If you have read our articles about Yazd city, you know that the city has got many nicknames; “The city of windcatchers”, “The clay town”, “The city of bicycles” and etc. Well, know we have to call this beautiful city the city of amazing souvenirs and tasty sweets! In this article, we are going to introduce the souvenirs of Yazd city to you. Let’s find out about them and don’t forget to try some and buy some if you ever traveled to this beautiful city.
Beautiful Yazd, where the world’s first safe deposit box is built, has a warm-hearted and hospitable people who welcome guests with a sweet accent and encouraging smiles. But after enjoying the sights of Yazd, everyone knows that one should think of souvenirs.
In addition to the city of Yazd itself, in most cities of Iran, there are shops that you can buy Souvenir of Yazd from them; and this confirms the fact that the souvenir of this city is one of the most important and delicious parts of tourism in Yazd.
Yazdi cake is one of the most famous souvenirs of Yazd. You can find this tasty cake only in this city but also in many cities of Iran. A very fragrant, delicious, soft pastry that you can easily make at home. This delicious cake is so similar to muffins, but minus the cream on it. You can easily bake Yazdi cake with flour, yogurt, vanilla, fruit salt, eggs, baking soda and powdered sugar. But as Yazdi cake is so easy to bake and is similar to muffins, eating it in the atmosphere of Yazd city of course stays in another level!
One of the most famous and delicious traditional sweets of Yazd is Qottab. This sweet consists of two parts: one is the outer layer and the other is the inner brain.
The outer layer of this sweet is a kind of sweet bread that you should fry in oil. And you have to prepare the dough from a combination of wheat flour, milk or yogurt and egg yolk. Then finally rolled in powdered sugar. The inner core of this sweet is a combination of almond powder, sugar powder and cardamom. This sweet has a high nutritional value due to the presence of cardamom and almond powder; and it’s unique taste distinguishes Qottab from other traditional sweets in Iran.
Haji Badam is a local sweet that you can find it produced in some central cities of Iran (such as Nain), specially Yazd. This sweet has a good nutritional value due to the presence of nutmeg and chickpea flour. Nutmeg relieves joint pain and rheumatism due to its special alkaloids. You can serve this sweet along with tea and it would taste perfect!
Other sweet souvenirs of Yazd is “Noghl”. Today, they produce noghl with various flavors (jasmine, saffron, etc.); and with the kernels of various nuts such as walnuts, almonds and peanuts. Different provinces of Iran offer their own types of noghl; but Yazdi noghls have different flavors.
Ingredients include sugar, water, catkin, walnut kernels (or any other type of kernels), vanilla, etc. You can produce noghls with different flavors and kernels, among which walnut noghls are more popular and famous. Among the types of noghls, we can mention walnut, almond, pistachio and almond slices with vanilla, saffron, rosemary, cherry, coriander and burdock flavors. Due to it’s sweetness and softness, they can be a good substitute for sugar in drinking tea.
Baklava is one of the famous and popular sweets of Yazd that if we put it’s name next to it’s other competitors such as Arabic baklava or Istanbul baklava, it will definitely be the winner of this campaign is the baklava from Yazd! Yazdi baklava consists of cardamom, almond powder, powdered sugar and rose. This sweet has different types; and you can find it with coconut, almond and pistachio flavors, usually cut into 3 shapes: tube, rhombus and square.
Of course, we must mention that Yazd is not the only baklava baking and production center in Iran. You can also find these delicious sweets in Tabriz and Qazvin too; but in any case, this type of baklava is one of the most famous souvenirs of Yazd.
Halwa Ardeh is a very nutritious food that people mostly use it in breakfast. The main ingredients of it are sesame, ardeh, sugar, liquid glucose, permitted sweeteners, citric acid, egg white powder and chubak water, ardeh, skinless sesame, roasted and ground without oil. Because Halwa Ardeh does not have any chemical additives in it and is still produced in a traditional and somewhat manual way in Yazd, has a natural taste.
Loz is another sweet whose name shines among the souvenirs of Yazd. Although they bake lozs in other cities of Iran too. Yazd lozs have a long history and different tastes. The creative people of Yazd have added a unique variety to this sweet. Among the types of Yazdi Lozs, we can mention almond-burdock, coconut, hazelnut and pistachio.
https://irpersiatour.com/blog/why-should-we-travel-to-yazd-in-2019/Making Ziloos among Yazd souvenirs dates back to before the arrival of Islam in Iran. The center of weaving Ziloo is in Meybod; and it’s popularity is due to the fact that the underlayment is cool; and because of this feature, people used it a lot during the hot Summer days. Ziloo was so popular that it was considered an export commodity. The world’s oldest Ziloo is now housed in the Meybod Grand Mosque. Ziloo texture uses cotton and natural dyes such as rhubarb, walnut skin, azure and some other plant dyes to dye it.
Today, the most important, colorful and dreamy part of the arts of Yazd textile industry is cashmere. Delicate fibers and stunning original Iranian designs, the use of extremely high quality fabric and a four-stroke machine have made cashmere one of the most precious Iranian fabrics.
As mentioned, the textile industry has been popular in Yazd since ancient times; and you should note that cashmere has been one of the most important parts of this industry since Safavid times. Apart from it’s material and expert value, the eye-catching beauty and life-giving colors of cashmere make it an export commodity suitable for domestic and foreign souvenirs.
Asset-weaving is another handicraft of Yazd that has a long history in this region and of course it has been forgotten today. Due to this fact it is difficult to find a sign of it in the heart of Yazd alleys and bazaars. Yazd’s asset-weaving, which is a 800 years old art, is a type of fabric produced from silk and natural dyes. Because in the past only those who could afford it were the affluent class of people (In Persian they call them “Dara”), this industry is called asset-weaving. Asset fabric used to be used for bedspreads, rugs, needlework and quilt liners; and is now they mostly use it for traditional bedspreads and tablecloths.
Yazd handicrafts, which we can consider as souvenirs, are not exclusively textile industries. Another innovative and artistic industry of Yazd province is Meybod pottery and ceramics. In Meybod region, due to having good and sticky soil, they produce high quality and beautiful pottery. And pottery, like most handicrafts and souvenirs of Yazd, shows life in desert areas that bring cool drinking water to the people of Yazd in Summer. The very beautiful designs of Yazdi artists have turned Meybod pottery into a valuable, beautiful and practical souvenir.
Yazd souvenir does not end with this writing. In the heart of the bazaar alley of this beautiful and ancient city, you can find countless handicrafts and various sweets. If you have never traveled to Yazd, I suggest you to plan a trip to this historic city.