Recipe

Baklava Recipe

Print Recipe

Ingredients

1 lb Phyllo dough
2 ts Warm water
1 1/2 tb Vegetable oil
A medium lemon; Juice of
1/2 c + 2 tbsp honey
1/4 c Sugar
Filling
Syrup
Shredded peel from a medium lemon
Chocolate chips;
10 tb Unsalted butter or margarine
Dough
4 c sliced nuts;
2 c Sugar
1/4 ts Ground allspice
2 ts Ground cinnamon
Shredded peel from a medium orange
1 c Cold water
1/4 ts Ground cloves

Directions

Step #1 Make the filling: Simply mix the nuts, sugar, spices in a bowl & set aside.
Step #2 Make the pastry part: Melt the butter or margarine over low heat/flame in a small saucepan & keep handy, with a pastry brush at hand.
Step #3 Personally, I prefer to just skip this whole process & spray the sheets of dough with Pam instead.
Step #4 It works just as well.
Step #5 But if you want to do it up right the first time, read on.
Step #6 Remove the phyllo dough from its inner lining.
Step #7 Unfold it so it lies flat & keep it covered with a moistened kitchen towel while you work with the pastry.
Step #8 Dip your pastry brush in the butter/oil and coat the bottom & sides of a 10 x 15 x 1" jelly roll pan (or a 9 x 13 x 2 cake pan in a pinch--the important thing is that it be deep enough to accept all the sugar syrup you're going to pour this into it).
Step #9 Trim the sheets of phyllo so they fit the pan.
Step #10 (You'll probably have enough for another dish, such as wrapped chicken or spana- kopita (8-9).
Step #11 ) Layer one sheet of phyllo in the pan, brush it with butter/oil or spray it, & cover it with another sheet.
Step #12 Repeat.
Step #13 After 5 sheets, Sprinkle top some of the nut mixture onto the sheets, covering them pretty completely.
Step #14 Repeat the above every 3 sheets of dough until you have no more nuts left, then top this with 5 more sheets of dough.
Step #15 (Tip from personal experience: At least the first time, yes you gotta butter each sheet of phyllo.
Step #16 The pastry is very dry without it.
Step #17 That's why I like to use PAM instead) Don't forget to cover the remaining dough each time you retrieve a sheet of it from the pile.
Step #18 Score the pastry by cutting into diamond shapes with a sharp knife.
Step #19 The book says to cut only partway through, but I always cut all the way through.
Step #20 bake this at 350 for 1 hr.
Step #21 The pastry should be golden on top.
Step #22 While the baklava is in the oven, prepare the syrup: mix the sugar, water, citrus peel & 1/2 c honey in a medium saucepan.
Step #23 Slowly heat the mixture over med-heat/flame, swirling the pan, uncovered & undistrubed, until the sugar dissolves; then simmer, until the mixture reaches 212 on a candy thermo- meter (about 10 mins).
Step #24 Remove the syrup from the heat & now add the re- maining honey and the lemon juice.
Step #25 Cool completely.
Step #26 To complete the pastry, when it is done take it from the oven and as soon as possible pour the syrup over the top of the entire hot pan.
Step #27 If you can stand it, let the baklava sit for at least 4 hrs or overnight.
Step #28 This recipe freezes; or you can store it at about room temp; or, you can bring it to my house & not worry about storage.
Step #29 :) to make the Hawaiian baklava, the lemon & orange peel with pineapple juice, I replaced the walnuts with macadamia nuts, & tossed in some dried pineapple chunks & coconut into the nut mix.
Step #30 Spices could be replaced by ginger, but I think that is gilding the lily.
Step #31 To make choclava, the last layer of nuts before putting the "lid" on the pastry can also contain a layer of chocolate chips.
Step #32 I like to put the choco- late chips near the top rather than the bottom so as not to scorch the chips.
Step #33 The Hawaiian baklava got a layer of white chocolate chips.
Step #34 Any commentary from those growing up in households where this recipe was made routinely are most welcome.
Step #35 Perhaps some of you made it with pistachios? I just remembered seeing that variation in some Greek restaurants.
Step #36 (I wish I could be an honorary Greek-American; I don't speak the language but I sure do love the food!).
Enjoy the Baklava recipe