Satisfy your sweet-tooth around the world

Mmm... sweets! If you've got a sweet-tooth that is hard to satisfy then you're obviously delving into the wrong desserts. Most travellers hail a city better than the rest based on food, sights and accessibility... well price too since cheap is always better. What about sweets though? While some consider it a food, I put it in a category all of its own. Actually, I love sweets so much I totally base trips around what kind of desserts I can eat in a certain country or city. Here are three of my choices of cities you HAVE to visit if you love dessert.

New York City - Cheesecake

Oh! It's to die for and there's no city in the world that serves up a better slice of this than the Big Apple. Cheese cake originated in Europe in the 1400s but New York took over and created their own version of it. This type of cheesecake became a legend thanks to Lindy's in Midtown made of cream cheese, lots of heavy cream, vanilla and cookie-crumb crust (traditionally graham). It was THE cake to eat in the 1940s and still to this day is a staple American dessert. Now you can even get different flavours, everything from chocolate to cherry.

Florence - Gelato

You have never tasted gelato until you've tasted it in Florence. Honestly. During the Renaissance there where two men that changed the history of ice cream forever. It happened in the 16th century. One man, a chicken farmer, created a delectable sorbet for Catherin Medici. The other, an architect, developed a frozen dessert with whipped egg yolks, sugar and sweet wine with fruits. Both were founding creations for the city's gelato culture. Florence in particular takes pride in their gelato. It's creamy, flavourful and fresh... always handmade. The flavours available depend largely on what's in season. If the server asks you if you want cream... say yes!

Istanbul - Turkish Delight

Turkish delight dates back to the Ottoman times when a famous confectioner moved from the mountains to Istanbul to set up shop in the late 1700s. He opened a shop in the Old Town and created some delicious jelly sweets called "lokum" which is what we know as Turkish Delight. Today you can still buy this sweet treat from shops named after the famous confectioner, Ali Muhiddin Haci Bekir. The main store is located just near the Spice Bazaar. 

What are your favourite desserts from abroad?

Images: brianjmatis, carnoodles, Niquinho / Flickr cc.