Halva is the most basic and one of the most loved desserts in the Greek cuisine. Having very few ingredients, it has been historically something afforded by most households and the first dessert I learned to make as a child.
The traditional recipe is made using olive oil and the measurements go 1,2,3 & 4 the numbers representing glasses or cups used to measure olive oil, coarse semolina, sugar and water. I would find this too heavy and too sweet these days so I would add just over two cups of sugar and half the quantity of rapeseed or sunflower oil.
Having said that, I was offered the halva of this recipe in a very simple village kafeneion in Crete and loved it. It makes for a very light and refreshing dessert, a small piece of which at the end of the meal would suffice. All the flavour is given by the orange juice, vanilla and coconut. Very quick, easy and depending on how to choose to finish it, it can look pretty impressive too!
Ingredients
- 250g coarse semolina
- 75g desiccated coconut
- 275g caster sugar
- 400ml orange juice
- 3 oranges, zest only
- 1 vanilla bean
- 1 Ltr water
- Serving suggestion (optional) – some chopped candied fruit in syrup or honey or extra coconut
Method
Put juice, water, sugar, vanilla and zest in a pot and bring to the boil. Add the semolina, stir and cook until thick. Last add the coconut, mix well and empty into one large or many individual moulds.
Store in the fridge until needed. Turn out from the mould and decorate to serve.