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14 Traditional Russian Desserts

Traditional Russian desserts are some of the most amazing tasting things on Earth. Learn how to make some of the absolute best right here!

Russia has so many famous desserts! If you’ve never had any of these scrumptious Slavic sweets, then you might not even realize just how many delicious delights you’re missing out on!

Traditional Russian Desserts

Well, don’t worry, as here you’ll find 14 of the absolute best recipes for these fantastic traditional Russian desserts!

Baklava

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Baklava is an absolutely fantastic pastry that’s popular in so many countries! Of course, it’s extremely popular in Russia – which means that no list of Russian dessert recipes would be complete without a way to make this glorious pastry!

This recipe will help save some time if you want to make your own delicious baklava at home. It uses sheets of phyllo dough, which will help you to save a lot of time making this dish if you use store-bought.

Aside from the dough, you’ll need unsalted butter, powdered sugar, walnuts, honey, and a little cinnamon. So, aside from the dough, this is already a pretty simple recipe – but using store bought sheets will save you even more time!

Pastila

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Pastila is another Russian dessert for which there are so many different variants! This recipe will show you how to make absolutely delicious pastila from beautifully sweet and tart Granny Smith apples.

Of course, if those aren’t your preferred type, you can change them out – but fans of Granny Smith apples are often loath to use any other!

No matter what apples you choose, you’ll also need three quarters of a cup of granulated sugar, 2 large egg whites, and half a cup of powdered sugar to dust and finish.

These take a bit of time and work, but they’re so obviously worth the effort!

Kogel Mogel

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Kogel mogel (also transcribed as gogol mogol) is a fantastic traditional Askenazi dessert that’s popular in so many places across the globe – including, unsurprisingly, in Russia!

It’s a cream of beaten egg yolk and sugar. So simple, and yet beloved for so long. Of course, that’s only the most basic form of the recipe, and many (as the author of this recipe states) love to add other flavorings, such as cinnamon, vanilla, or cocoa powder to this fantastic dessert too.

If you don’t have an electric whisk, then you can still make this recipe – but you’ll have to put a bit of arm work in, as you need to beat the egg yolks, sugar, and honey for quite a few minutes to get the consistency you need.

Syrniki

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These delicious Russian pancakes are such a fantastic sweet treat! They make an excellent dessert, of course, but they’re also often eaten at the breakfast table.

Whatever time of the day you choose to have them, you’ll find that they’re so delicious, you’ll always want some more!

Good news then, as they’re not just really easy to make, but very quick too. 10 minutes of preparation time, and 10 minutes of cooking, and that’s it! With this recipe, you’ll have 5 delicious syrniki ready to eat in no time at all.

Simply make a dough from your ingredients, make the disc shape you need, and fry them for 5 minutes per side, until they’re golden brown. So easy!

Bird’s Milk Cake

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Another absolutely delicious Russian classic cake recipe, Bird’s Milk Cake is a fantastic blend of layered chocolate sponge and a sumptuous custard buttercream. It’s such an amazing cake – and not just for the flavor, as this is a real looker as well!

The differently colored layers that you’ll see when you slice this cake make it an absolute feast for the eyes as well as for the mouth.

There’s a lot to make here, as you’re not only going to make the layers of cake, but also a delicious custard buttercream, and a super rich chocolate ganache too.

However, you’ll actually be done more quickly than you might think – you should have the entire thing done in less than an hour!

RELATED: 12 Traditional Swedish Desserts

Napoleon Cake

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Don’t be fooled by the name of this cake into thinking that it’s a French recipe – as, despite the name, Napoleon cake actually comes from Russia.

It’s a traditional classic, made from layers of thin puff pastry with delicious cream layered in between.

There’s one huge clue to the Slavic origins of this recipe – the vodka! You’ll actually only need around two tablespoons of vodka for this recipe, though – so don’t worry, you’re not going to get drunk from eating this cake!

You’ll need to give yourself some time in advance to prepare the dough for this recipe, as it needs to be left overnight in the fridge.

This might not be the best recipe for less experienced bakers, as there’s a fair bit of work to do – but if you’re able to make this, you’ll absolutely love the results.

Sharlotka

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Sharlotka is an extremely popular type of cake across many Slavic countries. Well, of course it is – it’s absolutely amazing! It’s a traditional apple cake that’s moist and delicious. Not just that, but with this recipe, it’s actually really easy to make!

You can learn how to make this fantastic sharlotka recipe so quickly and easily. You only need 5 ingredients for this recipe too!

You’ll need three eggs, a cup of sugar, a cup of all-purpose flour, 4 of your favorite large apples, and some powdered sugar for adding the finishing touches.

Just over an hour to prepare and bake, and a lifetime to keep coming back to the kitchen and making more of this amazing cake!

