Dessert

Gufong is a traditional snack or dessert originating from Cape Verde. These snacks are usually made with a combination of flour, sugar, salt, cornmeal, baking powder, and oil. The ingredients are boiled in water until everything is combined, and the mixture is then left to cool. Once cooled, small pieces of dough are rolled into logs that are fried in hot oil until golden brown. Gufong is drained on paper towels and enjoyed with coffee or tea on the side. If desired, serve gufong with powdered sugar or chocolate syrup as a sweet afternoon treat.

Gufong

China

In its original form, guilinggao was a herbal paste that consisted of the powdered plastron (bottom shell of Golden coin turtle) and a variety of flowers, herbs, spices, roots, and tree barks. Although it was initially used as a health remedy, modern variations are mainly enjoyed as a well-chilled, refreshing jelly dessert. Since the Golden coin turtle is critically endangered, the original paste is nowadays rarely found and usually comes with a hefty price tag. Many producers opt to use other turtle species, and guilinggao nowadays usually appears as a canned version, or as a powder mix that is easily made into jelly.

Guilinggao

India

Gujiya is a popular North Indian sweet pastry that is traditionally enjoyed during the Holi festival. These crescent-shaped treats are made with thinly rolled dough and a filling consisting of khoya (dried evaporated milk) and chopped nuts such as almonds, cashews, and pistachios. The dough can be made with all-purpose flour and semolina, while the fillings can sometimes include dry fruit, desiccated coconut, and cardamom. Gujiya can be baked or deep-fried. It is similar and often compared to karanji&mdash;a deep-fried Maharashtran pastry usually filled with coconut, poppy seeds, and nuts.

Gujiya

Gulab jamun is a dessert based on milk solids that are kneaded into a dough, shaped into balls, and deep-fried in ghee. The balls then get soaked in a sugary concoction flavored with saffron, green cardamom, and rose water. When served, gulab jamun is often garnished with dried nuts to further enhance its flavors. The name of the dish is derived from two words: gulab, meaning rose, and jamun, referring to the purple-colored jamun berry fruit. It is believed that the dessert originated from an Arabic dessert called luqmat al-qadi, which became popular during the Mughal era, when Indian cooks at the palace kitchens adapted their cuisine by combining the newly arrived Persian ingredients with their own Hindu flavors. Nowadays, gulab jamun is often prepared for weddings and during the Diwali festival, both in India and in Trinidad and Tobago, where gulab jamun is also quite popular.

Gulab jamun

Gulaman is the Filipino term for agar-agar or kanten, a gum extracted from algae, but the name also refers to a broad category of Filipino dishes which are made with the same ingredient. Sharing similar characteristics with gelatin, gulaman is usually used to create various jelly-like desserts, puddings, and thick syrups. Gulaman desserts are a staple in traditional Filipino cuisine and are often based on cream, milk, and various fruits. They may appear in numerous flavor combinations and forms. Usually served chilled, they are a perfect refreshing treat enjoyed in the hot and humid Filipino climate.

Gulaman

Sheets of dried starch pastry as thin as paper, softened one by one in warm sweetened milk scented with rose water, layered with ground walnuts and finished with pomegranate seeds: güllaç is the Ramadan dessert of Istanbul, eaten after iftar in the weeks when the pastry appears in every grocer, and almost nowhere the rest of the year. The name is usually explained as güllü aş, rose food, and the dish is older than baklava in the Ottoman record; a version is described in the fourteenth-century Chinese dietary manual written for the Mongol court, and it was served at the circumcision feast of Süleyman's sons in 1539. The pastry itself, a batter of wheat starch and water dried into translucent rounds, is made by a handful of Istanbul producers, and the dessert's whole character comes from how long those sheets sit in milk.

The milk is warmed with sugar until dissolved, never boiled, and flavoured with rose water or a little vanilla; some cooks add a spoon of cream. A sheet of güllaç is laid in a wide tray, shiny side up, and warm milk is ladled over until it goes limp and transparent, which takes seconds; the next sheet goes on, and the process repeats, with a layer of ground walnuts or hazelnuts, sometimes pistachio, in the middle and again near the top. Eight to twelve sheets is usual. The last sheet is folded under to make a neat edge, the remaining milk is poured over, and the tray rests in the refrigerator for a few hours so the layers set into a soft, sliceable mass. It is cut into squares and decorated with pomegranate seeds, chopped pistachio and sometimes a strawberry or a dusting of coconut. It is served cold and eaten the same day, because the pastry keeps absorbing milk and turns to paste by the next.

