Yasarbey Mardin Blue Almond Candy, Sugared Almonds, 250g & 500g

Mardin blue almond candy is one of southeastern Turkey's most recognisable confections, and this version is made by Yasarbey, a Mardin-based roaster and confectioner founded in 1989. Each piece starts as a whole Mardin almond, grown in the dry, sun-exposed hills around the city, then coated layer by layer in sugar syrup until it builds the smooth, oval, dragee-like shell that gives sugared almonds their name. This is the cornflower-blue variety, the colour Mardin is known for, with a thin, crisp sugar coating that cracks lightly before giving way to the firm roasted almond at the centre. Known in Turkish as badem sekeri and locally as imlebbes, a word from the Arabic for "coated," this sweet has been part of Mardin's table for centuries. It was traditionally served at weddings, births and festival days, and it still appears at celebrations and during holidays across Turkey and the Middle East. The repeated dipping method here is what Yasarbey calls cift batirimlik, or double-dipped, building a slightly thicker, longer-lasting shell around each almond. The taste is straightforward and not overly sweet: clean sugar up front, then the warm, slightly bitter depth of real almond. It works as an after-dinner sweet with Turkish coffee or tea, as a gift, and as a wedding or celebration favour, where the blue colour stands out on a dessert table or in small bags for guests. Mardin almond candy earned Turkish geographical-indication recognition in 2008, marking it as a protected regional product. Available in 250 g and 500 g; the 500 g holds roughly 250 pieces. Contains almonds. Store in a cool, dry place and keep sealed to protect the shell.