Kaab el ghazal are crescent-shaped Moroccan pastries filled with almond paste, ground cinnamon and orange-blossom water; the dough wrapped paper-thin around the filling and baked till pale.

Kaab el ghazal (gazelle horns), called cornes de gazelle in French, is the Fassi pastry classic adopted across Morocco. The name refers to the crescent shape, said to evoke a gazelle's antler. Traditionally a wedding and Eid sweet; today, almond pastries sit on every Moroccan pastry-shop counter year-round and especially at Eid al-Fitr (March 20 to 22, 2026).

Where to eat Kaab el Ghazal (Cornes de Gazelle) in Marrakech

3 editor picks for Kaab el Ghazal (Cornes de Gazelle) in Marrakech, ranked by editorial score. All Marrakech signature dishes · Kaab el Ghazal (Cornes de Gazelle) across every city.

  • Le Tobsil

    Le Tobsil in Marrakech's R'mila medina runs the canonical Moroccan tasting: 11 to 13 salads, pigeon pastilla, lamb tagine, in a candle-lit Gnaoua-music riad.

    DetailsDirections

  • Patisserie Amandine

    Drink Cafe almond pastry combo

    Patisserie Amandine in Marrakech's Gueliz, since 1997: French and Moroccan pastries with almond focus, the café side at 175 Rue Mohamed El Beqal opens 07:00.

    DetailsDirections

  • Patisserie des Princes

    Order Cornes de gazelle and chebakia

    Patisserie des Princes on Rue Bab Agnaou near Marrakech's Jemaa el-Fna runs an air-conditioned tea room behind the counter, daily from 06:00, since the 1990s.

    DetailsDirections

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Make it at home

Serves Makes 242 hrIntermediate

Ingredients

  • 300 g blanched almonds
  • 200 g powdered sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp orange-blossom water
  • 50 g unsalted butter, softened
  • 250 g plain flour
  • 1 egg
  • 50 ml warm water
  • Pinch salt
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • Extra powdered sugar, for dusting

Method

  1. Grind almonds with sugar and cinnamon to a fine paste in a food processor. Add 1 tbsp orange-blossom water and 25 g butter; pulse to combine. Shape into small crescents (8 cm long).
  2. For the pastry: combine flour, salt, egg, remaining butter, oil, 1 tbsp orange-blossom water and warm water. Knead 8 minutes to a smooth elastic dough. Rest 30 minutes.
  3. Roll the dough paper-thin (use a pasta machine if you have one). Cut into squares slightly larger than the almond crescents.
  4. Place each almond crescent on a square; fold and press the dough around, pinching out air. Trim to a clean crescent shape. Pierce with a fork to vent.
  5. Bake at 170C/325F for 15 minutes until the pastry is pale ivory (not browned). Cool fully; dust with powdered sugar.

Editor tip. Don't let the pastries colour in the oven; they should stay almost white. If browned, the almond filling dries out and the crescent cracks on the bite.

Common allergens: Gluten, Nuts.