Sellou: Almond Halwa

I've heard many great reviews on Sellou: a Moroccan almond and flour paste dessert (more like candy). I decided I had to try it for myself. I have to say, its nice. But moderation is important. This tasty sweet has lots of fat, sugar and calories.

The original recipe came from cookingwithalia.com. I made the following changes: I used blanched almonds instead of almonds in their skins. I used clarified butter instead of regular butter. I also added a quarter teaspoon of crushed mastic (which turned out to not be enough to give any disctinct change in flavor).

Sellou
2 1/4 cup Flour
2 cups Blanched almonds
1 cup Sesame Seed
1 tsp Anise seeds
1/2 Tbsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Mastic (optional)
Pinch of salt
1 cup Powdered Sugar
8 Tbsp Clarified Butter
1/2 cup Honey

1) Bake flour in a 350F oven for 40 minutes. Mix every 10 minutes.
2) Roast almonds, sesame seeds, and anise seeds for 15-20 in a pan. Stir constantly.
3) In a food processor, grind 2/3 of the nut mixture, cinnamon, mastic, and salt finely.
4) Remove from processor and grind the rest of the nut mixture coarsely.
5) In a large bowl, combine nuts, sifted powdered sugar, and sifted flour.
6) Add in the butter and honey and mix with your (clean) hands.
7) Form a dome with the entire mixture and decorate with nuts.