Bettefour: The Story of Egyptian Petit Fours

Egyptian petit fours, or bettefour, are small butter biscuits piped, dipped in chocolate or filled with jam. Here is where they came from and how to serve them.

Bettefour is the Egyptian name for petit fours: small butter biscuits piped into rosettes, sandwiched with jam, dipped in chocolate or rolled in nuts. They are sold by weight in mixed boxes and served at Eid, weddings, engagements and family visits. The name comes from the French petit four, little oven.

From France to Egypt

In eighteenth-century France, petit fours were small pastries baked as large ovens cooled. The idea arrived in Egypt with French and Greek confectioners, and over the twentieth century the Egyptian bettefour became its own thing: firmer, butterier, made to keep and to be shared.

What is in a box

A typical box mixes plain piped biscuits, jam-filled sandwiches, half-dipped chocolate fingers, coconut and nut-coated rounds, and some with a glacé cherry on top. The dough is butter, sugar, flour and egg, often with vanilla.

Petit fours sec and frais

In French pastry, petit fours sec are dry biscuits like these, while petit fours frais are fresh miniature cakes and tartlets for the same day. Egyptian bettefour is almost always the dry kind, which is why it travels and stores so well.

A box on the table means someone is visiting.

Serving and storage

Keep bettefour in an airtight tin away from heat; they last for weeks. Serve on a tray with Greek coffee or tea. For weddings, they are often packed into small favour boxes.

Ask Délices

We bake by the season, so call us to ask what's on the counter today, or to plan gift boxes for an occasion: +20 3 486 1432. You'll find us at 46 Saad Zaghloul Street, Raml Station, open daily 8 AM – 1 AM.