A black plate topped with cubes of pink Turkish delight dusted with icing sugar

Turkish delight

Name: Turkish delight
Total time: 1 h 30 min
Yield: Makes 36 squares
Cuisine: Turkish
Ingredients: flavourless oil for the tin; 400g caster sugar; ½ lemon juiced; 150g cornflour; ½ tsp cream of tartar; 2 tsp rose water; a drop pink food colouring; icing sugar for dusting

Save recipe

Makes 36 squares

A little effort

Total time: 1 hr and 30 mins

+ cooling

0 reviews

loading...

Get 5 months for £5 when you subscribe today

Gently perfumed with floral rose water, these squares of turkish delight make a beautiful edible gift or sweet party nibble

Gluten free

Skip to ingredients

Alternatives

Complete the dish

Try this easy recipe for Turkish delight, then check out our peppermint creams, Baileys truffles, tiffin, candied orange peel, marron glacé and more Christmas sweets recipes.

Learn about Turkish coffee culture with our expert barista Celeste Wong's guide, including traditional rituals, how to order it and the perfect recipe for at-home brewing. Also try our classic Turkish ice cream for a cooling treat.

Ingredients

Nutrition

flavourless oil

for the tin
400g caster sugar
½ lemon

juiced
150g cornflour
½ tsp cream of tartar
2 tsp rose water
a drop pink food colouring
icing sugar

for dusting

Nutrition: per serving

kcal60
fat0.1g
carbs14.8g
sugars11.1g

Method

step 1

Oil a 20cm square tin. Put the sugar, lemon juice and 175ml of water in a large pan. Heat gently for 10 minutes, swirling the pan, until the sugar has dissolved. Turn up the heat and bring to a boil but do not stir. If there any sugar crystals, brush down the sides of the pan with a wet pastry brush. Boil for 15-20 minutes or until it reaches 118-120C or the 'soft boil stage' on a sugar thermometer.
step 2

Meanwhile, when the sugar hits 113C, whisk together the cornflour, cream of tartar and 50ml of water in a separate large pan to form a smooth paste. Add another 350ml of water, whisking well. Put over a medium heat and, whisking continuously, bring to a boil for 2-3 minutes or until thickened and stiff.
step 3

Slowly add the sugar mixture in batches, stirring, making sure it’s well incorporated after each addition. Reduce the heat to low and stir frequently for 45 minutes-1 hour or until it turns golden and very thick, ensuring there are no lumps.
step 4

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the rosewater and food colouring. Pour into the prepared tin and smooth over the top. Leave to set in a cool place overnight. Oil a sharp knife and dust a worksurface with icing sugar. Turn out the turkish delight and cut into little squares, dusting each square all over with icing sugar.

Find more edible gift ideas

Comments, questions and tips

Rate this recipe

What is your star rating out of 5?1 star out of 52 stars out of 53 stars out of 54 stars out of 55 stars out of 5

Choose the type of message you'd like to post

CommentQuestionTip

Overall rating

0 reviews

Want to see this content?

This page contains olivemagazine content provided by Google reCAPTCHA. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as Google reCAPTCHA may use cookies and other technologies. To view this content, choose 'Accept and continue' to allow Google reCAPTCHA and its required purposes.

Accept and continue