Baklava

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Mouth watering and decadent baklava to accompany your mediterrean meal

prep time

60 mins

cook time

70 mins

serves

For the Syrup

2 cups sugar and 1 cup honey
1 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons light corn syrup (optional)
2 (3-inch) sticks cinnamon (optional)
4 to 6 whole cloves or
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom (optional)

For the Filling

450- blanched almonds
pistachios
walnuts
or any combination
finely chopped or coarsely ground (about 4 cups)
1/4 cup sugar
1 to 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves and cardamom

To make the syrup

Stir the sugar, water, lemon juice, corn syrup, cinnamon sticks, and/or cloves over low heat until the sugar dissolves, about 5 minutes. Stop stirring, increase the heat to medium, and cook until the mixture is slightly syrupy, about 5 minutes. Discard the cinnamon sticks and whole cloves. Let coo

To make the filling

Combine all the filling ingredients
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease a 12-by-9-inch or 13-by-9-inch baking pan
Place a sheet of phyllo in the prepared pan and lightly brush with butter. Repeat with 7 more sheets. Spread with half of the filling. Top with 8 more sheets, brushing each with butter. Use any torn sheets in the middle layer. Spread with the remaining nut mixture and end with a top layer of 8 sheets, continuing to brush each with butter. Trim any overhanging edges
Using a sharp knife, cut to form diamond shapes
Just before baking, lightly sprinkle the top of the pastry with cold water. This inhibits the pastry from curling. Bake for 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to 300 degrees and bake until golden brown, about 15 additional minutes
Cut through the scored lines. Drizzle the cooled syrup slowly over the hot baklava and let cool for at least 4 hours. Cover and store at room temperature for up to 1 week. If the baklava dries out while being stored, drizzle with a little additional hot syrup

Baklava is a layered pastry dessert made of filo pastry, filled with chopped nuts, and sweetened with syrup or honey. It was one of the most popular sweet pastries of Ottoman cuisine. it’s also very popular in Greece

The pre-Ottoman origin of the dish is unknown, but, in modern times, it is a common dessert of Iranian, Turkish and Arab cuisines, and other countries of the Levant and Maghreb, along with the South Caucasus, Balkans, and Central Asia.

Dietary Information

Nutritional Information

Typical values*	per Serving	contents
Total Energy:		1042 Kcal,
Protein:	6%	59 kcal
Fat:	44%	458 kcal
Carbohydrates:	50%	525 kcal

Factoid

Modern baklava may have been invented in Turkey during the Ottoman Empire, then modified in Greece. Many Meditteranean countries have their own versions of baklava, slightly tweaking the recipe to make it unique.

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