Tamriyeh, the Ramadan pastry of Homs

Tamriyeh is the sweet that appears on the counters of Homs during Ramadan. Thinly rolled dough is fried golden in hot oil and dipped into syrup the moment it comes out. It comes three ways: with clotted cream, with dates, or plain. The name comes from the Arabic for dates, but not every piece has dates in it.

Where it comes from

A Homs sweet-maker interviewed by SANA during Ramadan 2026 says the pastry has been made in the city for more than 100 years. It started in home kitchens and later moved into the sweet shops. A Homs member of the Syrian History Society also lists it among the city’s old Ramadan foods.

How it is made

Work starts the day before. Flour, water and butter or ghee are kneaded into an elastic dough. It is rolled out very thin and coated in ghee. According to a Homs bakery that spoke to eSyria in 2008, the base is the dough used for Ramadan bread, with starch added for body.

The dough goes into hot oil for a short time. Once it turns golden it comes out and goes straight into the syrup. The clotted-cream version is a winter sweet, while the date and plain versions are on the counter whichever season Ramadan falls in. eSyria also mentions a version with cheese.

Where and when to find it

Only in Ramadan. The popular sweet-makers in the old market of Homs make tamriyeh in front of customers during that month. It is priced as an everyday sweet, and it leaves the counter when the month ends.

What not to confuse it with

eSyria reports that outside Ramadan the same pastry is called karabij in Homs. That is not the Aleppo karabij listed on this site, which is a semolina pastry eaten with natef, a white whipped cream made from soapwort root. The two share only a name.

Nablus, in Palestine, has its own tamriyeh, filled with a semolina custard. The kallaj of Damascus is never fried: the pastry sheet is dipped in milk and folded around clotted cream. The Homs pastry is fried, soaked in syrup, and either filled with cream or dates or left plain.