A healthier halva that’s higher in fibre & healthy fats – these Healthier Vegan Pistachio Halva are such a delicious treat that couldn’t be easier to make!
Halva is a Middle Eastern dessert that I grew up eating. Traditionally made of tahini, honey or sugar with added nuts or spices like cinnamon/cardamom. I wanted to create a healthier version, so I substituted the sugar/honey for dates. There is no cooking involved either – all you need to do is blend the ingredients together and freeze!
What you need to make these healthier vegan pistachio halva:
Dates – Traditionally halva is sweetened with sugar or honey. To make it healthier, I’m using dates. I like to use Medjool dates because they’re super soft and fudgy. They’re not the cheapest ingredient to buy, so you can substitute them with soft pitted dates that, which you can find in the baking/snack isle of most supermarkets. Some dates tend to be on the dryer side. If you’re using dry dates you may want to soak them in boiling water for 20-30 minutes, then drain + rinse before adding to the blender. Dates are a great alternative to processed sugar and honey. They’re a great source of vitamins, minerals & fibre. They also go so well with tahini!
Tahini – This is the main ingredient in halva – you can’t really make it with any other nut/seed butter. I make a healthier version of ‘fudge’ using a similar recipe by blending dates with peanut or almond butter. What makes this recipe taste like halva is the use of tahini. It’s basically tahini butter/paste – you can get it in most supermarket, health shops or online. If you’ve been following me for a while you’ll know how much I love the stuff as I use it in so many of my recipes.
Salt – A small pinch is all you need. It works wonders to enhance the flavours!
Cardamom powder – in my opinion this is such an under-appreciated, underused spice. Like cinnamon, cardamom works really well in sweet treats. It’s goes perfectly with both dates and tahini, so I would highly recommend using it. Just like with any spice, you can omit if you can’t find it or don’t like the taste of it.
Pistachios – used in most traditional halva recipes to add an extra depth of flavour, but also a really nice crunch. Pistachios are heavily used in Middle Eastern desserts. Again, I think they go so well with dates and tahini.
Why you need to try this healthier vegan pistachio halva recipe:
- It’s super easy to make (no cooking involved)
- Made with only 4 ingredients
- Can easily be adjusted to taste
- It’s vegan
- Dairy-free
- Gluten-free
- Made using healthier ingredients!
- It’s also super delicious & decadent without being too heavy.
Healthier Vegan Pistachio Halva
Ingredients
- 200 g Medjool dates or any soft dates
- 180 ml tahini
- 1/2 tsp cardamom optional
- Pinch of salt
- 20 g pistachios roughly chopped
Instructions
- Add the dates and tahini to a food processor along with a pinch of salt and cardamom and blend until you have a smooth, well-combined mixture.
- Transfer into moulds, then top with some pistachios and freeze for 1 hour.
- Alternatively you can press down into a loaf tin lined with baking paper, freeze for 1 hour, then slice into squares.
- Store in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Nutrition
Awesome recipe, easy to make and soooooo delicious
I’m so glad you enjoyed it 😀 x
This look so fresh and delicious.Thank you so much for the recipe!
Thank you 😀 Let me know if you try it!
What are tahini
Tahini is sesame paste/butter. Like peanut butter, but made with sesames 🙂
I like
Thank you 🙂
Beautiful
Thank you 🙂 Glad you enjoyed them!
These little bits are delicious! Thank you for the recipe. Super easy to make. I added a little honey to make the pistachios stick to the rose petals.
Aw so glad you enjoyed them Clara 😀 I like the idea of adding honey to the pistachios. Would give them a really nice shine too 🙂
Tahini is a super food for me, i m from Greece, and we use tahini a lot in our salads, recipies in generally, i love it, it helped me so much in my diet, against osteoporosis, as a source of calcium also! Try it, you re going to love it! Thanks for your wonderful ideas, Nadia!
Hi Grigoria 🙂 I eat tahini on a daily basis! Usually in the morning in my porridge, smoothies or just on toast with jam or date syrup. I also use it in a lot of my recipes too 🙂 Thanks for your comment x
So clever, delicious and simple recipies, dear Nadia!
Thank you so much Grigoria 🙂 x
I’m going to try it … definitely !
Let me know what you think once you’ve tried it! 😀
Super delicious..Being an Indian it was very relatable.Thanks so much.
So glad you enjoyed them Mamta 😀 Thank you for your feedback!
Can I use sugar to replace madjool date??
Hi Andrée 🙂 Dates are the main ingredient, you can use other types of dates. If you remove the dates you’ll have to use sugar/honey, which is the traditional way of making halva. There are loads of recipes online if that’s what you’re looking for 🙂