Moroccan desserts often feature fresh fruits with cinnamon and orange blossom water. Pastries, cookies, and cakes are also popular, incorporating almonds, honey, and cinnamon. French influence is seen in Moroccan pastries, including the popular M’hanncha and Kaab el-ghzal. Biscuits like Makrout, Ghoriba, and Fekkas are also enjoyed, often with orange water. Cakes are light and moist, with flavors like coconut, orange, lemon, and chocolate.
Dessert in Morocco usually consists of a selection of fresh, local fruits, including pomegranates, figs and dates. Often, these fresh fruit dishes are flavored with a sprinkle of cinnamon and orange blossom water, an infusion of crushed orange blossoms also called zhar. People enjoy other different types of Moroccan desserts, including pastries, cookies, and cakes. All of these desserts tend to incorporate similar ingredients and feature heavily almonds, honey and cinnamon, as well as the ubiquitous orange water.
Morocco has historically had a strong French influence. One of these lasting French legacies can be seen in the form of Moroccan pastries. There are various types of pastry, many of which include almonds, honey and dates. The pastry often consists of very thin layered sheets that are fried or buttered and baked. Ktefa is a popular pastry dish consisting of crispy alternating layers of shortcrust pastry, fried almonds, and custard sauce.
Another well-known form of pastry is M’hanncha, or the snake. This concoction combines a filo-like pastry that is filled with marzipan and shaped and rolled up to look like a snake. Garnished with cinnamon and powdered sugar, this dish also uses orange water as its signature ingredient. Orange water is also an essential component of Kaab el-ghzal, one of the most famous Moroccan desserts, also known as gazelle horn pastry. These delicacies are crescent-shaped pastries that combine marzipan and cinnamon.
Other popular Moroccan desserts include a variety of biscuits. Makrout are biscuits made with semolina flour. Filled with a paste made from honey and dates, they are baked or fried and dipped in honey. Ghoriba are a type of Moroccan shortbread cookie. Traditionally made with semolina flour, they can have different combinations of ingredients which commonly include toasted sesame seeds, coconut and almonds.
Fekkas are another type of Moroccan biscuit, which often have a salty taste. Several combinations of ingredients are incorporated, including wild thyme, aniseed and almonds. These biscuits are twice baked, with the dough initially rolled into a single log and cooked before being diced and baked again, producing a dessert similar to Italian biscuits. Like many other Moroccan desserts, bakers typically use orange water.
Finally, cakes are also popular Moroccan desserts. These cakes are normally quite light and of a good texture but still quite moist. Cakes can be solid or layered. Common flavors include coconut, orange, and lemon. Chocolate, which seems to be universally enjoyed, is also a popular flavor, especially when combined with coconut.
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