Judge the texture first: a good square should be soft and slightly elastic, with the layers still distinguishable when cut, bathed in milk but not swimming, and the top sheet should be intact, not torn. The milk should taste of milk and rose, lightly sweet, with the walnuts giving crunch between the soft layers. Mark down a tray that has collapsed into a uniform mush, which means it was made too early or with too much liquid; dry, crackling edges, which means too little; rose water used so heavily it tastes of soap; cream so thick it turns the dish into a pudding; and pomegranate that is tinned or absent in season. The portion should be modest and cold. A güllaç served outside Ramadan is a curiosity, not a fault, but it should be made that day.

Güllaç

Hungary

This classic Hungarian dessert consists of thin cr&ecirc;pe-like pancakes that are filled with a sweet walnut filling and served doused in warm chocolate sauce. The filling is traditionally prepared with ground or crushed walnuts, and it is often enriched with citrus zest, rum, cinnamon, and raisins. The origin of this classic is associated with K&aacute;roly Gundel, a famous Hungarian restaurateur who initially served the pancakes at the renowned Gundel restaurant in Budapest, though it is believed that he had attained the recipe from Ilona Matzner, a wife of the famous Hungarian writer S&aacute;ndor M&aacute;rai. Throughout the years, the dessert has been adapted and incorporated into traditional Hungarian cuisine, and its variations are found throughout the country. The pancakes are usually folded into quarters or rolled up, and they are often served flamb&eacute;ed.

Gundel palacsinta

A classic Bosnian dessert, gurabija is a type of round, flat shortbread cookie that is usually made with flour, sugar, and oil. This sweet specialty is believed to have oriental origins, and it&rsquo;s been an essential part of the culture, tradition, and culinary heritage of the entire Balkan. Although the variations on this dessert abound, the cookies commonly contain eggs, baking powder or baking soda, butter or margarine, and dairy products such as mileram cream, yogurt, or milk. The combination is typically flavored with vanilla powder or vanilla sugar, lemon zest, nuts, and dried fruits. Apart from the ingredients used for making the dessert, the cookies may also vary in size, shape, and decoration. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the cookies are often decorated with a fork or a knife, while a truly distinguishing trait of Bosnian gurabija cookies is the sugar cube that&rsquo;s pressed in the center of the cookies before they&rsquo;re baked. Gurabija cookies in Albania are usually made with jam, while the Macedonian version of the cookies is said to be the closest to the original one. A popular variation of these cookies in Serbia is hilanderske gurabije, which calls for the addition of honey to the combination. The Bosnian city of Tuzla, on the other hand, is famous for its gurabija with apple pekmez (boiled apple juice), a variation that&rsquo;s been characteristic of Bosnian Muslims. These cookies know no religious boundaries as they are equally prepared for religious holidays and celebrations by both Muslims and Christians. Gurabija cookies can be enjoyed as a dessert or a sweet snack, and they&rsquo;re customarily served with a cup of Bosnian coffee or tea on the side. Some people, especially children, like to dip the cookies in milk and eat them for breakfast.

Gurabija

Ireland

Gur cake is a traditional dessert consisting of a pastry shell filled with bread slices that were soaked in tea, sugar, dried fruit, and spices such as cinnamon. The cake is baked until golden brown, and it is usually served in slices or squares, preferably with a cup of strong tea on the side. Originally, the cake was invented in the 1930s as a way to use up leftover bread at the end of the week, but today it can be found in most Irish bakeries.

Gur Cake

Guriev kasha is a traditional semolina porridge. Unlike more typical porridge varieties, Guriev kasha is not merely cooked in milk&ndash;instead, milk or cream is baked in the oven, and the crust which is formed on top is removed and used to separate the semolina layers. Traditionally, layers of nuts, fruits, or jams are assembled between the milk crust and the semolina filling. Before serving, the dish is typically sprinkled with sugar and baked until a crispy skin is formed on top. There are two conflicting stories about the invention of Guriev kasha: one of the theories claims that the dish was invented by the Count Dmitri Guriev to celebrate the victory over Napoleon's army in 1812, while the other suggests that the dish was created by the chef of Count Guriev, who served kasha as a dessert and kept his recipe secret for a long time. Regardless of the theories, it is unquestionable that the dish has a century-long history, as it was even served during the coronation of Tsar Alexander III in 1881. This Russian classic is still frequently consumed today, and it is usually prepared for special occasions and ceremonies.

