Şekerpare (Turkish Semolina Cookies in Syrup)
شیکرپارے (شیرے میں ترکی سوجی کے بسکٹ)
Şekerpare means "a piece of sugar", and that's a fair description: small, round semolina cookies, each pressed with an almond, baked until golden, then soaked in lemon-scented syrup until they're soft and melting inside with a slight crust outside. They're a classic for Eid (Bayram) in Turkey, when trays of them are offered to visiting relatives, and they need nothing more than a bowl, an oven and a little patience.
- ⏱ Total: 55 min
- Prep: 25 min
- Cook: 30 min
- Easy
- Serves 20
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Make the syrup first: boil the sugar and water for 10 minutes, add the lemon juice and slice, simmer for 2 minutes more, then leave to cool completely.
Beat the soft butter with the powdered sugar until pale, then beat in the egg and vanilla. Add the semolina, flour and baking powder and knead lightly into a soft dough. Rest for 10 minutes.
Heat the oven to 180°C. Roll the dough into walnut-sized balls, flatten slightly and press an almond into the centre of each. Place on a tray, leaving space between them, and brush with egg yolk.
Bake for 20–25 minutes until deep golden. As soon as they come out, ladle the cold syrup over the hot cookies. Leave them to soak for at least 1 hour, spooning syrup over them now and then.
Serve at room temperature.
Kitchen notes
Cold syrup on hot cookies, always. Hot on hot makes them soggy and mushy.
Bake them to a deep golden colour; pale şekerpare falls apart in the syrup.
They keep for 4–5 days covered at room temperature, and taste even better on day two.
A Bayram favourite
In Turkey, the two Eids are called Ramazan Bayramı and Kurban Bayramı, and both are times for visiting family, kissing the hands of elders and being offered sweets. Şekerpare is one of the classic homemade treats for these visits, along with baklava. It’s much easier to make than baklava, which is why so many families bake it.
The syrup rule
Turkish syrup desserts follow one rule: the cookies and the syrup must be at opposite temperatures. Pour cold syrup over cookies straight from the oven, and they drink it in gradually, becoming moist inside while keeping their shape. If both are hot, the cookies collapse.
Texture
Semolina gives şekerpare a slightly sandy, tender crumb, and butter makes it rich. Baking powder lightens it so the syrup can soak in. The result is somewhere between a cookie and a small cake, soft enough to cut with a spoon.
Serving
Serve at room temperature with Turkish tea or coffee. Store covered, not in the fridge, which hardens the syrup.
Questions people ask
Can I use pistachios or hazelnuts instead of almonds?
Yes. A hazelnut or pistachio on top is common too.
Can I make them less sweet?
Use about two-thirds of the syrup, but don't reduce the sugar in the syrup itself, or it won't soak in properly.
Is it like gulab jamun?
It's similar in spirit, a soft sweet soaked in syrup, but it's baked, not fried, and the syrup is lighter, with lemon instead of cardamom and rose.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 210
- Protein
- 3 g
- Fat
- 7 g
- Carbs
- 35 g
