Turkish Delight by Haci Bekir - Assorted Nuts, Rose and Plain Flavored Treat – Vegan, Gluten-Free, Halal, and Dairy-Free Gummy Candy Dessert - 325GR/11.5OZ Gourmet Box

aci Bekir. - Traditionally made in Turkey - Best Quality Turkish Delight - Freshly made From the time of its founding during the Ottoman Empire, the name Haci Bekir has become a legend in Ottoman and Turkish confectionery and a leading symbol of this art. The Haci Bekir story began in 1777 when Bekir Effendi moved from Araç in Kastamonu, a province bordering the Black Sea coast of modern Turkey, to Istanbul. Here, he opened a small shop in the Bahcekapi district of what we now call the Old City, in which he began to produce and sell varieties of lokum, or Turkish delight and akide, the boiled sweets much loved by Turks. On fulfilment of his religious obligation to make pilgrimage to the Muslim holy city of Mecca, Bekir Effendi became known as Haci Bekir, a title of respect granted to those who have completed the hac, or pilgrimage. Today, Haci Bekir's tradition is being carried on by the family as Ali Muhiddin Haci Bekir Confectioners, and the company can proudly say that this first shop represents the only business in Istanbul which has operated from the same premises for a period of more than two hundred years. The production of confectionery in Istanbul dates back to the 16th century, when honey and molasses were used as sweeteners, and water and flour were the binding agents. Towards the end of the 18th century sugar produced in refineries in Europe began to appear in Turkey. This new sugar was called 'kelle şekeri' since it was sold in cone-shaped blocks, and it was this sugar which Haci Bekir favoured in his production of akide, granulating, melting and boiling it with the addition of natural flavours and colourings such as rose and cinnamon. With the discovery of starch by a German scientist in 1811, Haci Bekir began using this instead of flour.