Guriev kasha

Australia

These traditional Chamorro cookies are characterized by their rock-hard texture, hence their other name, Chamorro jawbreakers. They are made with flour, salt, sugar, butter, and coconut milk. Guyuria cookies are typically deep-fried, then glazed with a thick sugar syrup that hardens when left to dry.

Guyuria

Round and chewy gyeongdan are traditional Korean cakes consisting of soft rice dough that is wrapped around sweet red bean filling. When boiled, they are usually coated with colorful powders - from ground black sesame and toasted soybean to mugwort powder and grated tinted coconut. These bite-sized rice cakes are a popular sweet treat often enjoyed on various special occasions.

Gyeongdan

Gypsy tart is a classic Kentish dessert consisting of a shortcrust pastry filled with whipped evaporated milk and sugar. The tart is then baked and topped with powdered sugar. It can be served either warm or cold. Many believe that the dish was invented by a woman who wanted to feed some malnourished-looking gypsy children with anything she had in her home, so she baked them this tart. Regardless of the inventor, Gypsy tart became so popular that it was a staple of Kentish school menus from the 1960s to the 1980s.

Gypsy tart

The softer, sweeter, and more delicate version of traditional Japanese mochi is known as gyūhi. Similar to mochi, it is made with glutinous rice flour or pounded glutinous rice. Since it resembles pliable dough, it is often molded into different shapes and tinted with a variety of natural and artificial food colorings. Even though it is not as frequent as mochi treats, it is a vital part of Japanese cuisine.

Gyūhi

Netherlands

Haagse bluf is a light and airy Dutch dessert consisting of egg whites, powdered sugar, and berry juice. The combination of these ingredients is whipped into stiff peaks so that it looks bigger than it really is, hence the name that translates to the Hague Bluff. The dessert is traditionally served in glass cups, ideally with a ladyfinger stuck on top.

Haagse bluf

A traditional Pakistani and Indian dessert, habshi halwa is a rich milk halwa variety that is typically made by combining milk, sugar, sprouted wheat, ghee, aromatic spices, and nuts. This beloved sweet treat is usually flavored with cardamom, saffron, rose water, or kewra essence, and its crunchy texture comes from crushed nuts such as pistachios, walnuts, almonds, and cashews. The word habshi in the name of this sweet dish has to do with the halwa&rsquo;s distinctive dark brown hue, as the Urdu habshi relates to the Persian or Arabic habashi, which is used as a reference to Africans or persons with a darker skin tone. Sticky, chewy, and nutty, habshi halwa is believed to have been invented in the Mughal era, and it is a common winter treat that is usually consumed as a dessert after a big meal.

Habshi halwa

Japan

Habutae mochi is a traditional confectionary from Fukui &ndash; Japanese prefecture famous for its silk production. This mochi variety consists of steamed rice cake flour that is combined with sugar and syrup into a silky-smooth dough, which is then cut into thin, rectangular sheets. The cakes are almost translucent and apart from the standard white version they can be flavored or wrapped around adzuki bean paste or fruit. This popular dessert is also one of the most common regional souvenirs.

Habutae mochi

Türkiye

Hadise is a modern variation of traditional baklava, featuring soft phyllo dough layered with delightful mascarpone cream and finely ground pistachios. This dessert offers a unique twist on the classic baklava by incorporating mascarpone, resulting in a creamy and rich flavor profile. The combination of the flaky pastry, creamy filling, and crunchy pistachios provides a harmonious blend of textures and tastes.

Hadise

Halawet Ahmad is a traditional dessert, meaning Ahmad dessert or Ahmad sweets. It is made by combining roasted vermicelli, condensed milk, sugar, butter, almond powder, and desiccated coconut. The mixture is typically pressed into molds to acquire a distinctive domed or nest-like shape. Colored vermicelli can be used instead of plain ones for a more vibrant visual appearance. This sweet is also commonly consumed in other Middle Eastern countries, and it's usually served with crushed pistachios or almond halves on top.

Halawet Ahmad

Syria

These sweet cheese rolls are a typical dessert commonly associated with Levantine and Arab countries, though it is believed they originated in the city of Hama in Syria. The dessert is made with a combination of semolina, water, rose water, sugar, and cheese - traditionally Akkawi or Majdoola cheese, though modern variations often replace it with the widely available mozzarella. All ingredients are combined and heated until they form a soft, pliable dough which is then rolled into thin sheets. The filling is made with ashta&mdash;thick clotted cream&mdash;which is piped before the sheets are rolled into thin logs. The rolls are then sliced into small bite-size pieces and are typically served drizzled with syrup and garnished with rose petal jam and ground pistachios.