Turkish Baklava Dessert !!!

Baklava is a typical Turkish dessert or cake. While not the easiest candy to make, mainly because it’s made up of many layers, it is one of the most delicious Arabic candies around. Turkish baklaba is a classic tea time, but it can also be served as a dessert.As we said, this candy is made with layers of phyllo dough and a filling made from sugar, nuts and cinnamon. . Without a doubt, an explosion of sweet and aromatic flavors, a perfect dessert for the sweet and exotic tooth. Therefore, in RecetasGratis we share this delicious recipe, so take note, find out how to make Turkish baklava follow the original recipe and get to work.

What is Baklava? 

Baklava is a sweet dessert made of layers of flaky phyllo pastry filled with crushed nuts and sweetened with honey syrup.

What is traditional baklava made of? 

Traditional Turkish baklava, also known as fistikli baklava or pistachio baklava is typically made of phyllo dough, finely crushed pistachios, butter, and a simple syrup made of sugar, water, and lemon juice.

You’ll find many variations of this beautiful dessert from Middle Eastern baklava, where the  simple syrup is scented with rosewater, to Greek baklava with walnuts and a generous sprinkle of cinnamon within.

This recipe leans toward Greek baklava, although with my own very nutty Egyptian twist (it’s all in the nut mixture).

Can you use other nuts?

Pistachios or walnuts are the most commonly used nuts. But you don’t have to use just one or the other. I love to use a combination of nuts and plenty of them! My favorite thing about this version of  Greek baklava is that it uses a mixture of three different nuts–pistachios, walnuts, and hazelnuts– along with cinnamon, pinch of ground cloves, and a sprinkle of sugar.

The nuts are chopped, but to get the perfect bite, don’t grind them too finely. This baklava recipe is a bit on the nutty side and no one is ever mad about it! But you can totally make this recipe your own and change the nut mixture to your liking.

Let’s take a look at what all goes in baklava recipe from scratch…

How to store baklava?

The good news is baklava is one of the few desserts you can make a few days ahead. It will keep well for up to 2 weeks stored in an air-tight glass container at room temperature or in the fridge.

Personally, I move any leftover baklava to the fridge after a few days, but keeping it at room temperature does preserve it’s crispy texture better.

You’ll know when your baklava is nearing the end of its life when it starts to dry out.

You can freeze already baked baklava for up to 4 months, if you like. It’s good to store it in small batches so you don’t have to thaw out the entire pan when you need a treat. Thaw in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for a few hours.

Turkish Baklava Dessert !!!

a mouthwatering dessert of layered golden phylo "filo" pastry, with crushed nuts and drizzle of sugar syrup.

Imprimer la recette Pin Recipe

Ingrédients

  

For the Baklava and Nut Filling :

• 6 oz shelled pistachios, coarsely chopped
• 6 oz walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 6 oz hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 to 2 tbsp ground cinnamon (start with less if you're not sure)
• large pinch of ground cloves
• 16-oz package phyllo dough, thawed
• 1 ½ to 2 sticks of unsalted butter (up to 16 tbsp), melted

For the Honey Syrup :

• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 cup cold water
• 1 cup honey
• 1 tbsp orange extract (optional)
• 5 whole cloves
• juice of 1 lemon

Instructions

 

