Greek Baklava

 

1 16oz pack of Phillo or Fillo Dough

1lb chopped Nuts (pistachios, walnuts, pecans or hazelnuts)

1 cup Butter, melted

1 tea. Cinnamon

1/4 tea. Cloves OR Allspice (optional)

1 cup Water

1 cup White Sugar

1 tea. Vanilla

1/2 cup Honey

1 large zest of Lemon

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175 degrees C). Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.

Melt 1 cup of butter slowly on the stove top. 

Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon (and cloves if using). Set aside. Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to fit pan if needed. Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. 

Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly by brushing on melted butter or spraying on melted butter.  Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered. Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go. The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.

Note: You can add some white sugar on top of each layer of nuts if you want a sweeter dessert.

 

 

Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.

 

 Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Tossing the lemon zest. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes or longer. You want the syrup to be a bit on the thicker side but not overly thick. Remove lemon zest and cool. This can be made a few hours or even a day ahead of time. 

Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers. This freezes well. Leave it uncovered as it gets soggy if it is wrapped up. When completely cooled, remove the slices carefully from the cooking pan and place them on a plate - this is so it will not have a soggy bottom.

Serve cooled. The longer the Baklava sits, the better it tastes.

To store: If you want chewy Baklava then store loosely covered in the fridge. If you want crispy Baklava then store loosely covered on the counter. 

 Note: The difference between Turkish Baklava and Greek Baklava is simply that Turks don't use honey - it's simply lighter (in taste and calorie content).

 

Source: Allrecipes