Sesame Halva

[ravenrose]

Sesame halva is a Middle Eastern sweet based on sesame seeds and something like honey. It comes in little bars and is very delicious and decadent.

I made something similar, high protein and good for me, and wanted to share the idea. It's like the protein bars people make with peanut or almond butter, pretty much, using sesame tahini, which is sesame butter.

2 tablespoons sesame tahini
2 tablespoons vanilla or unflavored whey protein isolate
2 tablespoons powdered erythritol
dribble of vanilla extract
1 drop of sucralose sweetener, if desired
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
water, as needed, to make a thick paste

mix all ingredients, in order, incorporating as much of the protein powder and erythritol as possible into the tahini with the back of a spoon before you start adding the other ingredients. just the smallest bit of water is needed--otherwise you will have to eat it with a spoon, which is ok too, but different.

take small bits and roll into balls. perhaps flatten with your thumb. nice little candies, very healthy. you could keep out the sesame seeds and roll the balls in them when you are done.

these are not hard enough to keep, the way I made them--I make just enough for a meal or snack at one time so they don't tempt me.

sesame has a lot of good nutrition in it.

this is very forgiving--use the proportions you want to, what tastes best to you

there are also chocolate halva bars, so I imagine this would be good with chocolate protein powder and some added cocoa too, but I haven't tried that.

[JunkInMyTrunk]

looks fantastic. thanks for the recipe.

[Beeb]

OMG!!!!

[locarbman]

LOL! Now you've done it! Just placed an order for 10# of Tahini to play with...will also see how it works with Honeytrees SF honey... ;-)

JoYva Marble Nut Halvah is one of my favorites...on rare occasions of course (14 net carbs per 1.5oz ;-)

Found this recipe:

Halvah Recipe made with Honey and Sesame Seeds

The Greeks and Jews among others, are famous for their honey deserts and candies such as Baklava and Halvah. This home-made Halvah recipe is guaranteed to satisfy any sweet tooth, the healthy way.
Ingredients:

• 700g (2 cups) good quality raw honey
• 340g (1 1/2 cups) tahini, which is a sesame seed paste, usually sold in a tin
• 1 cup of shelled nuts and skinned nuts, such as almonds (optional)

Method:

1. Heat the honey, but do not boil.
2. Add the nuts to the honey.
3. Beat the tahini to ensure that any excess oil is blended, then warm up in a separate pan.
4. Fold the warm tahini into the hot honey.
5. Place the mixture into an oiled loaf tin and seal to keep out moisture, for at least 2 days.
6. Cut into slices and serve.

Thanks! ;-) locarbman


PS: Per USDA, Seeds, sesame butter, tahini, from roasted and toasted kernels (most common type) has 3.41 net carbs per ounce...340g = 12oz for 41 net carbs in the above recipe.

[locarbman]

This may be a more difficult project than I expected...but I will try! ;-)

I found this on the net:

"Joyva Halvah Review: Why I love Halvah candy and can't make it from a recipe:

I love sesame halvah. It has more nutrition than most other types of candy and it tastes out of this world. I've tried to make it at home numerous times using this, that or the other sesame halvah recipe that asserts you can achieve that flaky store-bought quality. My goal was to make halvah that had the same tender, flaky, melt-in-your-mouth quality that Joyva had. I learned early on that it was doomed to failure. But I kept trying with boundless optimism, for the sake of my pocketbook. Which is, in hindsight, silly since I've since learned that tahini, an ingredient in halvah, and even bulk sesame seeds, cost almost as much as the halvah itself.

But anyway, I made some delicious sesame candy along the way. Chewy candy. Hard candy. But never dissolves-on-your-tongue halvah. I used all the techniques recommended. I let the candy cool before starting to beat it. I beat it a long time. I beat it a short time. I let it rest for 72 hours to develop the supposed crystals. I made it from tahini. I made it from sesame seeds. I undercooked sesame seeds, I burned sesame seeds, I toasted the sesame seeds just right. But no flaky halvah.

And then I did some deeper research online to try to figure out if it was just me or if anybody had ever had success at making homemade Joyva-style halva in a kitchen from a recipe. I found nothing. No success stories. Only a lot of hope, a lot of frustration, and a lot of steering off-topic to the differences in the different types of halvah. (And don't ask me how, but somehow I also ended up on a cool page about the old Carnation Breakfast Bars and how they're no longer being made and how thousands of people miss them so much they've actually taken a petition out to get them made again.)

After further research, I gathered that Joyva Halvah, the major brand of halvah sold in the U.S., is made by hand, with big burly guys beating the heck out of the candy using a musculature I can only dream of. Which meant I, a kitchen DIYer - somebody who makes her own pasta and bread by hand, not to mention popsicles, baby food, and sundry other homemade goodies - must now resort to buying halvah. Only there was none to be had in my area - not for a decent price, not in bulk as I intended to eat it."

Joyva Halvah Review: Why I Love Halvah Candy and Can't Make it From a Recipe

Expect my Tahini order Friday...guess what I'll be doing this weekend... ;-)

[ravenrose]

Originally Posted by locarbman

But anyway, I made some delicious sesame candy along the way. Chewy candy. Hard candy. But never dissolves-on-your-tongue halvah. I used all the techniques recommended.

this is why I found the protein powder mixture a revelation, locarbman. it's not perfect, but I think you should try that in your recipe rather than approaching it from the candymaking recipe side.

