Turkish delight is traditionally presented to guests who come over on holiday visits. The sweet sells for between TL 5 and TL 30 per kilogram, and Turkish delight sellers say they are pleased with the increasing sales ahead of the holiday season. In Adana province, Turkish delight producers have already begun working overtime to meet the demand for the product ahead of the eid. One of these producers, Adnan Özdoğru, says: “We can see that when compared to previous years, the demand this eid is at the highest level ever. We had been planning to start production a few days ahead of the eid, but due to the demand from retail customers we began working overtime as soon as Ramadan began.” Turkish delight comes in many varieties, including plain, pistachio, clotted cream, rose and a variety of fruit flavors.He also mentions that consumers can make their own Turkish delight at home should they wish. The third-generation Turkish delight maker says that it is not too difficult a recipe, and notes that lokum-making is a rooted Turkish tradition. The ingredients, he says, are simple: one kilogram of carrots, two cups of sugar, one package of biscuits, one mug of ground hazelnut and a bit of coconut.
Özdoğru says to grate the carrots, and then boil them together with two cups of sugar and one mug of water until they soften. This mixture should be set aside to cool, and then one package of biscuits should be broken into the mix. Mix in the hazelnuts into the dough, then cut them into small cubes. This Turkish delight is then dipped into coconut, and served with toothpicks. Özdoğru said last year Turkish delight producers were unable to meet their sales goals due to economic troubles, noting that they viewed the current Ramadan season as a way out of that difficulty. The sector boasts annual sales of $1.5 billion, and about half of the yearly sales take place during Ramadan. He also recommended that, given the popularity of the sweet, consumers take care to ensure that they are buying quality products.
