Baklava

Baklava is a very rich sweet pastry made out of layers nuts and filo pastry sweetened with sugar syrup and/or honey. Its main characteristic is crunchy, nutty and very sweet (one of the sweetest desserts I tried).

Baklava is a rich and sweet pastry made with layers of nuts and filo pastry, sweetened with a syrup of sugar and/or honey. One of the most notable characteristics of Baklava is its texture, which is a combination of crunchy, nutty and very sweet. I had my first taste of Baklava when a colleague brought it back as a gift from his home country of Jordan. He had brought back different variations and I found that it was quite authentic. At first, I found it to be quite sweet, but after having it in small quantities, I found it to be quite enjoyable, especially when paired with coffee.

Like many popular foods, the origins of Baklava are not well-known. Many ethnic groups have claimed to have invented it, from the Greeks to the Arabs. However, the strongest evidence suggests that it was created in the imperial kitchens of the Topkapi Palace and based on a Central Asian Turkic tradition of layered breads. In the past, Baklava was considered a luxury food due to the use of exotic ingredients, but today it can be found in Middle Eastern and Greek specialty shops, as well as being made at home as the filo dough is widely available in supermarkets.

Baklava

★★★★★ 5 from 10 reviews

• Author: Raymund
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 50 mins
• Total Time: 1 hour 10 mins
• Category: Dessert
• Cuisine: Greek

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Description

Baklava is a very rich sweet pastry made out of layers nuts and filo pastry sweetened with sugar syrup and/or honey. Its main characteristic is crunchy, nutty and very sweet (one of the sweetest desserts I tried).

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Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

• 375 g filo / phyllo pastry
• 150 g walnuts
• 100 g almonds
• 50 g pistachio
• 3 tbsp powdered sugar
• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
• 1 cup melted butter
• 3/4 cup water
• 3/4 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

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Instructions

1. Using a food processor finely chop together walnuts, almonds and pistachios.
2. Remove from food processor then place in a bowl. Add powdered sugar and cinnamon into the bowl and mix to distribute evenly.
3. Prepare a damp cloth, you will use this to cover your unused filo pastry to keep them from drying out.
4. Grease a 9 x 5 inch deep dish or you can line it with wax paper. Place a sheet of filo in the pan then brush top with butter. Place another layer then brush again top with butter, repeat the steps until you have 12 layers.
5. Pour half of the nut mixture on top then place a sheet filo to cover top, brush it again with butter and repeat steps until you have 10 layers.
6. Pour remaining half of the nut mixture on top then place a sheet filo to cover top, brush it again with butter and repeat steps until you have 12 layers. Before brushing the final layer with butter press the bottom layers firmly.
7. Trim excess dough using a knife then place baking dish in the refrigerator for an hour to set. Using a sharp knife cut into diamond shapes all the way to the bottom.
8. Bake in a 180C preheated oven for 50 minutes or until baklava is golden and crispy.
9. While baking prepare your sugar syrup by boiling together water, sugar, honey and vanilla. Once boiling simmer for 30 minutes in low heat uncovered.
10. Remove baklava from the oven then immediately pour sugar syrup on top. Let it cool for at least hours to let the whole thing set.

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Notes

Use a mutliflora manuka honey so it would have a fragrant smell like flowers, giving it a more authentic taste