Turkish Desserts: 15 Classics You Should Know (and Make at Home)

Quick answer:Turkish desserts fall into three main groups.Syrup-soaked pastriesinclude baklava, künefe, şambali and revani.Milk puddingsinclude sütlaç, kazandibi and supangle.Fruit and semolina sweetsinclude kabak tatlısı, ayva tatlısı and irmik helvası. The best-known are baklava and künefe. Sütlaç (baked rice pudding) and kabak tatlısı (candied pumpkin) are among the easiest to make at home.

Key takeaways

• Syrup dessertsfollow one golden rule: hot pastry with cool syrup, or cool pastry with hot syrup, never both hot.
• Milk puddings(sütlü tatlılar) are lighter and go well after heavy meals.
• Two Turkish desserts have EU protected status:Antep baklava(2013) andAntakya künefe(2023).
• Seasonal sweets matter: pumpkin and quince desserts are autumn and winter favourites.

Syrup-soaked desserts (şerbetli tatlılar)

1. Baklava

Baklava is layer upon layer of paper-thin pastry with pistachios or walnuts, baked in butter and soaked in syrup. Gaziantep's pistachio baklava became the first Turkish product to receive EU protected geographical indication status in 2013 (FoodNavigator). Try ourwalnut baklavaorbaklava slices, and read our fullbaklava guide.

2. Künefe

Künefe is shredded kadayıf pastry around a layer of unsalted melting cheese, baked in butter until crisp, then soaked in syrup and served hot. Antakya künefe received EU protection in 2023. Make ourHatay-style künefe, and see which cheeses work abroad in ourkünefe cheese guide.

3. Şambali

Şambali is a dense semolina and yogurt cake from İzmir, often with an almond on each slice, soaked in syrup. See ourİzmir şambali.

4. Revani

Revani is a lighter, sponge-like semolina cake with syrup, sometimes flavoured with lemon or coconut. Try ourmilky revani.

5. Dilber dudağı

The name means "beauty's lips". These small pastries date back to the Ottoman palace kitchen: a yogurt-and-egg dough is shaped like lips, fried until crisp and soaked in syrup. Here's ourdilber dudağı recipe.

6. Katmer

Katmer is stretched pastry with pistachios, sugar and kaymak, eaten for breakfast in Gaziantep. Try ourGaziantep katmer.

Milk puddings (sütlü tatlılar)

7. Sütlaç

Sütlaç is Turkish rice pudding, often baked in clay pots until the top is spotted brown. It's creamy, lightly sweet and served chilled. Make ourbaked sütlaç.

8. Kazandibi

The name means "bottom of the pot". It's a milk pudding whose base is deliberately caramelised, then rolled so the burnt layer sits on top. It was traditionally made fromtavuk göğsü(a pudding thickened with finely shredded chicken breast), though most home versions today use only milk, starch and rice flour. See ourtraditional kazandibi.

9. Supangle

Supangle is a rich chocolate pudding, often poured over sponge cake. Children love it. Try ourhomemade supangle with cake.

10. Cennet çamuru

The name means "heaven's mud". This dessert from Kilis is made from finely chopped kadayıf gently toasted in butter with pistachios, which gives it a soft, fudgy texture. Here's ourcennet çamuru.

11. Muhallebi and Cypriot palouze

Muhallebi is a simple starch-thickened milk pudding, often scented with rose water. Cyprus has a grape version:palouze(paluze), set with grape must in autumn. Try ourCypriot paluze.

Fruit, semolina and nut sweets

12. Kabak tatlısı

Pumpkin wedges are slowly cooked in their own juice with sugar until glossy and candied, then served with tahini and crushed walnuts. It's the classic autumn dessert. See ourpumpkin dessert with tahini and walnutsand ourpumpkin season guide.

13. Ayva tatlısı

Halved quinces are poached or baked in syrup until they turn ruby red, then topped with kaymak. It's a winter favourite. Here's ourbaked quince with kaymak.

14. İrmik helvası

Semolina is toasted in butter and cooked with sweetened milk, often with pine nuts. Turks traditionally share it with neighbours in memory of loved ones. Make ourmilky semolina helva.

15. Lokum (Turkish delight)

Lokum is a soft starch-and-sugar confection flavoured with rose, lemon, mastic or pistachio and dusted with powdered sugar. It's traditionally served with Turkish coffee.

Turkish desserts by difficulty

Chef's tip:For syrup desserts, add a squeeze of lemon juice to the syrup in the last minute of boiling. It helps stop the sugar recrystallising, so your baklava or revani stays glossy instead of grainy. Oursyrup guidegives exact boiling times.

Desserts for holidays and special days

Many Turkish desserts belong to particular days of the year, so they come with traditions as well as recipes:

• Ramadan (Ramazan):Güllaç, very thin starch sheets soaked in sweetened milk and rose water, layered with walnuts and topped with pomegranate seeds. It's light and cool after a day of fasting.
• Bayram (Eid):Baklava is the classic holiday sweet. Families buy it by the tray, and it's offered to every visitor.
• Aşure day:Aşure, sometimes called Noah's pudding, is a mixture of grains, pulses, dried fruit and nuts. It's cooked in large pots in the month of Muharrem and shared with neighbours.
• Remembrance:İrmik helvasıorun helvasıis cooked and shared when someone has died, to remember them.
• Lokma days:Lokma, small fried dough balls soaked in syrup, is cooked in large batches and handed out in the street on special occasions, especially in the Aegean region.
• Weddings and engagements:Trays of baklava and sweets are exchanged between families, and Turkish coffee is served with lokum.

In Cyprus, desserts follow the seasons as well:paluzewhen grapes are harvested, carob-syrup sweets in winter, andKıbrıs tatlısıall year round.

Frequently asked questions

What is the most famous Turkish dessert?

Baklava is the best known worldwide, followed by künefe and Turkish delight (lokum). In Turkey, milk puddings like sütlaç are just as loved at home.

What is the easiest Turkish dessert to make at home?

Sütlaç (rice pudding), kabak tatlısı (candied pumpkin) and irmik helvası (semolina helva) are the easiest. They need no pastry skills and use common ingredients.

Why is Turkish dessert so sweet?

Syrup desserts are meant to be eaten in small portions with unsweetened tea or coffee. You can make them less sweet by using a lighter syrup (more water to sugar) and adding lemon.

Are there Turkish desserts without syrup?

Yes. Milk puddings such as sütlaç, kazandibi, muhallebi and supangle contain no syrup, and neither do fruit desserts like quince with kaymak.

What is Turkish delight made of?

Turkish delight (lokum) is made from sugar and starch cooked slowly into a soft, chewy gel, then flavoured with rose water, lemon, mastic or nuts such as pistachio or hazelnut, and dusted with powdered sugar.

What dessert do Turks eat during Ramadan?

Güllaç is the classic Ramadan dessert: thin starch sheets soaked in sweetened milk with rose water, layered with walnuts and topped with pomegranate seeds. Baklava and other syrup desserts are popular at iftar and during the Eid holiday that follows.

Sources

• FoodNavigator: Turkish baklava gains EU protected status (2013)
• Daily Sabah: EU grants protected status to Antakya künefesi (2023)
• Kazandibi: history and method

Written by the House Chef Cyprus editorial team, Cyprus. Last reviewed: September 2026.