Sweet Semolina and Dried Apricot Pilaf (Turkish Helva)

This lovely dessert or late-breakfast dish is made by toasting coarse semolina and almonds in butter, then simmering them with sweetened milk and dried apricots. The result is crumbly, aromatic and pilaf-like. It's called helva in Turkey, though it's not to be confused with another Turkish dessert called halvah, which is made with tahini and is fairly common in North America.

2 cups whole milk
¾ cup sugar
1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup coarse semolina (6 oz)
½ cup slivered almonds
½ cup dried apricots, finely diced
¼ tsp. pure almond extract
pinch sea salt

To Serve:
crème fraîche or orange sorbet

In a small saucepan, bring the whole milk to a boil with the sugar. Simmer over low heat for 5 minutes.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Add the semolina and almonds and cook over moderate heat, stirring constantly, until golden and fragrant, about 8 minutes.

Remove from the heat and gradually stir in the milk mixture, apricots, almond extract and salt.

Cover and let stand until the liquid is completely absorbed, about 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve with crème fraîche or sorbet.

Makes 6 servings.