Halvah, or halawa as it's called in Arabic-speaking countries, is a confection made from tahini. In Egypt, halawa is a breakfast spread that’s tucked into soft doughy buns. Although it isn’t spreadable owing to its texture, Egyptians love adding dollops of clotted cream to make it hold itself, and thereby an even more decadent breakfast sandwich. Crumbly like sand on your tongue but super sweet and nutty, halvah can be sliced and served to eat on its own or even crumbled like a topping on things like yoghurt or ice cream– wherever you want a pop of nutty flavor. The possibilities with halvah are endless. 

In the United States, halvah has become a popular treat akin to brownie bites or fudge thanks to both its taste and because it’s a great gluten-free dessert option. What’s fun to see is how candy makers and bakeries have gotten creative with halvah. They’ve produced unexpected flavor combinations such as halvah with white chocolate, or halvah with dried fruits or lemon curd. We’ve come up with a combination that’s both a classic but perhaps novel in its own way: halvah with molasses. 

Our recipe for marble halvah takes the concept of a much-favored breakfast dip in Egypt, tahini and molasses, and converts it into a halvah that can be sliced and served as little slices of deliciousness to serve and pass around, perhaps at the end of a dinner with coffee or hot peppermint tea. It can also be a little power bar to eat if you need to skip breakfast, or want to power up before a run. 

The best marble halvah will necessitate the best tahini, and of course we’d recommend using Dukkan Tahini and to flavor it with molasses, we’d recommend Dukkan Molasses.You can use a cooking thermometer to make sure the sugar doesn’t heat up too much in the first step, but it should be easy enough to determine just when all the sugar has dissolved in the water and before it reaches boiling point. Make sure not to overstir your halvah when preparing it, or else it will turn really crumbly and won’t set easily.