Turkish Bread Pudding with Clotted Cream
A dried ekmek kadayıfı base slowly soaked with caramel syrup and served with kaymak.
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Toasted Flour Halva
Un Helvası
Un helvası is a soft, spoon-shaped sweet made by toasting flour in butter before adding a simple syrup.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Rest
- 10 min
- Total
- 45 min
- Servings
- 6
Ingredients
Syrup
- ⅔ cup (120 g) Sugar (granulated)
- 1 cup Water
Toasted flour
- 4 tbsp (60 g) Butter (unsalted)
- 1 cup (120 g) Flour (plain)
Equipment
Use a wide heavy pan and heatproof spoon or spatula to reach its corners; a thin pan makes scorching harder to control.
Method
Warm the sugar and water in a small pan, stirring until clear. Bring briefly to a simmer, then remove from the heat and let it cool while toasting the flour.
Melt the butter in a wide heavy pan over low heat. Add the flour and stir continuously, reaching the corners, for 20–25 minutes until evenly hazelnut-brown with a toasted aroma. Reduce the heat if patches darken quickly.
Take the pan off the heat. With your face and hands away from the steam, add the cooled syrup gradually while stirring; it can spit. Return to low heat and stir for 2–3 minutes until the paste comes together and leaves the pan sides.
Remove from the heat, cover and rest for 10 minutes. While still warm, press spoonfuls against the pan side to form soft ovals. Divide into the selected number of dessert portions.
Cooking guidance
Use plain wheat flour, not semolina. Let the syrup cool while the flour toasts; it does not need reheating. Take the flour pan off the heat before adding it gradually, keeping hands and face away from steam.
Press small lumps against the pan while stirring. If loose, cook briefly over low heat until it pulls together; do not add uncooked flour.
Rest the paste before judging firmness and shape while warm. If cooled too firm for neat ovals, serve small spoonfuls rather than adding an unmeasured second batch of syrup.
Storage & serving
Refrigerate promptly in a covered shallow container at 40°F or below. Do not leave out for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 90°F. Use within 2 days; an earlier ingredient use-by date still applies. Let small portions lose their initial steam, then refrigerate promptly. Keep covered to reduce drying. Cold halva will be firmer than freshly made halva.
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