HELVA WITH HONEY AND PINE NUTS ( BALLI VE FISTIKLI HELVA )

Hi All, today I enjoyed making this sweet dish with semolina, honey and ground nut. It is different from the traditional helva and not so fluffy because of the honey but I loved the combination and it is a lot lighter than traditional helva. Serve it on its own or with whipped cream.

YOU NEED

• 2 tbsp melted butter
• 1 tbsp pine nuts
• 4 tbsp fine semolina
• 2 tsp sugar
• 3 tbsp ground almond or ground nut
• 250 ml half and half water, milk
• 1 good heaped tbsp runny honey
• ground cinnamon for sprinkling

1) Place butter and pine nuts in a non stick frying pan. Cook the nuts over a medium heat until lightly browned.

2) Add the semolina and sugar, ground nut and cook further 3-4 minutes stirring all the time until the semolina is browned lightly.

3) Add  water and milk mixture and and honey. Stir and mix until all the liquid is absorbed, for further 5  minutes on low heat.  Turn the heat off. Cover the helva with 3 sheets of kitchen paper. Place a lid and let the helva stand for 25-30 minutes.

4) Take the cover and the lid off, spoon helva  into a serving plate and fluff it with a fork. Sprinkle with cinnamon before serving. Serve it warm or cold.

MULLED WINE WITH SPICED NUTS ( SICAK SARAP VE BAHARATLI CEREZ )

Hi all, with  Christmas just round the corner , I thought I share some of my quick and easy to do Xmas recipes, with you all. I hope you like them. This serves 10.

YOU NEED

• 1 litre red wine
• 4tbsp soft brown sugar
• 250 ml boiling water
• 1 orange
• Half a lemon, sliced
• 15-20 cloves
• 5-6 cardamoms
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 5cm fresh ginger piece
• dash of brandy

First cut the orange in half. Spear one half with cloves and slice the other half. In a large pan mix red wine, brown sugar,boiling water  orange, lemon slices, cardamoms, cinnamon stick and ginger and mix. Cover and let it rest for 30 to 60 minutes. Take the cover off and heat the wine gently until it is hot for about 5-7 minutes.  DO NOT BOIL. Divide the wine into glasses and serve it with roasted spicy nuts. 

TIP: Add a dash of brandy for extra warmth.

NOTE: Place a metal teaspoon to each wine glass to prevent it cracking.

SPICED ROASTED NUTS

• 25 g butter
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1/2 tsp chilli powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 50 g peanuts
• 50 g hazelnuts
• 50 g cashew nuts
• 50 g almonds

Place the butter in a non stick frying pan. Add the spices and salt to melted butter. Add nuts and mix well. Cook for 4-5 minutes, stirring. Cool on kitchen paper and serve with Mulled Wine.