Gastronomical Travel: Must-Try Desserts around Europe

Traveling is not only about discovering extraordinary architecture, but diving deep into cultural experiences and history. You can easily learn a lot about a new destination by tasting the local cuisine. Here are the top desserts around Europe that you definitely have to try at least once.

Churros from Spain

Churros is a classical Spanish dessert that you can get almost anywhere in Spain. They are long strips of warm fried dough rolled in cinnamon sugar and dipped in melted chocolate. It is such a delicious dessert that practically melts in your mouth.

A fun fact about churros is that they are normally eaten for breakfast in Spain and can be dipped not only in hot chocolate but also in champurrado, dulce de leche, or café con leche.

Chimney Cake from Hungary

Also known as Kürtöskalács in Hungarian, chimney cake is a traditional Hungarian pastry that is now considered typical street food. The whole process of making chimney cake is just as exciting as the pastry itself. It is wrapped around a wooden spool and slowly turned over an open fire to get a golden crisp layer.

The pastry originated from Transylvania, although similar variations of chimney cake can be found in neighboring countries such as the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

Baklava from Turkey

Made out of layer upon layer of paper-thin phyllo pastry, separated by melted butter, and filled with a mixture of nuts, cinnamon, and honey or sugar syrup, baklava is a really extraordinary dessert that every sweet tooth will enjoy.

Although baklava’s origins are still being debated between former countries ruled by the Ottoman Empire, Turkey managed to make its Gaziantep baklava the first Turkish product to be included on the European Commission’s list of protected origins.

Gelato from Italy

Italy is famous for its food, including a variety of desserts from tiramisu to the creamy frozen Italian dessert called gelato. Made with lots of milk and no egg yolks, the creamy and delicious consistency of gelato is what makes it an incredibly satisfying dessert.

When in Italy, you will find gelato shops in almost every town that will serve a variety of gelato flavors such as custard, pistachio, chocolate, hazelnut, and many more. Order in a cone or cup and enjoy the melty deliciousness on a warm sunny day as you stroll around Italian streets.

Trilece from Albania

Another dessert that could be considered a comfort food is a soft spongy cake drenched in sweet creamy milk and topped with caramel. The cake is drenched in three kinds of milk — goat’s milk, cow’s milk, and buffalo milk. Today it can be made with a mixture of cow’s milk and cream or a combination of condensed milk, evaporated milk, and heavy cream. This is where the name of the dessert comes from, which literally means three kinds of milk.

Although the origin of the dessert is Albanian, just like with chimney cake and baklava, you can find Trilece across all the Balkans and Turkey.

Sachertorte from Austria

The famous Sacher Torte is a real gem of Austrian gastronomy. It is a magnificently rich chocolate cake that you can get from Hotel Sacher. The cake was invented and served for more than a century by the Hotel Sacher which makes it even more special as you can only taste the original recipe from this very hotel.

Pastéis de Nata from Portugal

If you have sweet tooth, then you don’t want to miss this delicious Portuguese pastry that is now famous all around the world. It is a small pastry made out of eggs tart pastry, filled with custard, and sprinkled with cinnamon dust.

Originally pastéis de Nata was invented in the 18th century by Catholic monks at the Jerónimos Monastery in the historic Belem district. Now, this monastery is one of Portugal’s UNESCO World Heritage Sites, and one of Lisbon’s top things to see.

Crème Brûlée from France

The famous crème brûlée could easily be called the masterpiece of European desserts. This classic French dessert dates back to the 17th century. Consisting of only four ingredients — cream, eggs, sugar, and vanilla, the dessert is not easy to make.

Originally the custard was vanilla flavored but nowadays dessert chefs have begun experimenting with different flavors and additions. You can easily find this popular French desserts in restaurants around France.

Photo: RossHelen/Shutterstock

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