[crazywoman-n-wy]

Sounds interesting ravenrose! (Reason I said interesting, is because unlike most, I'm not a huge honey fan.)
Pre low carb I lived for a couple of years in Saudi Arabia. I did have the pleasure of eating different Baklava's. I can't remember if I had Halvah or not. Probably did, but if I did, can't remember if I actually liked it. I know that sounds weird, but I'm gettin old and senile.
I do like sesame, and your recipe sounds good. I may just have to try it some day. If I have tahini, it may have gotten too old, so I may have to get new before I can even try it.

Note, to give it a more honey like flavor (if so desired), you might try adding a little Agave nectar in place of the water. Just a thought. (Or as someone said, some sugar free "honey". If you can find the sf honey made with Xylitol, I think that is a better choice than the malitol version, but that's me.

[locarbman]

Originally Posted by ravenrose

this is why I found the protein powder mixture a revelation, locarbman. it's not perfect, but I think you should try that in your recipe rather than approaching it from the candymaking recipe side.

LOL! Please let me try...I've had ~30 12oz Honeytree's in my pantry for several years now and I'm also experimenting with making a honey substitute. Will try your recipe too...I do love candy... ;-)

[locarbman]

I finally made my SF Honey Halvah…was really easy…only took ~ 30 minutes… ;-)

1 - Chopped 1oz Cashews…could only find salted so I rinsed and dried them ;-) [7 net carbs]
2 - Placed 12oz (1 cup) Honeytree’s SF Honey in a wide mouth pint jar and a 12oz (1 cup) Steele’s SF Honey in a 2nd wide mouth pint jar (for comparison ;-)…zapped both in the microwave for 1 ½ minutes [0 carbs]
3 - Zapped a 16 oz glass jar of Krinos Tahini for 30 seconds, poured it into a 4 cup measuring cup and whisked for about a minute to disperse the oil [24 net carbs]
4 - Stirred 1/2 of the chopped Cashews into each jar of honey
5 - Stirred 3/4c (1/2 jar) Tahini into each jar of honey with a fork until thickened
6 - Sprayed 2 Mini Loaf Pans (5 23/32in. by 3 5/16 in. by 1 7/8in.) with Butter Flavored Cooking Spray
7 – Poured each jar into a separate loaf pan and sealed them, in a large Zip-Lock bag…will store at room temperature for two days and then refrigerate before slicing.

Now I only have to wait for two more days…;-)

PS: Thanks Billie for the Xylitol Honey suggestion...Netrition carries both Nature's Hollow (14oz, 28 net carbs) and Global Sweet Xylitol Honey (10oz, 0 carbs)...will have to try them too... ;-)

[Barbo]

Thanks everyone. That carrot dressing sounds delish. Like you I don't
use a lot of carrots. I'm still going to look up the recipe

Sesame Halva
from RavenRose.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sesame halva is a Middle Eastern sweet based on sesame seeds and something like honey. It comes in little bars and is very delicious and decadent.

I made something similar, high protein and good for me, and wanted to share the idea. It's like the protein bars people make with peanut or almond butter, pretty much, using sesame tahini, which is sesame butter.

2 tablespoons sesame tahini
2 tablespoons vanilla or unflavored whey protein isolate
2 tablespoons powdered erythritol
dribble of vanilla extract
1 drop of sucralose sweetener, if desired
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
water, as needed, to make a thick paste

mix all ingredients, in order, incorporating as much of the protein powder and erythritol as possible into the tahini with the back of a spoon before you start adding the other ingredients. just the smallest bit of water is needed--otherwise you will have to eat it with a spoon, which is ok too, but different.

take small bits and roll into balls. perhaps flatten with your thumb. nice little candies, very healthy. you could keep out the sesame seeds and roll the balls in them when you are done.

these are not hard enough to keep, the way I made them--I make just enough for a meal or snack at one time so they don't tempt me.

sesame has a lot of good nutrition in it.

this is very forgiving--use the proportions you want to, what tastes best to you

there are also chocolate halva bars, so I imagine this would be good with chocolate protein powder and some added cocoa too, but I haven't tried that.
__________________

[Barbo]

I made your recipe for Sesame Candy just as you wrote it.

IT IS DELICIOUS. I got 8 candies out of your recipe and did
as you suggersted and roasted the sesame seeds and rolled
the candies in it. I put them in the freezer. Having a difficult
time keeping my mitts outta da freezer.

[crazywoman-n-wy]

How do you guys toast your sesame seeds? Thanks!

[Barbo]

On a paper plate in the microwave oven.

Try a minute and test. Maybe your machine will take longer.

They got nice and light brown

[rosethorns]

This sounds doable. Thanks

[crazywoman-n-wy]

Thanks Barbo.

And I keep telling myself I'm gonna try this, and haven't yet. Maybe I'm afraid too.

[rosethorns]

So that's what I got the Tahini for ! Wow!

[ravenrose]

funny to be looking for a recipe and find mine from 5 years ago. if it were anyone else I would have thought it was not tested enough, but I knew it had worked then, and sure enough, patience was rewarded.

I used the end of the jar of tahini which had too much oil. I should have only used the solid part. that is my only addition.

it was good!

[Mistizoom]

Wow, this sounds great, thank for bumping. I used to love halvah!

[lazy girl]

Thank you for bumping this! It looks so good and is really different. Will definitely order the Tahini.

[sherrymyra]

Here is how I make my Halvah

1/2 cup almond flour,
1/2 cup ground flax,
1/2 cup tahini,
1/4 cup protein powder, plain,
1/4 cup ground pumpkin seeds,
1/3 cup maltitol syrup (i use the little honey bears),
Mix up and press out into a pan or roll in balls.
About 31 carbs in recipe (is what my recipe says)

Keeps forever in fridge.