Since I decided to make baklava for my friend Alanna’s birthday, and both her mother and my friend Katie have requested the recipe, I’ve decided to post it on here! I had to compile the recipes of two different websites, plus add my own alterations based on my taste and various tidbits of comments and intuition gotten from the internet and the experiences I’ve had while making this tasty little treat.
Baklava is a sweet dessert of nuts, phyllo dough, and honey based from around the Ottoman Empire, popular from Greece through the Middle East. It’s been around for many centuries and in many variations, so the one I have written down is hardly a canon version — it’s just what happens to work best for me! I promise you that if you go through the effort of making it, you’ll find yourself with one of the most satisfyingly sweet and delicious desserts you’ve ever had, and it’s both easy and also great to show off to guests!
Baklava
You will want to start this recipe a couple days in advance, as the phyllo dough needs a day of refrigeration to thaw out, and the baked baklava is best after at least a day of setting to soak in its juices. Because of the fragility of the phyllo and the number of times you will have to layer it, expect the prep time before baking to be at least a half hour. I like to sit down at the kitchen table while putting it together, as it will take a little patience. Remember, working with a friend makes it much faster and easier!
Ingredients:
- 1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough (usually found in the freezer section of the grocery next to the frozen pie crusts
- 1 pound finely chopped nuts: walnuts work best, though pistachios are also popular — go for whichever nut you like best! (Anywhere above a half pound is acceptable, depending on your preference)
- 1.5 cups (three sticks) melted butter
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2.5 cups white sugar (half cup will be used separately in recipe from the two cups)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract to your taste
- 1 cup honey (12 ounces)
- 1 cup water
- (1 teaspoon of lemon juice if you’d like some extra zest)
- (For more flavor, you may add a half pound or so of chopped dried fruit, like dates or apricots)
Note: Keep phyllo dough in fridge for at least one day to thaw from freezer, do NOT unroll it until ready to work with it, and always keep unrolled phyllo covered with a damp cloth to keep it from drying out as you work.
Instructions:
1) Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9×13 inch pan (I like to use a pastry brush for buttering throughout the project).
2) Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon and 1/2 cup sugar**. Set aside. Cut stack in half to fit pan. Cover phyllo pile with damp cloth when not using it. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have at least 8 sheets layered (more if you would like a more solid bottom ‘crust’). Sprinkle 2-3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, and nuts, layering as you go. You may need to stagger layers to fit the edges of the pan. The top layer should be 6-8 sheets deep. Do not have nuts on the top, only butter.
3) Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way tot he bottom of the pan. If done in diamonds, do NOT cut from corner to corner; the design is attached at the bottom of this recipe. Do this before baking, as after it is baked the crust will be flakey and fragile. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
4) Start making sauce about 20 minutes before baklava has finished baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar has melted, stirring occasionally. *** Add vanilla and honey and let simmer.
5) Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool in open air: Leave lightly covered so it will not become soggy, and DO NOT refrigerate.
6) Let sit for at least 24 hours so that the sauce can soak in. The more days it sets (up to a week), the better it tastes.
7) Serve! The pieces will fit nicely in partially flattened cupcake papers, and this freezes well.
** If you have chopped fruit to add to the recipe, add it to the walnut mix.
*** For zest, add a teaspoon of lemon juice to the sugar and water.
How to diamond cut:
Credit from:
This recipe can serve at least sixteen people (plus the end pieces that you can sneak for yourself!), and will never cease to amaze family or guests who think you’ve worked twice as hard on it. You don’t need to use a mixer, hardly any dishes, and most of the magic is done by letting the baklava sit and soak up the honey-sweet syrup. So sit back and enjoy!
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