Baklava

May 9, 8:39 PMHartford Cooking ExaminerDonna Breault

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Baklava is a desert of Turkish origin that’s also popular today in Greece and throughout the Middle East. Layered with nuts and drenched in sugar syrup or honey. This is the best know pastry made with phyllo dough. 

What You Need:
Butter, to grease the pan
3 cups walnuts, coarsely chopped and toasted
¼ cup of sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
½ teaspoon cinnamon, ground
2 sticks of unsalted butter = (1/2 pound)
1 pound of phyllo dough
For the Sugar Syrup:
1 & 1/3 cups of sugar
1 & 1/3 cups of water
1/3 cup of honey
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
Zest of 1 orange, remove in large strips

STEP 1) Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter the bottom and the sides of a 13 x 9 inch baking pan. Set the baking pan aside for now. In a small mixing bowl stir together the ¼ cup of sugar, lemon zest, cinnamon. In a small pan melt the 2 sticks of unsalted butter at low temperature.

 
STEP 2) Open the package of phyllo dough and lay it flat in a stack on your work surface. Trim the phyllo dough in 13 x 9 inch sheets, saving the scraps for another use. Cover the phyllo stack with plastic wrap and a damp towel. Place 2 phyllo sheets in the baking pan and brush the top sheet with the melted butter. Add 2 more sheets and brush with the butter. Repeat this process 1 more time giving you a total of 6 sheets on the bottom. 

 
STEP 3) Sprinkle with 1/2 the nuts and then 1/2 the sugar mixture. Cover the filling with 2 phyllo sheets and butter the top sheet. Repeat this process until there are 6 sheets on top of the filling. Cover with the remaining nuts and sugar mixture. Cover with all the remaining phyllo sheets, adding them 2 at a time buttering only the second sheet each time. Brush the top with the remaining butter.

STEP 4) Use a sharp serrated knife to cut through all the layers to make 2 inch squares or diamond shapes. Bake for 30 minutes at 325 degrees and then reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees. Continue to bake for 45-60 minutes, until the baklava is golden brown.

 
STEP 5) In a small saucepan combine 1 and 1/3 cups of sugar, water, honey, lemon juice and orange zest. Bring the mixture to a gentle boil, reduce the heat, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes. Strain the hot syrup and pour evenly over the baked baklava. Let the baklava cool completely at room temperature for at least 4 hours.    

 
STEP 6) Enjoy!