Toast the walnuts on a dry pan over medium-low heat for 10 minutes or until they smell nutty and fragrant. Remove from the heat and let them cool down when you prepare other things
Maltose is difficult to scoop out when it's at cool room temperature. You can put the container in a bowl of warm water and the maltose will soften and easier to scoop. Oil the spoon or use a non-stick spray to coat the spoon and the maltose won't stick to the spoon when you scoop it
Line a 8 x 8 inch pan with parchment paper sling. If you don’t have a pan, you can skip this
Prepare the red dates:
Rinse the red dates clean with water. Put them in a heat-proof plate and steam over medium heat for 20 minutes
I use large dates and so I use a large straw to push the pits out. If you use small dates, you can use a small straw. It's very easy to remove the pits this way. Alternatively, you can always cut the dates and remove the pit
Put the pitted dates and 250 g water in a blender. Try not to add too much water. The more water you add, the longer you have to cook it later to evaporate the water. Blend into a smooth paste. Strain the mixture if necessary
Cook the paste:
Combine tapioca starch with water to make a slurry
Transfer the paste to a large non-stick pan. Cook over medium-low heat for 5 minutes and then add maltose and keep stirring until all the maltose has melted and the mixture starts to bubble. Stir the tapioca slurry and then pour 1/3 of the mixture into the paste as you stir. The mixture starts to thicken a bit, add the next 1/3 while stirring again. Then the last 1/3 of the tapioca slurry and keep stirring
Continue to cook until the mixture has reduced and formed a dough and when you fold it, it holds its shape. It may take 30-45 minutes to reach this stage. It's important to cook to this stage. If it's not cooked long enough, the candy will turn out too soft and mushy
Add the toasted walnuts or any nuts you use, goji berries, and black sesame seeds into the paste and stir to combine everything evenly. All the dry ingredients need to be coated by the paste. Remove from the heat
Shaping:
Transfer the mixture to a prepared pan. It's an extremely sticky mixture at this point. Cover the top with parchment paper and then use your palm to apply pressure to pack down the mixture. Use a rolling pin to roll or any flat-bottom pan to press on the surface to pack it down. The paste should fill up the pan corner to corner
If you don't use a pan, transfer to a piece of large parchment paper. Cover with another piece of large parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to flatten it to about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thickness. Use a bench scraper to help you shape it into a square or rectangle shape
Chill:
Transfer the pan to the refrigerator and let it chill in the fridge for at least 12 hours. It's hard to cut when it's not firm enough
Cutting:
Once the candy is chilled, it's easier to cut into size as it won't stick to the touch. Oil your knife before cutting for cleaner cut. You can cut into 60 small pieces, or 30 larger pieces
If you choose to wrap, use edible rice papers (which was how I remember they were wrapped in when I was a kid). I didn't have any, so I didn't wrap mine
Storage:
Transfer them to an air-tight container and keep them in the fridge for up to one week. They can be kept frozen for up to one month. You will notice that this candy won't freeze in the freezer because of maltose. It maintain its firm but pliable texture