Tufahija, baklava and kadayif, favorite desserts in Bosnia and Hercegovina

Bosnian dishes are similar to dishes from Turkey, Greece and other Mediterranean cuisines. Due to prolonged Austro-Hungarian administration, there are also influences of Central European cuisine.

All desserts are tasty and made with local products. Tour Guide Mostar brings three traditional Bosnian treats…

1. Tufahije

Tufahije are among the favorite desserts in Bosnia and Herzegovina. According to some, tufahije came from Baghdad to Bosnia (tufahum, Arab. – Apple).

The main ingredients are apples, almonds, walnuts, sugar and lemon juice.

Peeled apples are cooked in a pot; the add sugar, vanilla sugar, if desired a few drops of lemon, and cook everything until it foams. Halfway through cooking, turn them.

The filling is prepared from the following: pour ground walnuts with sherbet in which you cooked the apples. When the apples are cool, fill them with the filling mixture. Before serving, add whipped cream and decorate the top of each tufahije. If desired, decorate the top of the cherry.

2. Baklava

This dessert is often called the queen of oriental desserts. Baklava is one of the oldest Turkish dishes, prepared during the Ottoman era and loved among the members of royalty and harem from the Topkapı Palace in Istanbul.

Baklava is a sweet dish usually prepared for the Bayram holiday (Eid-al-Fitr).

This sweet dessert is made of phyllo pastry filled with walnuts and then baked. Thin layers of dough are placed into the casserole, usually 70 layers of dough are used for one baklava. While the baklva is baked, the cook prepares a Å¡erbet made of of water, sugar, lemon juice and vanilla scent. In case you have missed it, see our previous post about Å erbet, gastronomy treat from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

3. Kadayif

Kadayif (Arabian word) is a sweet dessert made from pastry soaked in sweet, sugar-based syrup, typical of the regions belonging to the former Ottoman Empire. It is a specialty of the Levant and adjoining areas of Egypt and Turkey.

In the past, in Sarajevo, only the aščije prepared kadayif.

The following ingredients are necessary: raw kadayif, butter, walnuts, raisins, sugar, honey, vanilla, lemon and eggs.

Put the raw kadayif in greased baking dish. After placing kadayif fill it with the raisins and walnuts. You can put a few grains of fat in the middle then bake everything in the oven. Turn the kadayif to the other side while baking if necessary.

Meanwhile, on the side make sherbet (šerbet)  by adding sugar in half a liter of water and cook together. Everything is cooked until a thick sherbet is made and then add honey and lemon juice.