10 deserts to try in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina desserts are not for the faint of heart; many are soaked in agda – sugar syrup and so sweet they’ll make your teeth hurt. Most of these are best enjoyed with a cup of coffee.  

Baklava

Different countries a famous for baklava, each country add its own twist and in Bosnia, baklava is a simple yet delicious walnut filled dessert. Like similar treats in the region, the Ottomans introduced baklava to Bosnians although baklava can trace its origins back to a similar dessert that the Romans had in the 2nd Century BC.

You’ll also find a Bosnian version of baklava called ružice or đul-pita. It’s shaped into a roll and cut into portions that resemble roses or rosebuds.

Tufahija

A sweet treat popularized in Bosnia by the Ottoman. Tufahija is an apple boiled in sugar, filled with walnuts and decorated  with whipped cream.

Hurmašice

These soft biscuits are drenched in a sugary syrup. They are always a treat and great to come along with a cup of tea or Bosnian coffee. 

The biscuit is very spongy in appearance, so it can easily absorb the syrup and has a pleasant texture. The syrup is made of sugar and water. Bosnians will sometimes add lemon or other flavors according to their personal preferences.

Ćetenija

Ćetenija is a super-sweet nests of woven sugar, traditionally made in wintertime. The process starts with flour being baked dry and then sugar is being added, mixed with water and lemon juice and left in the snow to cool.

You can be sure that they’ll melt in your mouth!

Gurabija

There are different variations of gurabija all across the Balkans. In Bosnia, these flat, round shortbread cookies are decorated with a sugar cube pressed into its center before baking.

Jabukovača

Bosnian dessert jabukovača is a sweet, syrupy pastries made with filo dough, though this time, they are stuffed with chopped apples and walnuts and soaked in sugar syrup – agda. Delicious!

Šljivopita – Plum pie

Have to confess, we are obsessed with pie although this pie has nothing to do with pastry pies.

The recipe differs a bit in various parts of Bosnia Herzegovina but basically, plums are cut in half, covered with a little bit of flavor and baked in the oven. What comes out is something so simple and so delicious.

Kadaif

Kadaif is a delicious layered dessert somewhat similar to baklava.

Variants of kadaif can be found all across the Mediterranean and the Middle East, each with its own twist on the dessert. In Bosnia, kadaif is made with shredded kadayıf dough (pre-shredded filo pastry dough) coated with butter and filled with walnuts. Once the dessert is baked, Kadaif is soaked in sugar syrup – agda.

Smokvara

Smokvara celebrates the fig, a tree commonly found in Herzegovina.

Smokvara dough is made from flour and fig pekmez (a thick syrup), sugar, oil, some cornflour, and water. This dough is molded into a round, flat disk and baked. Once baked, the smokvara is drowned in a thick syrup layer (made of pekmez, sugar, and water).

Sutlijaš

This tasty dessert shares its past with the Turkish sülac, which translates literally as ‘milky food.’

Sülac was popular amongst nobles throughout the Ottoman Empire.