Dessert Table menu
Moroccan Dessert Table Menu — A Full Spread of Sweets and Pastries
Rather than one dessert at the end of a meal, a Moroccan dessert table brings together several sweets at once — sticky fried pastries, delicate almond shapes, a rich no-bake mixture and simple stuffed fruit — laid out for guests to sample a little of each rather than a single large portion. This menu builds that full spread. Many of the individual pastries are covered step by step in hands-on cooking classes, useful if the folding technique is new to you.
The menu
Pastry
Chebakia
Sesame-honey flower pastries, fried and syrup-soaked, the most labour-intensive item on the table but also the most requested.
Pastry
Kaab ghazal (gazelle horns)
Delicate almond-filled crescents, lighter than chebakia and a good contrast on the same table.
No-bake
Sellou
A rich, spiced mixture of toasted flour, almonds and sesame, served in small portions or pressed into a shallow dish.
Fruit
Dates stuffed with almond paste
Simple, quick and a lighter option among the richer fried pastries.
Pastry
Almond briouats
Small fried triangles filled with sweetened almond paste, easy to make in bulk.
Drink
Mint tea
Served throughout, refilled more than once as guests work through the table.
Shopping list
- Sesame seeds, honey and anise for chebakia
- Ground almonds, orange-blossom water and icing sugar for kaab ghazal
- Toasted flour, almonds and sesame seeds for sellou
- Pitted dates and almond paste or ground almonds
- Warqa pastry for briouats
- Cinnamon and icing sugar for finishing
- Gunpowder green tea and fresh mint
- Large serving platters
Prep timeline
-
Up to a week before
Make the chebakia — it keeps for weeks in an airtight tin and the flavour only improves.
-
2-3 days before
Bake the kaab ghazal and prepare the sellou, both of which store well ahead of time.
-
Day before
Stuff the dates and fry the almond briouats, ready to arrange the next day.
-
Morning of
Arrange everything on large shared platters rather than individual plates.
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As guests arrive
Dust the kaab ghazal with icing sugar at the last moment, so it does not absorb into the pastry.
Host's tips
- Spread the baking and frying across several days — nearly everything on this table keeps well, so there is no need for a single exhausting day of cooking.
- Offer at least one lighter option, like stuffed dates, alongside the richer fried pastries, so the table has some variety in intensity.
- Sellou is very rich; serve it in small portions or a shallow dish guests can spoon a little from rather than plating it individually.
- Keep the mint tea flowing throughout — it cuts through the sweetness of the table and is expected alongside this much sugar.
- Dust powdered sugar over pastries just before guests arrive, not earlier, to keep it looking fresh rather than soaked in.
Questions about this menu
How many sweets should a Moroccan dessert table include?
Four or five varieties is generous and typical, mixing textures — a fried honey pastry, a delicate almond shape, a rich no-bake mixture and something simple like stuffed fruit gives good variety without excess.
Can a Moroccan dessert table be prepared entirely in advance?
Almost entirely — chebakia keeps for weeks, kaab ghazal and sellou both store well for several days, and only the dusting of sugar and arranging on platters needs doing close to serving.
What is the richest item usually on the table?
Sellou, a dense mixture of toasted flour, almonds, sesame and sugar, is usually the richest, which is why it is served in small portions rather than a full slice or bowl.
Do these pastries need special equipment to make at home?
Not really — a deep pan for frying and a rolling pin for shaping dough covers most of it, though the folding techniques for chebakia and kaab ghazal take some practice to get neat.
What drink is served alongside a Moroccan dessert table?
Mint tea, poured throughout and refilled more than once, is the standard pairing — its bitterness and heat balance the sweetness of the pastries rather than competing with it.
Learn to cook this menu with a local in Marrakech
Every dish here is taught, hands-on, in a Marrakech cooking class — or taste them across the medina on a guided food tour.