Salted Chocolate Halva

This Salted Chocolate Halva was another one of those recipes that crossed my path and immediately saved as I just had to make it at some point. Homemade tahini halva, coated in melted dark chocolate and dusted with sesame seeds, rose petals and sea salt. Impossible to resist and as if there is  any reason required to make it, February the 14th is next week and you could make it as an edible gift to be shared (or not to be shared).

The original recipe comes from Bon Appétit and as it was the first time making halva I followed the recipe step by step. There is also a great video of Andy Baraghani making the recipe in the Bon Appétit Test Kitchen. Do have a look.

Halva can be super sweet but in this recipe the sweetness is cut with the 70% dark chocolate that has a slightly bitter edge to it as well as the sprinkles of sea salt. The only tricky part in the recipe is making the sugar syrup and getting it to 121 degrees C (between soft and hardball) but with a good sugar thermometer and a few minutes of patience, it is actually super easy to do. And I always feel very clever whenever I use a sugar thermometer! The most important part is to not overmix the tahini and the boiling syrup. Gently fold until the mixture starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl – it takes about a minute or so.

You will need a small loaf tin and the one I used was 18cm x 8 cm. If you want to change to a round shape, I think a 16cm cake tin will do the trick as well. Make sure the halva has cooled down completely (I placed it in the fridge overnight) before pouring the melted chocolate over it.  Add the decorations while the chocolate is still melted so that it sticks. You can add a sprinkle or two of rose petals and sesame seeds when serving.

I hope you enjoy this recipe for Salted Chocolate Halva. If you’ve made the recipe share it with me by tagging @heinstirred on Instagram or Facebook with the hashtag #heinstirred

Salted Chocolate Halva

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Ingredients

  

• 350 ml tahini
• ¼ tsp salt
• 4 tbsp black and white sesame seeds divided
• 350 ml sugar
• 130 g dark chocolate
• ¼ cup dried edible flowers cornflowers, roses, optional
• sea salt flakes

Instructions

 

• Lightly spray a 18cm x 8 cm loaf tin with nonstick spray
• Line with baking paper, leaving a 3cm overhang on both of the long sides
• Mix the tahini, salt and half the mixed sesame seeds in a medium bowl till combined and set aside
• Mix the sugar and ½ cup water in a small saucepan and place over low heat
• Stir with a heatproof rubber spatula, until sugar is dissolved for about 4 minutes
• Increase the heat to medium-high and place the sugar thermometer in the pot
• Cook the syrup, brushing down sides of saucepan with a wet pastry brush as needed to dissolve any crystals that form
• Boil until thermometer registers 121° C (about 7–10 minutes)
• Immediately remove the syrup from heat and gradually stream into reserved tahini, mixing constantly with spatula
• Continue to fold until the halva just comes together in a smooth mass and starts to pull away from the sides of bowl (about a minute)
• Be careful not to overmix or halva will be crumbly
• Working quickly, scrape into prepared pan and let cool in the fridge (a few hours or overnight)
• Once the halva has set, remove from the fridge and let it come to room temperature
• Melt the chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water (do not let bowl touch water), stirring often
• Remove from the heat
• Invert the halva onto a wire rack set inside a lined rimmed baking sheet
• Peel away the baking paper and pour the chocolate over the halva
• Sprinkle the top with the flowers, sea salt, and remaining sesame seeds
• Let it stand until the chocolate has set and serve
• Recipe from Bon Appetit