Guryev Porridge

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As intimated by the author of this fantastic recipe for Guryev porridge, you might well not associate porridge with dessert so much as you would with the breakfast table.

However, there’s no questioning just how much of an amazingly delicious dessert this is! Of course, nobody is going to stop you from eating it first thing in the morning if you want to!

This fantastic dessert has been around since the 19th century, and was named after Dmitry Guryev, a Russian minister of finance.

You’ll use semolina porridge to make it, not rolled oats – don’t make that mistake! Once you’ve built up the delicious layers, you’ll marvel at just how colorful and delicious it all looks.

Kulich

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Kulich is a type of Easter bread that’s extremely popular in Slavic countries. It’s delicious, of course, but as hinted at by the author, there might well be one other reason why this fantastic treat isn’t made too often – as you might well end up needing to give the dough around half a day to rise!

Of course, something this delicious is worth the wait – and once you’ve made these once, you’ll be unlikely to want to wait an entire year to eat them again!

It’s not a very difficult recipe to make, but you’ll definitely need to give yourself a lot of time for this one. Best made when you’ve got nothing else to do but bake!

Medovik

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This delicious honey cake is… well, delicious! It’s made up of fantastic tasting layers of honey cake, interspersed with a delicious frosting made from sour cream, heavy whipping cream, and 2 cups of powdered sugar – which should tell you just how sweet and creamy the filling is!

The cake layers themselves are equally delicious and sweet, thanks to not just the three quarters of a cup of granulated sugar, but the quarter cup of honey!

This isn’t perhaps a recipe you’ll want to make for your first ever cake, as it’s a bit of an involved recipe. However, those who can make it are going to be so happy that they did!

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Pryaniki

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There’s no question about it – if you’re a fan of honey and cinnamon, there is no way that you’ll avoid falling in love with these delicious cookies.

That’s because these two delicious flavors feature so strongly in this delicious recipe!

Not that they’re on their own, of course – don’;t forget the cardamom, ginger, and cloves when you’re making this recipe too!

They all combine together to make such deliciously rich and tasty cookies – you’ll absolutely adore these with a nice cup of tea!

Chak Chak

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Chak Chak is a classic dish that originates from Tatarstan. It’s a fantastic dessert that’s equal parts stick and sweet. It’s a fried honey cake that makes a great treta for after dinner – or just as a midday treat!

There’s no great surprise here as to how this delicious cake gets its sweetness – the recipe uses a third of a cup of sugar, and an entire cup of honey! With that much sweet goodness, you can tell that this is going to be an absolutely delicious dessert.

You’re also going to enjoy breaking open your drinks cabinet for this one, as the recipe calls for a tablespoon and a half of either cognac or vodka!

Rugelach

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Rugelach are actually a Polish treat, originating from jewish communities in Poland. Of course, that doesn’t mean that they’re unknown to Russians – in fact, rugelach are extremely popular in Russia!

They’re miniature pastries that are actually simpler to make than they might appear! You take a triangular sheet of dough and roll it around a delicious sweet filling.

Fruits, nuts, and (of course) chocolate are the usual fillings. Of course, it’s your kitchen – so you can make whatever sort of filling you like!

This recipe will make 48 of these delicious little pastries. Of course, they’;re so great tasting that you might well run out much sooner than you expected!

Blini

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Blini are an absolutely classid Russian way of making pancakes – so if you’re in any way interested in Russian desserts, you should absolutely learn how to make your own delicious blini!

They’re so versatile, and you don’t even need to use them for desserts all the time either! They go as well with fruity toppings as they do with eggs, vegetables, and fish.

Learn how to make these and you’ll have a key component of so many dishes under your belt already!

Make sure to use buckwheat flour to make these – it’s essential to getting them right!

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Frequently Asked Questions

Are These Recipes Only From Russia?

These desserts are all popular in Russia – but you’ll also find that many other countries have the same or similar desserts too!

Do I Need Special Ingredients?

No, most of the ingredients you’ll need for any dessert on this list should be easy to find in a supermarket.

What Can I Drink With These Delicious Desserts?

Russia has a strong tea drinking culture – so a cup of tea will often suit these desserts well!

Conclusion

From baklava to blini, and everything in between – there’s so many delicious recipes for fantastic Russian desserts here! No matter what you make, you’re sure to make yourself (and anyone you share with) very happy indeed!

14 Traditional Russian Desserts

Russia has so many famous desserts! If you’ve never had any of these scrumptious Slavic sweets, then you might not even realize just how many delicious delights you’re missing out on!

Directions

  • Pick a recipe from the list above
  • Click the recipe name and visit the website
  • Collect the ingredients and cook the food
  • Enjoy – don’t forget to leave a review
Jess Smith
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