Traditional Moroccan dessert, Moroccan Guava Almond Phyllo Cake M’hanncha/snake cake is made with filo pastry and almond filling, scented with orange blossom water and cardamom. Here we’ve used guava paste and cream cheese for that nontraditional modern touch. M’hanncha means coiled snake, name given because of the shape. It is easy to make and the taste is simply divine!
When I began blogging in 2013 I was completely blown away by the prolific community of food writers and home cooks who shared their stories and their inspiration on the web. Come to think of it, I barely visited blogs let alone food blogs, until giving it all a go myself… It was one of those “jump before looking how deep the water was first” sort of things. Needless to say, I spent countless hours pouring over gorgeous, articulate web pages, trying to learn as much as I could. Beautiful photos, authentic writing, original tested recipes, and authenticity was incredibly inspiring.
Connections are made every day. Sometimes they’re large or life changing. Other times they’re as simple as a smile to a passerby on the street or stopping to observe Spring’s first flowers pushing through the cool, heavy earth. These little connections are made everyday whether you stop to take notice or not.
One connection that continues to intrigue and inspire me is food. The connections that I’ve made with different cultures and their food is what immensely thankful for. It’s amazing to think that one little seed, when loved and cared for, grows into something that nourishes the body and mind. That those little seeds make a meal that I can then share with friends and family, making even further connections, that soon become memories of those meals and times past.
When I take the time to photograph a new recipe I’ve made and post it to share with others, who then take the time to read it, I think about all those connections I’ve made with people I don’t even know and it blows me away. I’ve entered their lives in some small way and it feels good. As the year slowly comes to an end, it makes me ponder upon those connections and what’s i’ve learnt.
Moroccan Guava Almond Phyllo Cake M’hanncha
This is one such dessert I’ve been wanting to create on my blog for as long as I can remember. Moroccon desserts have always inspired me, and this M’hanncha is my top favorite. This sweet Moroccan pastry, M’hanncha takes its name from a traditional presentation of coiling pastry-wrapped almond paste into a snake-like shape. Moroccan Guava Almond Phyllo Cake M’hanncha can be made quite large for serving at social gatherings; guests enjoy the pastry by breaking off small portions from the outermost part of the coil.
The Moroccan Guava Almond Phyllo Cake M’hanncha/snake cake would be such a nice addition to your Christmas table or NYE celebrations.This snake cake is the perfect way to end any festive meal. The cream cheese keeps it lighter tasting and the guava paste keeps it tropical and getting your guests to guess. It’s sweet, nutty, crunchy and very tropical tasting. The cardamom in the mix is very subtle, but adds the perfect earthy touch to make the cake more interesting.
If I don’t come back here with another post before Christma, Here’s wish you all a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
Things I’ve used:
- 200g almonds
- ⅓ cup sugar
- 1½ Tbsp orange blossom water
- 3 tbsp guava paste, more if you like the flavor
- ½ Tsp cardamom
- 1 Tsp orange zest
- 1 egg
- 4 tbsp cream cheese
- 10-15 filo sheets
- 3 tbsp cup unsalted butter (melted) to brush over filo sheets
- 4 tbsp honey
- pinch saffron
- 1 tbsp orange blossom water
- ⅓ cup water
- To Make the Orange-Almond-Guava Paste:
- Combine the almonds, sugar, and cardamom in a food processor or blender and pulse to grind into a coarse meal. Add the guava paste and cream cheese and egg and pulse until blended. Scrape the paste into a bowl, and stir in the orange-flower water, orange zest. Divide the paste into 12 balls, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Set the balls on a work surface dusted with confectioners' sugar. Roll each one into a 3½-inch-long log. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 350°F. Butter a large baking sheet. Dust a work surface with confectioners' sugar. Place a sheet of phyllo pastry on the sugared work surface, and fold it in thirds to form a 4- by 17-inch rectangle. Brush the sheet with melted butter. Add another folded phyllo sheet, brush with butter, and repeat, until you have four buttered sheets.
- Set four guava paste-orange-almond paste logs in a row down one long end of the phyllo, and roll the pastry up over them into a cylinder. Fold over the ends and brush on some melted butter to seal the seams. Shape the cylinder into a small, tight coil and place on the baking sheet, seam side down.
- Repeat to prepare two more phyllo rolls. Add each to the end of the coil on the baking sheet, forming a large coil. Brush the butter over the top of the cake.
- Bake for 45- 50 minutes, or until golden. Remove the cake from the oven, and let cool on the baking sheet.
- While it's baking, mix everything for the syrup and boil it for 10 minutes until it is a syrupy consistency.
- Pour the syrup over the cake. Sprinkle some pistachios and let it sit for 2-3 hours before serving. Serve with some icecream.
Cut the folded phyllo sheets into 4- by 10-inch pieces, and stack and butter as directed. Place one almond paste log on top of each stack, roll into a cylinder, and shape into a small coil. Walnut-Lemon Snake Cake
For the paste, replace the almonds with walnuts, replace the orange juice and zest with lemon juice and zest, and add ¼ teaspoon ground cardamom.
If you make this Moroccan Guava Almond Phyllo Cake M’hanncha, please tag me on social media #foodfashionparty.
We are fans of filo pastry! This looks beyond delicious…what can I use instead of guava paste? Date paste?
Date or fig paste would be great.
I asked my mom to make me a snake cake for my 10th birthday, and it’s been a favourite ever since! I had found it in one of her cookbooks and was fascinated – it’s such a beautiful, flavourful dessert. The addition of guava here sounds delicious <3
This looks great! I’ve had this dessert, but never made it. But now that I have your recipe, I can! Thanks. And Happy Holidays!