Halva with apple and raspberry (Χαλβάς με μήλο και βατόμουρο)

A two flavoured halva made with semolina, apple and raspberry. This egg free and dairy free dessert is perfect for lent and does not require baking in the oven. It requires only simple ingredients and is easy to make.

Growing up in a Greek family, dessert was often halva! This is because so much of the year is made up of fasting periods and even if I wasn’t fasting myself, someone in the family certainly was. Halva is great for everyone because it has no eggs and no dairy. Other desserts that are vegan and so great for lent include Chocolate and blueberry cake, Vegan chocolate and strawberry cookies and Chocolate and orange cake. All delicious!

This apple and raspberry halva is an example of what happens when you take basic principles, and then let your imagination run free.  The basic principle here is halva-making.  Semolina based halva (not to be confused with the tahini based dessert which goes by the same name) is really versatile, and once you understand the basic premise of how to put one together, it becomes very easy to make it your own. I have already shared with you my parents’ basic halva recipe, flavoured with orange and studded with raisins.  I’ve also shared with you a vegan chocolate halva, which is a bit more decadent, because, chocolate.  But the halva story does not end there!

Thinking of another favourite, my olive oil marble cake, and its delightful swirls of chocolate and vanilla, I wondered if I couldn’t come up with a two-colored halva.  So, I did. I shared a great Marble halva and then also came up with this apple and raspberry halva, layered, not marbled.  The fruit flavours add a freshness and lightness which, I think make this halva kind of special.

Why I love this recipe

Halva is a particularly wonderful dessert and there are so many reasons to love it! It is easy to make, lasts at least a week in the fridge, and is super versatile. Here are some of the reasons I love this particular version

So pretty!

I love how this apple and raspberry halva came out! The different coloured layers are so pretty and the two tastes go so well together.

No oven required.

Halva is a dessert that is made on the stovetop so you can keep you oven free to make things like a Youvetsi with chickpeas, a Vegan moussaka or Gigantes plaki. All these recipes are vegan and lenten too, since we are on that theme!

Key ingredients

You really only need a few ingredients to make this lovely recipe.

Coarse semolina Semolina is the pale yellow grain made from coarsely ground durum wheat. You can find it in fine or coarse texture. I always use coarse semolina when I make halva and leave the fine semolina for making galaktoboureko and bougatsa!

Olive oil I use Greek olive oil in my halva because I love the flavour and fragrance that it gives.

Apple I use all of the apple for this recipe! I add grated apple to the semolina mixture and I place the core and the peel in the pot when I make the syrup.

Apple juice I use apple juice as well as water to make the syrup for my halva for even more apple flavour.

Raspberry jam I like to use jam in this recipe because it is so much easier than using fresh fruit, plus it is always easily available.

Cinnamon sticks I prefer cinnamon sticks over ground cinnamon in recipes such as this one because I can get the great cinnamon flavour without changing the colour of my syrup.

Sugar I sweeten my halva with white granulated sugar. It is versatile, mild tasting and dissolves well when heated with the apple juice and water.

How to make it

As you will see, making halva is pretty easy, even when it is fancy like this two-coloured and two-flavoured one! You can do this!

Step 1
In a medium saucepan combine the ingredients for the syrup.  Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and then simmer, covered, for approximately 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and let cool.  After the syrup has cooled, remove the apple core, apple peel and cinnamon sticks.

Step 2
In a large pot heat the olive oil and the semolina over medium heat.  Stir well and cook, stirring constantly until the semolina starts to brown slightly and smells toasty.  Add the grated apple to the pot and cook for an additional minute. Move pot off of the burner for the next step.

Step 3
Very carefully, add the syrup to the pot with the semolina and oil.  It will likely splatter a little bit, so be very careful and be sure that there are no children or pets near the oven.  Once all of the syrup has been added, return the pot to the heat.  Reduce heat to low-medium.

Step 4
Stir constantly.  The mixture will thicken and begin to pull away from the sides of the pot as you stir.  When it has reached this consistency, remove from the heat and transfer approximately 1/3 of the semolina mixture to the pot which used to contain the syrup.  Add in the raspberry jam and stir well until it is totally combined.  Your semolina will turn a lovely pink colour. 

Step 5
Ladle the semolina into a slightly greased mold like a bundt pan or a jell-o mold.  First, ladle in 1/2 of the plain apple semolina, then the raspberry semolina, and then top with the rest of the plain apple semolina.

Step 6
Let the halva cool and then refrigerate it for at least one hour. Remove from the mould and cut into serving pieces. 

Recipe substitutions

If you prefer not to use olive oil in the halva you can substitute it with vegetable oil or another oil. It will change the flavour of your halva, but not the texture.

If you prefer not to use raspberry jam you can substitute it with any type of jam you like. Strawberry or blueberry would be really nice here as well.

Helpful hints

Be cautious

I don’t want to scare you away from making this recipe, but you will need to exercise some caution. This recipe, as my other halva recipes, requires that you combine a sugar syrup to a semolina and olive oil mixture. If not done carefully, this may cause some splattering.  For this reason it is very important to cook the semolina in a large, deep pot, and to add the somewhat cooled liquid syrup slowly, and with the semolina off the heat.

Don’t throw away any part of the apple

You will need one entire apple for this recipe; entire because you will actually use every single part of it.  As you will read in the recipe, the peel and core will be used to flavour the syrup while the grated flesh will be added to the semolina.  I like to use Granny Smith apples for this halva, but any apple will do.

Choose your jam

I have used raspberry jam to flavour this halva, because I love the combination of apple and raspberry.  However, you can use your own imagination (or whatever jam you may have in your pantry), and play around with the flavours.  I think that blueberry or strawberry would be equally lovely paired with the apple.

Video

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Related recipes

If you love this halva recipe, then you are definitely going to love these too:

Halva The classic halva flavoured with orange and studded with raisins.

Marble halva I love this halva! You get the best of both worlds with the chocolate swirled into the regular halva.

Cactus pear, lavender and walnut halva This is what happens when halva gets fancy! Still easy to make, this gorgeous halva showcases amazing flavours, including my dad’s favourite fruit – cactus pear!

We love hearing from you!  If you have made our recipes, including this Greek halva, or if you have a question or comment, or simply want to say Hi!,  please leave a comment below!

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