Today we will take a short trip around the globe, and at each destination we will be waiting for … a sweet surprise of traditional local cuisine! How great it is to fly around all the countries of the world, get to know the natives, feel the spirit of the country, try authentic cuisine. So, vegetarian sweets from different parts of the world!
An Indian dessert originally from the eastern state of Odisha (Orissa). From the Urdu language Rasmalai is translated as “nectar cream”. For its preparation, porous Indian paneer cheese is taken, which is soaked in heavy cream. Rasmalai is always served cold; cinnamon and saffron, which are sometimes sprinkled on it, add a special flavor to the dish. Depending on the recipe, grated almonds, ground pistachios and dried fruits are also added to the rasmalai.
In 1945, Brazilian politician and military leader Brigadeiro Eduardo Gómez ran for office for the first time. His good looks won the hearts of Brazilian women who raised funds for his campaign by selling his favorite chocolate treats. Despite the fact that Gomez lost the election, the candy gained wide popularity and was named after Brigadeiro. Resembling chocolate truffles, brigadeiros are made from condensed milk, cocoa powder and butter. Soft, richly flavored balls are rolled in small chocolate sticks.
Canada deserves the prize for the world’s easiest dessert recipe! Obscenely elementary and sweet toffees are prepared mainly in the period from February to April. All you need is snow and maple syrup! The syrup is brought to a boil, after which it is poured onto fresh and clean snow. Hardening, the syrup turns into a lollipop. Elementary!
Perhaps the most famous oriental sweet that even the lazy one has tried! And although the real history of baklava is rather vague, it is believed that it was first prepared by the Assyrians in the 8th century BC. The Ottomans adopted the recipe, improving it to the state in which sweetness exists today: the thinnest layers of filo dough, inside which chopped nuts are soaked in syrup or honey. In the old days, it was considered a pleasure, accessible only to the rich. To this day, in Turkey, the expression is known: “I’m not rich enough to eat baklava every day.”
The dish is from Peru. The first mention of it is recorded in 1818 in the New Dictionary of American Cuisine (New Dictionary of American Cuisine), where it is called “Royal Delight from Peru.” The name itself translates as “the sigh of a woman” – exactly the sound that you will make after tasting the Peruvian delight! The dessert is based on “manjar blanco” – sweet white milk paste (in Spain it is blancmange) – after which meringue and ground cinnamon are added.
And here is a tropical exotic from distant Tahiti, where eternal summer and coconuts! By the way, coconut in Poi is one of the main ingredients. Traditionally, the dessert was served wrapped in a banana peel and baked over a live fire. Poi can be made with just about any fruit that can be blended into a puree, from banana to mango. Cornstarch is added to fruit puree, baked, and topped with coconut cream.