Halvah Shortbread Recipes

Steps:

• Line an 8- x 8-inch baking pan with parchment paper.
• Combine sugar, vanilla seeds and lemon zest with 1/2 cup water in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring to dissolve sugar. Allow mixture to simmer into a syrup, without stirring, until temperature registers 245 degrees on candy thermometer.
• While syrup is cooking, place tahini and salt in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with paddle. Beat on medium speed. Carefully stream syrup into tahini with mixer running. Mix until syrup is incorporated and mixture begins to pull away from sides of bowl, about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Be careful not to overmix. The halvah texture should be fudgelike, not sandy.
• Working quickly with a heatproof spatula, transfer mixture to the prepared pan. Place another piece of parchment on top and use your hands on top of the parchment to smooth out halvah. Cool completely to room temperature and cut into squares. Store at room temperature, well wrapped in plastic, for a week.

Steps:

• Toast sesame seeds: Put them in a nonstick pan over medium-low heat and stir every 30 seconds until golden brown, about 4 minutes. Pour onto a large plate to cool.
• Combine butter, confectioners' sugar and tahini in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until smooth, 4 to 5 minutes. Scrape bowl. Add flour and salt, and mix on low speed until dough is smooth.
• Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface. Divide it in half and knead until smooth. Roll each piece of dough into a log about 1 inch in diameter.
• Roll each log in sesame seeds, coating logs completely. They may be difficult to maneuver, but they patch up easily. Wrap them tightly in parchment paper, twisting at each end. Refrigerate until firm, at least 4 hours or up to overnight.
• Heat oven to 300 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Slice logs into 1/4-inch-thick coins and place on prepared baking sheets 2 inches apart. Bake until firm around edges and not colored, 14 to 16 minutes. Cool completely on baking sheet. Store in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375°F.
• With a food processor, or by hand, cream the butter with the tahini.
• Add the salt and brown sugar. Blend until smooth.
• Sprinkle in the flour, blending well.
• Mix in the chopped nuts. The dough will be very stiff.
• Lightly butter 2 7-inch pie plates or shallow baking pans.
• Press the dough to evenly cover the bottom and sides of the pie plates so that the thickness is not more than 1/4 inch.
• Press a few whole nuts into the surface to decorate.
• Bake the shortbread for 15 minutes and then check it frequently, every couple of minutes, and remove it from the oven as soon as the edges are golden brown.
• Be careful not to overbake.
• While it's still warm, cut each shortbread into 8 or 10 wedges in the pan; don't wait until it's cool or it will crumble.