are often associated with T&uuml;rkiye and Bulgaria, where the dessert is known as torpil tatlısı and funiiki s krem, respectively. There are many variations of this sweet delicacy regarding the ingredients used for its preparation, the appearance, texture, and flavor of the rolls, and the type of cream used for filling the pastry. In Poland, rurki cream rolls are usually long and crispy, wafer-like tubes filled with thick and subtly sweet whipped cream, and they&rsquo;re a staple street snack. In other countries, the cream rolls resemble soft and buttery bread rolls with flaky texture, and they are usually filled with pastry cream or custard cream.

Rurki

Ruske kape or &scaron;ubarice is a dessert that is especially popular in Balkan countries such as Bosnia, Serbia, and Croatia. The base is made with eggs, sugar, flour, and baking powder. It is traditionally filled with vanilla custard, chocolate, or both. The outer edges are then covered with chocolate, and the whole concoction is rolled in desiccated coconut on the sides. It is recommended to serve ruske kape well-chilled.

Ruske kape

Austria

Russische punschtorte is a classic torte of the Demel, a confectionary and coffee house, consisting of rum-soaked sponge cake, diplomat cream, and meringue frosting. The torte is adorned with candied violets and finely chopped pistachios. The meringue frosting is blowtorched, giving the cake a burnt appearance.

Russische punschtorte

Ružice or đul-pita is a Bosnian baklava variety made with yufka sheets that are filled with ground walnuts, melted butter, and raisins, if desired. The concoction is rolled, then cut into smaller pieces which are subsequently placed in the baking dish so that they resemble roses or rosebuds. After ružice have been baked, they are doused in syrup consisting of water, sugar, and lemon juice. Due to the sweetness of this dessert, it is recommended to serve it with a cup of strong black coffee on the side.

Ružice

R&yacute;žov&yacute; n&aacute;kyp is a traditional and Slovak rice pudding that is often served as the main course. It consists or rice cooked in milk that is chilled and combined with egg yolks, sugar, butter, vanilla, and beaten egg whites. The mixture is later mixed with fruit, topped with a thick layer of beaten egg whites, and baked until completely set. It is usually made with cherries or peaches, and the fruit is occasionally dispersed between the layers of rice. Although it is a sweet dish, it is mostly eaten as a second course or as the main dish. R&yacute;žov&yacute; n&aacute;kyp is usually preceded by a hearty bowl of soup.

Rýžový nákyp

France

This classic Breton cookie is characterized by its sandy (sabl&eacute; in French) texture, which is a result of large quantities of butter and egg yolks used to make them. The cookies were first produced in 1670 in Sabl&eacute;-sur-Sarthe, when the steward of Prince Cond&eacute; made him some shortbreads for a party. According to the story, he named them sabl&eacute; in honor of the Marquise de Sabl&eacute;, who was also present at the party. The cookies can be flavored with a wide variety of ingredients, such as lemon or orange zest, almonds, green peppers, or cheese. It is recommended to serve them with a cup of hot coffee or tea.

Sablé

The original Sacher-Torte is the most famous Austrian cake. It is a classic, layered chocolate sponge cake that is thinly coated with high-quality apricot jam and topped with chocolate icing. Sacher-Torte is said to taste the best when accompanied by a small cloud of unsweetened whipped cream on the side. It was invented in 1832 by Franz Sacher, a pastry chef for Prince Clemens Lothar Wensel Metternich, the State Chancellor of Austria at the time. The prince wanted a new cake, and Sacher, 16 years old at the time, obliged him by creating something new from ingredients that were readily available in the kitchen. Suffice to say, the cake was a huge hit, and Franz's son Eduard opened a hotel called Sacher in 1876, serving the popular cake up to this day. Today, almost every coffee house in Vienna has its own version of the cake, but no two cakes are quite alike. In order to avoid confusion, it is recommended to look for the official Sacher chocolate seal on top of the cake, which can only be found on the Original Sacher, produced by Hotel Sacher in a quantity of approximately 360,000 cakes per year. Interestingly, from 1954 to 1963, Hotel Sacher went through a legal battle with their rival, Demel cafe, and the court proceedings focused on which one had the right to call its Sacher-Torte the original. The issues that were discussed included whether the cake should have an additional layer of apricot jam in the middle, and whether to use margarine or butter. Following a long seven-year dispute, the parties have reached an agreement&mdash;and the original Sacher-Torte is now only found at the Hotel Sacher. Nevertheless, Demel version, which does not have the additional layer of apricot jam in the middle, is almost equally popular.

