Hi all! I'm Jenessa from Lexington, Virginia, USA. It's a quiet mountain town with an interesting mix of culture, architecture, agriculture and civil war history. I live there with with my ever-tolerant-of-my-whims husband, our (constantly on a diet) French Bulldog, Carlie and our two cats, Wall-e (a mouthy needy wonderful Bengal) and Fiona (a less that brilliant beauty of a Long-Haired Persian - unfortunately not helping the stereotype).
After binge watching two seasons of Great British Bake Off in as many days, I was struck with the amazing variety of desserts from mostly Europe & England which the series showcases. How amazing would it be to try these wonders? What other gems might there be worldwide?
Despite being confident in human ingenuity, a quick google search revealed that I really had no idea of the variety and skill and creativity of modern and historical cooks & bakers. From Maple Taffy in Canada (the syrup is poured directly on the snow!?!) to Princesstarta in Sweden (just google that bad boy) the sheer diversity was incredible. If you add to that the variety of cooking techniques like baking, frying, freezing, boiling, and the endless mix of ingredients like cardamom, brandy, rice flour, cassava, breadcrumbs, honey, goat cheese, custard, cinnamon you have an endless variety of options.
Suddenly, this blog was born. I couldn't travel to the hundreds of countries where perhaps my new favorite dessert was hiding, but I could try and make them myself, and then share my results with you.
Therefore, I give you 52 Weeks of 52 Desserts from Around the World.
See below my dessert itinerary. Perhaps you can suggest the 27 others! Leave your ideas below in the comments. Here's my list of 25 in no particular order:
- USA - Apple Pie
- Italy - Gelato
- Spain - Tarta Di Santiago
- Egypt - Umm Ali
- Croatia - Povitica
- Ethiopia - Destaye
- Nicaragua - Turrón
- Tahiti - Po'e
- Canada - Maple Taffy
- Lebanon, Palestine, Greece, Etc Pistachio Baklava
- Australia - Pavlova
- Russia - Syrniki
- China - Dragon Beard Candy
- India - Gulab Jamun
- Korea - Yakgwa
- South Africa - Koeksisters
- Sweden - Princess Cake
- France - Couronne
- Brazil - Brigadeiro
- United Kingdom - Trifle
- Japan - Chestnut Kintons
- Israel - Rugelach
- Germany - Black Forrest Cherry Torte
- Mexico - Flan
- Belgium/Netherlands - Dame Blanche