Sweet Ramadan: The best Middle Eastern desserts to enjoy this month

Ramadan, the holy month of worship and generosity, is already in its 11th day. 

While every year we get flooded with new versions of authentic desserts like Nutella and mango kunafa, blueberry basbousa, and so many over-the-top sweets, we've decided to stick to the basics. 

Traditional Ramadan sweets are the best mouthwatering desserts to indulge in, so let's take a look at the best and most loved Middle Eastern sweet dishes to enjoy this month.

Basbousa or harissa is extremely popular in Egypt and the Gulf area, and it can be prepared with different toppings like pistachios or heavy cream. The main ingredients are semolina, wheat, and sugar syrup.

The go-to dessert in every iftar. It's made with fine semolina dough and usually filled with Nabulsi cheese or akawi cheese and is then soaked with qater (sugar syrup.)

This sweet toasted bread is infused with caramelized sugar syrup and a thick layer of heavy cream or vanilla pudding and is topped with pistachios.

This well-known Middle Eastern dessert (also found in Greece and Turkey) is made with several layers of phyllo dough filled with nuts and drizzled with sugar syrup.

Zalabya or lokma is a deep-fried dough topped with chocolate syrup or honey and powdered sugar. The main ingredients are dry yeast, flour, and eggs.

Though qatayef are normally fried, some choose to bake them as a healthier alternative. It can be filled with a mix of raisins and nuts, or any kind of unsalted cheese, and then sprinkled with honey or drowned in sugar syrup.

Halawet El Jibn is a very popular Lebanese and Syrian sweet. It's a rich dessert of creamy filling wrapped in a delicious layer of mixed cheese and semolina.

Lebanon's most iconic dessert is an aromatic one with the flavors of orange blossom or rose water. It's made from a semolina pudding topped with a thick layer of whipped cream and nuts as well as, you guessed it, sugar syrup.

Kallaj is a deep-fried pastry dough filled with ashta and drizzled with sugar syrup. On top comes grounded pistachio and candied orange blossom.