Authentic Homemade Halva 4 Ways
Halva is a delicious sweet sesame snack that will have you hooked on the first bite. In the shuk in Israel you can find all sorts of different flavored halva that will keep you coming back for more. We've created our 4 favorite flavors from scratch so you can make your favorite one at home, or maybe even all 4!
Sesame + sugar = halva
- Duration
- Cook Time
- Prep Time
- 6Servings
Ingredients
Halva Base
- 3 cups sugar
- 3 cups water
- 3 cups tahini
Coffee Halva
- 2 tablespoons Jamie Geller Hawaij for Coffee
- 1 cup coffee beans, coarsely chopped
Chocolate-Sumac Halva
- 2 tablespoon Jamie Geller Sumac
- 1 cup chocolate of choice, chopped (or chocolate chips)
Lemon Pistachio Halva
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- lemon zest of 2 lemons
- 1 cup pistachios, chopped
Apple Cinnamon Halva
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/2 cup apple chips crushed
- 1/2 cup whole apple chips
Preparation
- Add the sugar to a pot with 1 cup of water. Cook on med-low heat for 5-10 mins until the sugar has dissolved.
- Add the rest of the water, bring to a boil and leave on med-high heat for 20-30 mins, mixing every 4-5 mins. Use a candy thermometer to keep checking until the temperature reaches 250°F (120°C). It will be a thick consistency.
- In a large bowl add the tahini with 1/3 cup of the sugar water you made above. Use a hand mixer to mix until there are no lumps in the tahini. Add the rest of the sugar water gradually mixing until combined. Do not mix for more than 3 mins or the halva with get too crumbly.
- Separate the halva into 4 bowls.
- For the coffee halva, add 1/2 cup of chopped coffee beans and the Jamie Geller Hawaij for Coffee. Use a spatula to fold into the halva.
- For the chocolate-sumac halva add 1 tablespoon of sumac and 1/2 cup of chocolate. Fold into halva with a spatula.
- For the lemon pistachio halva, add 1 teaspoon of lemon juice, zest from one lemon and 1/2 cup of the pistachios. Fold into halva with a spatula.
- For the apple cinnamon halva add the cinnamon and the chopped apple chips. Fold into halva with a spatula.
- Cut a long piece of plastic wrap and put over a pyrex or a cake tin. Make sure to press down the plastic wrap on the corners.
- For the coffee hawaij halva, add 1/2 cup of coffee beans in a flat layer on the plastic wrap, add the coffee halva mixture on top and wrap with the leftover plastic wrap. Press down so that it is flat.
- For the chocolate-sumac halva add 1 tablespoon of sumac and 1/2 cup of chocolate and spread so it covers the whole bottom of the container. Add the halva mix on top, fold the plastic wrap over it and press down to flatten the mixture.
- For the lemon pistachio halva, add zest from one lemon and 1/2 cup pistachios to the container and flatten to cover the bottom. Add the halva mixture, cover with the rest of the plastic wrap and flatten.
- For the apple cinnamon halva, add the whole apple chips to the bottom layer, put the halva mixture on top, wrap with the rest of the plastic wrap and flatten.
- Allow the halva to dry at room temperature overnight. Remove the plastic wrap and turn the platter over onto a serving tray so that the bottom layer becomes the top layer.
- Slice it and enjoy the flakey yummy flavor on crackers, or on its own.
