What was this Turkish dessert?

Cafe Society
1

I went to a potluck recently, and a Turkish couple brought a dessert I loved. It was kind of a thick pudding-type thing, and I’m guessing it’s grain-based but it didn’t have a grainy texture. It had a very strong vanilla flavor and it was topped with a thick layer of cinnamon and sprinkled with chopped nuts. When I tried to spoon some of it up, it kind of globbed up and stuck to the spoon. (That doesn’t sound very glamorous, but trust me, this was a very tasty dessert.)

I tried googling, but I couldn’t find anything that resembles it. If anyone can help me, I’ll be eternally grateful!

2

Could have been zabaglione, which is egg yolks, sugar, and liqueur whipped on a double boiler.

Could have been syllabub, which is just sweetened and spiked whipped cream.

3

List of Turkish desserts

Sounds like it could be Keşkül?

ETA: having spent several days in Istanbul and sampled the astonishing panoply of delicious sweets they have, I have no idea why the Turks aren’t the most obese people on the planet.

4

It could be based on a farina- or semolina-based pastry cream filling that’s used to fill some Greek desserts, such as galaktoboureko. Many Greek desserts are the same as Turkish ones.

Here’s one recipe for a dessert based on farina, topped with a lot of cinnamon. It looks like it might be thicker than what you want, but I can’t really tell without googling more.

5

Maybe it wasn’t Turkish at all. Could it have been something like firni?

6

Sounds like rice pudding (Sütlaç) to me (the stuff I’ve had didn’t have a grainy texture at all, but apparently it can vary, and you get a baked variety too)

7

Can you not ask the couple what it was the next time you see them?

8

I don’t know if I’ll ever see them again. I did ask for the recipe and gave them my email, but I didn’t think to ask them the name of the dessert.

Thanks for all of the suggestions. The keşkül looks like a good possibility. I’ll make some if I can find any rice flour. The farina dessert looks interesting too. Are there any other good Turkish desserts I should try?

9

Look for rice flour in the gluten-free section.

10

And if you can’t find it, I’ve seen at least one cooking show host make his own with uncooked white rice and a coffee grinder.

11

Taffy…

Towel . . .

Border . . . .
Can I see your passport, please?

12

Also found at places that sell South Asian and Latin American and Middle Eastern groceries.