Halva

Persian halva is made by toasting flour in butter until deep golden, then binding it with a saffron, rosewater and cardamom syrup.

TIME BREAKDOWN
Prep: 15 min
Cook: 35 min
Total: 50 minutes
Vegetarian
✅
Nuts
✅
Serves
8 people
Difficulty
Medium

Ingredients

  • 200g plain flour
  • 150g unsalted butter
  • For the syrup:
  • 200g caster sugar
  • 250ml water
  • 1 tsp saffron threads, ground and steeped in 3 tbsp hot water
  • 2 tbsp rosewater
  • 1 tsp ground cardamom
  • To decorate:
  • 30g unsalted pistachios, slivered
  • 30g blanched almonds, slivered

Method

  1. Dissolve the sugar in the water and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the saffron water, rosewater and cardamom and keep hot.

  2. Melt the butter in a wide, heavy pan over a medium-low heat. Stir in the flour and cook for 20 minutes, stirring constantly, until deep golden and fragrant.

  3. Carefully pour in the hot syrup, standing back as it will spit, and stir vigorously.

  4. Cook for 3-5 minutes until the mixture is smooth and leaves the sides of the pan.

  5. Press into a shallow dish and smooth the top. Decorate with the pistachios and almonds and serve warm or at room temperature.