I have two lovely things for you. One is this excellent recipe for halva jelly by Sumayya Usmani from Mountain Berries and Desert Spice (published by Frances Lincoln, an imprint of The Quarto Group). The other thing I have is a copy of this delightful book to giveaway. For details on how to get your mitts on the book scroll to the bottom of the post.
Here’s what Sumayya has to say about the jelly:
This is more of a jelly-like dessert than a traditional halva, but it is inspired by the flourishing pomegranate trees that grow in areas of Pakistan – those lush green leaves that hide away a shiny fruit heavy with jewel-like seeds. This dish is best served in small pretty glasses, decorated with gold leaf, either as a light finish to a heavy meal, or a palate cleanser between courses.
Preparation 40 minutes + chilling | Cooking 10 minutes | Serves 4–6
Ingredients:
- 5 pomegranates, seeds only
- 250ml water
- 2 cardamom pods, seeds removed and finely ground
- 120g caster sugar
- 1 tsp agar agar powder
- 1 tsp rose water or kewra (screwpine extract)
To decorate:
- gold leaf
- pomegranate seeds
Blitz the pomegranate seeds in a blender or juicer, then pour it through a sieve to remove the seeds. Pour the juice into a bowl, allow to settle, then add the water, finely ground cardamom and sugar. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and heat gently. Do not let the juice come to the boil, keep it on a simmer, and slowly add the agar agar, stirring until dissolved. Add the rose water or kewra and turn off the heat. Allow to cool for 2 minutes so it doesn’t crack the serving glasses. (Agar-based jelly can set without refrigeration so don’t leave it any longer.) Pour the jelly into glasses and chill in the fridge for around 30 minutes, until set. To serve, decorate with gold leaf and pomegranate seeds.
Yield: 4 - 6
- 5 pomegranates, seeds only
- 250ml water
- 2 cardamom pods, seeds removed and finely ground
- 120g caster(superfine) sugar
- 1 tsp agar agar powder
- 1 tsp rose water or kewra (screwpine extract)
Blitz the pomegranate seeds in a blender or juicer, then pour it through a sieve to remove the seeds. Pour the juice into a bowl, allow to settle, then add the water, finely ground cardamom and sugar. Pour the mixture into a saucepan and heat gently. Do not let the juice come to the boil, keep it on a simmer, and slowly add the agar agar, stirring until dissolved. Add the rose water or kewra and turn off the heat. Allow to cool for 2 minutes so it doesn’t crack the serving glasses. (Agar-based jelly can set without refrigeration so don’t leave it any longer.) Pour the jelly into glasses and chill in the fridge for around 30 minutes, until set. To serve, decorate with gold leaf and pomegranate seeds.
Mountain Berries and Desert Spice is the most gorgeous book. The cover, all pinks and oranges, draws you in. The recipes are often flowery, spiced and sweet with milk and honey. Nestling amongst the 70 recipes are gems like spiced apple samosas, spiced and floral truffles, peshawari pistachio ice cream and a mulberry and blackberry stew. And the photography, oh the photography! By Joanna Yee, it’s warm and textured and dare I saw it, kind of heady and sexy. Yes I did say it.
If you would like to win a copy of this lovely recipe book, worth £20 then there are lots of ways to enter the giveaway – see the Rafflecopter form below. The first way is just to leave a comment on this post. Easy peasy. Closing date 7th July 2017. How to enter:
- Complete the Rafflecopter form below to confirm your entries made via blog comments, Twitter, Facebook etc.
- This giveaway will close on 7th July 2017.
- Please read the rules below.
- Winners are announced on the Rafflecopter form after the prize has been claimed by the winner.
- First timers: Please watch how Rafflecopter works (video)! It is 46 seconds long. It explains everything.
- If no form is showing, hit refresh and it should appear.
- Complete the form – or your beloved entries will not go into the draw. And that would be such a waste of time.
- Mandatory entries need to be completed first – so leave a blog comment before you try and complete any of the other methods of entry.
- Want more chances to win? Come back daily after tweeting about the giveaway and fill the form in again.
- If you are viewing this by email you will need to click through to enter.
Rules and things:
- Open to anyone over the age of 18, UK. Sorry to anyone younger or further afield.
- There’s 1 x copy of Mountain Berries and Desert Spice to giveaway worth £20 (RRP) to giveaway to one person. There’s no cash alternative to the prize and the prize is not transferable. No part or parts of the prize may be substituted for other benefits, items or additions.
