A dense, sweet confection made from tahini or other nut/seed pastes, popular throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean. It has a crumbly, fudge-like texture.
From Arabic حَلْوَى (ḥalwā), meaning 'sweetness' or 'sweet thing,' from the root ḥ-l-w meaning 'sweet.' The word spread throughout the Ottoman Empire and entered English through various Mediterranean languages in the 19th century.
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