Pomegranate halva

'The Virtuous Tart' author Susan Jane White wants you to have your cake and eat it too by turning pesky sugar cravings into a nutritional slam-dunk. Try this great pomegranate recipe for starters

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Pomegranate halva

Good enough to make a devout friar feel like John Travolta. Buying 36 individual portions of halva will cost you the same price as an inkjet printer. My version costs way less than a cartridge. Pomegranate halva is as close as youโ€™ll come to an orgasm with your clothes on.

Makes 36 portions

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons extra virgin coconut oil

Up to 125ml maple syrup, coconut nectar, agave or raw honey

1 tsp vanilla extract

A pinch of sea salt flakes

340g light tahini

4 tbsp pomegranate seeds

2โ€“3 tbsp runny raw

Honey

Method:

1. On a very timid heat, gently melt the coconut oil in a small saucepan. Let your preferred choice of syrup, the vanilla and a pinch of salt join the party. With a fork, beat through the tahini and pomegranate seeds. Keep back some ruby red seeds to tickle the top.

2. Scrape half the mixture into a small rectangular container lined with cling film. Dribble some runny honey over it and scrape the remaining mixture over it. Prod it with a fork and give it a swirl to move the honey about without incorporating it into the tahini. These will taste like caramel swirls. Decorate with some more pom seeds.

3. Freeze for 4 hours. Just like ice cream, the halva must be stored in the freezer or else it will melt into a holy mess. Slice big cubes from it and marvel at its virtuous decadence.

The Virtuous Tart by Susan Jane White is published by Gill & Macmillan and costs ยฃ21.99.

Photograph: Joanne Murphy