How to Make the Best Sekerpare - A Quick & Easy Turkish Dessert Recipe

Treat yourself with a simply delicious Turkish sweet!

Şekerpare is one of the many delectable and popular desserts in the Turkish cuisine. Mainly prepared by baking some soft balls of pastry dipped in thick lemony sugar syrup, şekerpare has become one of the well loved Turkish sweets among locals and visiting tourists in Turkey.

Pronounced “sheh-ker-pah-reh” in Turkish, this mouth-watering traditional dessert will surely satisfy anyone who has an appetite for baked pastries soaked in the sweetness of a lemony pool of syrup.

So why not satisfy your sweet tooth by trying to make your own şekerpare at home?

Below is a very simple and easy to make Turkish dessert recipe for anyone to follow and make a delicious homemade şekerpare.

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 2 cups wheat flour
• 1/2 cup powdered sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 egg yolks
• 125 grams unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup semolina
• almonds, hazelnuts or pine nuts

For the syrup:

• 2 1/2 cups water
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

Directions

To make the dough:

• In a large mixing bowl, combine flour with semolina, baking soda and powdered sugar. Mix well and make a small hole in the middle.
• Fill the hole by adding in the egg yolks and softened butter. Mix well by using your hands and knead until you get a homogeneous dough.
• Form small dough balls and place them on a well-greased baking sheet leaving a little space apart from each dough ball so as not to stick together as they will tend to rise during baking.
• Press each dough ball gently to make it a little flat and put an almond, hazelnut or pine pit right on top of each.
• Preheat the oven to 375º F. Bake the şekerpare for about 20-30 minutes or until golden brown.
• Proceed to the next step as this is now the right time to prepare the syrup.

To make the syrup:

• Pour 2 cups of water in a saucepan. Add sugar and lemon juice and bring to a full boil for about 5-10 minutes.
• Pour the warm sherbet all over the freshly baked şekerpare by using a spoon and soak for a few minutes before transfering the şekerpare to a covered container.
• Let them to cool in the refrigerator for a few hours.
• Serve cold. Optionally, you can add a softly whipped cream or ice cream on top.

Afiyet olsun!  (Have a good appetite!)

Tips:

• You may also opt for using a baking paper instead of greasing your baking sheet. This way, it is easier to wash your baking tray after baking.
• Make sure that both şekerpare and the syrup are both warm so that syrup will absorb better and faster.
• You can also substitute butter with hazel nut oil.