Turkish Delight

Modern recipes for Turkish Delight use gelatin but the traditional recipe produces a superior texture and is vegetarian-friendly.

Ingredients

800 g (28 oz, 4 cups) sugar
120 g (4½ oz, 1 cup) cornflour (cornstarch)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp rosewater
1 tsp cream of tartar
Few drops of food colouring

For the dusting
160 g (5½ oz, 1 cup) icing sugar (confectioner’s sugar)
30 g (1 oz, ¼ cup) cornflour (cornstarch)

Extra icing sugar

Method

1	Place 375 ml (12½ fl oz, 1½ cups) water in a pan. Add in the lemon juice and sugar. Bring to the boil while stirring.
2	Once the mixture comes to the boil keep stirring until the temperature reaches 115°C (240°F) on a candy thermometer. This is also known as the soft-ball stage.
3	Turn the heat off from the sugar mixture. In a separate pan add 500 ml (17 fl oz, 2 cups) of water. Add in the cream of tartar and the cornflour. Whisk to remove lumps.
4	Continue whisking while you bring the cornflour water to the boil. Once it becomes a gluey paste remove from the heat.
5	Add a small amount of the the sugar syrup to the gluey paste and whisk to incorporate. Continue adding the syrup a bit at a time, whisking between each addition.
6	Bring the mixture to the boil. Turn the heat down and allow to simmer very gently for about an hour. Stir frequently.
7	By now the mixture should be an amber colour. Add in the rosewater and a few drops of food colouring. Mix well.
8	Take a 20cmx20cm (8″x8″) baking tin, oil lightly, line with baking paper and lightly oil the baking paper. Pour in the Turkish Delight, cover and leave for several hours to cool completely.
9	Dust the Turkish Delight with icing sugar and turn it out onto a surface dusted liberally with icing sugar. Remove the baking paper.
10	Cut the slab of Turkish Delight into squares using a pizza cutter or a lightly-oiled knife.
11	Sift the icing sugar and cornflour into a large bowl and add the squares of Turkish Delight. Mix well.
12	Storage: Store the Turkish Delight in a sealed box together with all the icing sugar/cornflour mixture. Do not store in the ‘fridge.

Titli’s Tips

There are many flavours/colours you can try with Turkish Delight:

Rosewater and pink/red (Get Rosewater from Asian or Middle-Eastern stores).
Orange Water and orange (get Orange Water from Middle-Eastern stores).
Lemon and yellow (Use a few drops of lemon flavouring).
Add pistachios or crushed walnuts to the mixture and colour it green.
Add in chopped dates or cinnamon and leave it a natural colour.