Sacher-Torte

Sachima is a sweet Chinese pastry that is consumed as a snack, consisting of a deep-fried combination of batter and sugar syrup. There are numerous regional varieties of this popular treat, but sachima is most often sprinkled with sesame seeds, desiccated coconut, watermelon seeds, or dried fruits such as raisins. This sweet treat is at its peak during the festive period of Chinese New Year, when it can be found at most Chinese street stalls and convenience stores. It is believed that sachima was a common snack during the 1960s and the 1970s, especially at the racetracks, where people would place bets on horses while consuming it. With its sweet aroma and chewy texture, sachima is a delight for children and seniors alike.

Sachima

Italy

Sacripantina is a delicious dome-shaped cake from Genoa, created by Giovanni Preti in 1851. Allegedly named after Sacripante, one of the characters in the chivalric poems of the famous Italian Renaissance poet Ludovico Ariosto, this creamy treat consists of soft layers of pan di Spagna soaked in sweet Marsala wine, covered with two different, but equally delicious creams: one flavored with zabaione, and the other one with cocoa. Sacripantina is best enjoyed well-chilled, sprinkled with extra crumbs of pan di Spagna.

Sacripantina

Saffron cake is a traditional delicacy made in Devon and Cornwall, characterized by its close texture and a rich, spicy taste. The cake consists of bread dough, saffron, assorted fruit and spices, sugar, and butter. It is usually baked like bread and served sliced, with clotted cream on the side. The dish is especially popular around Easter and is traditionally consumed on Good Friday.

Saffron cake

Just as its name would imply, sago gula melaka is a pudding dessert made from sago (the starch extracted from the pith of various palm stems) and gula melaka (palm sugar syrup). This pudding is a favorite among Malaysian desserts, although it is not universally found in eateries around the country, even though the recipe is straightforward. Classic sago gula melaka only has four ingredients: sago, palm sugar, coconut milk, and pandan leaves. The sago is boiled until the pearls become translucent, while the palm sugar is melted separately. A pinch of salt is used to enhance the fragrance and flavor of coconut milk, along with the pandan leaves. The pudding is usually served right after it has been chilled, but it can also be left overnight in the refrigerator.

Sago gula melaka

Sago halawa is a Qatari sweet pudding made with sago pearls, sugar, water, and butter (or ghee). It is flavored with cardamom, saffron, and rosewater and often garnished with walnuts or other nuts. The sago pearls are soaked in water for a few hours, then strained and added to the pot with sugar that's been previously caramelized. Next, the aromatics and the butter are added, and the mixture is stirred briefly over heat. The finished pudding is divided between bowls, garnished with walnuts or pistachios, and served chilled. Besides Qatar, sago halawa can also be found in other Gulf countries.

Sago Halawa

Brazil

Sagu is an unusual Brazilian alcohol-infused dessert made with cassava, one of the oldest starch sources found in South America. This sweet concoction is made with tapioca pearls &ndash; round-shaped, chewy ingredients gained from tapioca starch. To prepare sagu, the pearls are cooked in wine until all of the liquid is absorbed and the pearls turn dark red. Occasionally, wine is mixed with an equal amount of grape juice, which makes this interesting dessert sweeter and less alcoholic. The wine is usually infused with cinnamon and cloves in order to add extra flavor to the dish. Most commonly, sagu is consumed plain and served in individual portions. However, it is also a perfect complement to creamy desserts such as cheesecake or vanilla custards. Although tapioca pearls can be made at home, sagu is most commonly prepared with the store-bought variety.

Sagu

Sakızlı Muhallebi is a traditional Turkish dessert, a creamy milk-based pudding flavored with mastic (sakız in Turkish). Mastic, a resin from the mastic tree, imparts a distinctive pine-like, slightly sweet aroma that defines the dessert. The pudding is made by gently heating milk and sugar, then thickening it with cornstarch or wheat flour. Finely ground mastic is added during cooking to blend its unique flavor into the mixture. Served chilled in individual bowls or decorative dishes, it often features garnishes like ground cinnamon, crushed nuts, or powdered sugar.

Sakizli muhallebi

India

This sweet, buttery dish is made with freshly harvested new rice, jaggery and ghee (clarified butter), with the addition of dried coconut, sesame seeds, raisins, milk, and cashew nuts. Sakkarai pongal is traditionally prepared as an offering to the Sun God during Makar Sankranti, a three-day harvest festival in mid-January, celebrated in the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh. The rice is typically cooked outdoors over a fire, with the cooking pots turned to the East, where the sun rises, and it is also customary to allow the dish to pongal, meaning to boil over during cooking, which symbolizes an abundance of food. This creamy, aromatic porridge is traditionally served alongside savory donuts called vadas and coconut chutney.