Baklava — Greek Honey, Nut, Phyllo Pastry Recipe
The first time I tried Baklava was at a little Greek restaurant in Dallas, Texas. I asked the owner what the pastries were on the counter. He said they were Baklava and that everyone should eat Baklava. He told me Baklava tastes like "heaven" and insisted on giving me a piece. I was hooked.
Later I lived in Greece, so I could stop by the little bakery any day and get fresh Baklava. Needless to say, I ate lots of Baklava over those two years.
I hesitated to tackle making Baklava, because the filo (also spelled fillo or phyllo) looked scary. I kid you not. That is some fragile pastry. I ordered Baklava online for a few years, but it wasn't as good as homemade. So, I finally taught myself how to make Baklava.
With these directions I think anyone can make this great Greek dessert.
Baklava
½ pound phyllo dough (one of the two packs wrapped separate usually in the one pound box)
1 cup butter (melted)
1 ½ pounds chopped nuts (nut pieces are usually cheaper than the pretty halves — and that saves the chopping)
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
¾ cup water
¾ cup sugar
½ tsp. vanilla
¼ cup honey (a bit more really — just squeeze a little more in after you add the ¼ cup)
Directions (see below for all the tips that help make this much easier to make):
Set the phyllo dough out to warm up, but do not open the package. If you froze the dough, it should be put in the refrigerator a couple of days beforehand to thaw out.
Put the butter in a small saucepan on low heat and allow butter to melt.
While butter is melting, chop the nuts and stir in the cinnamon.
Open the phyllo dough and cover it with first a piece of Saran wrap and then a dish cloth soaked in water and wrung out well (wet but not drippy).
Use a pastry brush to butter the bottom on your pan.
You want a base of 5 or so sheets of phyllo dough on the bottom of the pan. Put down 2, brush with butter, put down 2 sheets, brush with butter, put down 1 or 2 more and brush with butter.
Sprinkle 1/3 of the chopped nuts over the buttered bottom layers. I use English walnuts, pecans or a mix.
Add 2 sheets of phyllo dough. Brush with butter.
Add 1/3 of the nuts.
Add 2 sheets of phyllo dough. Brush with butter.
Add the last of the nuts.
Top with the last sheets of phyllo dough. This should be around 5 sheets, but it seems to vary. As long as you have a couple of top sheets, you're fine.
Use a good sharp knife and cut squares. Go all the way through all the layers. I usually cut these in around 1 inch squares. Baklava is really rich. A little piece is what most people would eat. If someone wants more, they can get another square.
Bake the pan of phyllo and nuts at 350 degrees for 25 to 30 minutes. It will be a pretty golden brown.
While the dough is baking, put the water and sugar in a sauce pan and heat until the sugar dissolves. Let simmer on low while the pastry is baking. Right before you take the phyllo nut dish out, take the sugar water off the heat and stir in the honey and vanilla.
When you pull the phyllo/nuts out, pour the sugar/honey mixture evenly all over the top.
Let the Baklava cool.
Lay a piece of tin foil over the top, but do not seal up. This can stay right on top of the cabinet. Baklava needs air. If you aren't going to eat a whole pan of Baklava, then freeze portions and thaw and eat later.
Now, the tips and hints:
When I put the phyllo dough down, I lay out a sheet of Tin Foil first. Then, I put the dough down. Then I top with Saran Wrap and the damp towel.
The phyllo dough may not (probably will not) fit perfectly in your pan. I use a 9 x 13. The dough is a little too long and a little too narrow.
Before I cover the phyllo with Saran Wrap and the wet towel, I take a sharp knife and cut the whole stack in half. Then, I can overlap a bit in the center. Filo dough is so thin, the slighter thicker center is not a problem.
I tried kind of staggering the sheets side to side, but it works out best to flush them all to one side of the pan. That does leave a space to the side where the dough is a narrow. The pieces right on that edge get a tad darker. Again, it doesn't impact in any big way.
This filo recipe looks odd. Seems like you'd need some liquid (other than the melted butter) in the pan. No. It's just filo dough, butter, and nuts through the baking stage.
When you pour the sugar/honey mixture over the Baklava, it looks like you've got too much liquid. If you have a wider pan and the space to the side, you'll see quite a bit over to the side. Most of the sauce sinks right in after a while. You may still have a little pooled to the side, but that's fine. The bulk slowly sinks into the pastry.
Though you're supposed to let this cool, you can get a spoon and spoon out a square. Yum. It is fabulous warm.