- Instructions form part of the terms and conditions. Entries using any software or automated process to make bulk entries will obviously be disqualified. The winner will be picked at random using software and then contacted by email. If you win and then don’t respond to this email within 7 days then another winner will be picked so check your emails and your spam! The goodies will be delivered to the winner as soon as possible after you have sent me your delivery address.
- I am running this giveaway on behalf of Quarto who will be responsible for sending the prize to you by post should you win. Their decision is final and binding and no correspondence will be entered into.
- This is where I get all stern – please don’t say you have liked the post and followed me on Twitter and Tweeted away like a Tweety thing if you haven’t as guess what? If you win I will check you did do the things you said you did. It’s only fair after all. And I do like fairness.
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Holly Bell 
looks great
Lovely giveaway
Ah wonderful, I love the summer season when I can have smoothies and berries on my morning porridge
This looks really nice, will certainly try it out!
sounds lovely
oh yes please thank for the chance
Always looking for new recipes with fruit
This looks so yummy and I have everything in to make it except pomegranate – I guess I’d best dash to the shop! :D
MY FAVE FRUIT BLUEBERRIES THIS WOULD BE LOVELY
Looks great would love to win
pomegranate rose and cardamom jelly looks amazing im going to have to try it out x
Wow, this looks a great book and would surely inspire me to try and use the fruit from my garden in different ways
Looks like a lovely cookbook for a beginner like me! :)
count me in please, thanks for the giveaway! :)
Great giveaway – I love cookbooks!
The recipe sounds great!
I can’t wait to try this out, it looks so refreshing, perfect for a summer’s day!
I love pomegranate but I’ve never cooked with it before! Would love to try some of these recipes!
Thanks for the review and giveaway.
sounds wonderful thank you for this giveaway
Ooh delicious desserts :)
Love the look of those jellies. The book sounds like it contains some lovely recipes
Thanks you. Sounds like some interesting recipes
Love to #Win!!
Thank you for offering such a splendid prize, this would be a wonderful addition to any collection of cookery books.
This cookbook looks fantastic and i’m sure it has some delicious recipes in it too.
Thanks so much for the chance to win
Beautiful Cover Photo. Really creative and unique cookbook.
Have just borrowed your cook book from the library and have spent a lovely (interrupted as my toddler found out that she doesn’t like flies and therefore couldn’t let go of mummy) afternoon perusing your recipes. I’ll be popping by your blog to get inspiration for some dinners.
the recipe looks lovely would love to try out myself
I’ve never used spices in my desserts (not that I can think of anyway) and I’d love to give it a go!
Looks amazing :)
Sounds like a great book
The recipe sounds just heavenly and the rest of the book so intriguing x
Lovely prize,please add me to the draw
This would be amazing
What a lovely giveaway and a lovely recipe too!x
So many yummy recipes to try…so few dinners to fit them all in after. x
I love cookbooks
The book sounds lovely
This would be awesome
Lovely giveaway thank-you
Lovely giveaway, I love cooking from unusual cook books you can find some right gems
This sounds super!
Lovely recipe, uses lots of the flavours I like.
we use to eat pomegranates with a pin when we were kids it took ages.
This cookbook looks right up my street – thanks for the chance!
I do like (and use) her first book ‘Summers Under the Tamarind Tree’ so I’d love to nab a copy of this, her new book.
I love pomegranates. This sounds like a lovely recipe book.
This looks like a very delicious recipe. IT would be great to see what else the cookbook has. x
That looks and sounds like a lovely recipe, especially for summer. Great to see there’s no gelatine in it so no need to adapt to make veggie.
love the sound of unusual deserts! anything with flavours you wouldn’t normally expects is always amazingly decadent!
inspirational for an experimental cook like me!
What a wonderful sounding book, I’d love to give the recipes a try
A beautiful and ‘different’ book.
Thank you
love a good cookbook! thanks for the giveaway
I’m glad the jelly doesn’t use gelatine.
brilliant book looks fab
I bought Sumayya’s book when I was on a self-imposed ban on buying cookbook – now that I’m back on the ban, she’s released another one! Maybe this time I can get my hands on a copy without breaking the ban :)
the jelly looks lovely.Would be great to serve at a dinner party x
Thank You for the giveaway – looks a great book!
Thank You for the giveaway Lovely :) x
I live in Oman and this is a very traditional mix of Middle Eastern flavours! Would it be possible to substitute in “normal” gelatine in place of agar as I don’t think I can get hold of it? Many thanks.
What an enticing recipe! Would love a copy of the book especially as I hope to get a good crop of blueberries this year.