Chocolate-Covered Almond Halvah

Author Notes

I remember the first time I tasted halvah. I was still living in New Orleans, and it was my first time in New York. And I loved it—it tasted really good, but what struck me was the texture, all those crisp layers that break apart and melt in your mouth. While there are many candies called halvah (or some version of that spelling) from all over the world, the classic Israeli halvah is a mixture of sugar and sesame paste (tahini).

I've been taking a class called "The Science of Cooking," and it happened that last week was "candy week," so I thought, what about halvah? And there was this jar of almond butter in the pantry, calling to me.

This looks like a really simple recipe—and it is, but as they say, simple doesn't mean easy. Over-blend the almond butter and the sugar and you get a hard brick. (There is one sitting in my garbage can as we speak.) Most recipes call for cooking the sugar to the soft ball stage, which would seem to prevent that, but unfortunately, what you get is fudge—not those sweet little crunchy/soft layers that are the very definition of halvah. However, if you cook the sugar to the hard ball stage (260° F) AND blend the nut butter in gently and minimally, that's where the magic happens. And when you break into it and see those layers—so exciting.

Please note: You can make a smaller amount if you want by decreasing the sugar and almond butter but keeping the same ratio. But don't use less than 1/2 cup of water to cook the sugar syrup.

You can wrap this and keep it in the refrigerator almost indefinitely. The halvah does get softer and more fudgelike after a few days, but it is still delicious. —drbabs

Test Kitchen Notes

WHO: Drbabs is a Food52 veteran based in Austin, Texas.
WHAT: The classic Middle Eastern candy halvah trades in tahini for almond butter.
HOW: Fold almond butter into a boiling sugar syrup, pour it into a pan, and coat it with melted chocolate and slivered almonds.
WHY WE LOVE IT: Halvah maintains its buttery flakiness even when you swap almond butter for tahini; it's as crispy and crumbly as ever. (Now we're thinking about all the other nut butter halvahs we could try!) And since it's dairy-free, the vegans in your life will thank you for offering up a decadent treat they can also indulge in. (But if you're serving it to vegans, be sure you're using a vegan sugar! We like Wholesome Sweeteners Organic Sugar or Trader Joe's Organic Sugar.) —The Editors