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Make the Honey Syrup: Place the sugar and water in a saucepan and heat stove-top, stirring occasionally, until sugar dissolves. Add the honey, orange extract if using, and whole cloves; stir to mix. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and let simmer for about 25 minutes. Remove syrup from heat and let cool to lukewarm. Add lemon juice. Remove the whole cloves.
• Make the Nut Mixture: In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a blade, add the pistachios, walnut, and hazelnuts. Pulse a few times to chop. Transfer to a large mixing bowl and add sugar, cinnamon, and ground cloves. Mix well to combine.
• Prepare the Phyllo Pastry: Unroll the thawed phyllo pastry and place the sheets in between two clean kitchen towels. This will help keep the phyllo from breaking while you work.
• Assemble the Baklava: Prepare a 9”x 13”x 2” baking pan. Brush the interior of the baking pan with some of the melted butter. To assemble the baklava, take one sheet of phyllo and place it in the pan (for this size pan, I typically fold my phyllo sheet in half, and it fits perfectly. You can also do a bit of trimming using a pair of kitchen shears). Brush the top of the phyllo sheet with the melted butter.
• Repeat this process a few more times until you have used up about ⅓ of the phyllo pastry, each layer being brushed with the melted butter.
• Now, distribute about ½ of the nut mixture evenly over the top layer of phyllo.
• Continue assembling the baklava, one sheet of phyllo pastry at a time using another ⅓ of the phyllo. Again, brush each layer with a bit of the melted butter.
• Distribute the remaining ½ of the nut mixture evenly over the top layer of phyllo.
• Finish the remaining ⅓ of the phyllo pastry following the same process, laying one folded sheet at a time and brushing each layer with melted butter. Brush the very top sheet of phyllo with butter.
• Cut the Baklava Pastry Into Pieces: Using a sharp knife, cut the pastry into 24 diamond shaped pieces (you can get up to 36 smaller pieces). (Review the tutorial above to see how I cut baklava).
• Bake: Place the baking dish on the middle rack of your heated oven. Bake anywhere from 35 to 45 minutes or until the top of the baklava turns golden and a skewer inserted in the center comes out clean. (IMPORTANT…Because ovens vary, be sure to check your baklava half-way through baking).
• Pour Syrup Over Hot Baklava: As soon as you remove the baklava from the oven, pour the cooled syrup all over the hot baklava.
• Cool Completely: Allow baklava to sit for a few hours before serving or for at least 1 hour. Cut through the earlier marked pieces. Serve with a garnish of chopped pistachios, if you like.

Notes

Important Tips :

There are a couple of things that intimidate people when it comes to making baklava. One for sure is how to work with paper-thin phyllo dough. I shared a couple tips on that with my spanakopita recipe, but let's go over those again in addition to a couple more baklava-specific tips that will ensure you make the BEST baklava ever:

1. Thaw your phyllo dough properly. Too much moisture will make the phyllo sticky and hard to manage.  Do not remove the phyllo (fillo) from the package, place it in the fridge 12-14 hours until ready to use.
2. Place the phyllo pastry sheets between two clean towels while you work.  Unless you are able to work quickly, before you begin to assemble the baklava, place the thawed phyllo sheets in between two clean kitchen towels. This helps the phyllo sheets remain lenient so they won't tear or break too much.
3. Prepare your honey syrup ahead. It's important that the honey syrup is cool when it hits the freshly-baked hot baklava. This way, the hot baklava layers will absorb as much of the syrup as possible and you'll have perfectly honeyed baklava. You have enough time to make the syrup while the baklava is baking, but be sure you take it off heat and set it in a cool place.
4. Chop the nuts well, but don't grind them too finely into a paste or powder. Obviously you don't want the nuts nestled in the baklava to be too big or make it hard to bite on the beautiful pastry. But be sure not to grind the nuts too finely that you end up with dust for your filling. You want to still be able to taste the nuts and enjoy their texture.
5. Cut the assembled baklava into pieces before baking. So important, before you bake it, use a sharp knife to cut the pastry into pieces (I cut my baklava into larger diamond shaped pieces.  You can usually get about 24 up to 36 pieces depending on their size). Why cut it before you bake it? Because once phyllo pastry is baked, it's super crunchy and if you try to cut through it then, it'll break into a mess.
6. Make your baklava one night in advance!  Hooray for the perfect make-ahead dessert! Baklava is even better the next day when it's had a chance to completely soak in the honey syrup. You can store it covered at room temperature for one night. Be sure it is completely cooled before you cover it (so important)
7. Cook's Tip: Before you begin thaw the baklava pastry package in the fridge overnight (review package instructions). Take it out of the fridge 1 hour before you start.
8. Cook's Tip: To save time, while the syrup is simmering begin to assemble the baklava. 
9. Let Baklava Sit a While Before Serving: Make sure baklava sits cools completely before serving. Baklava is even better the next day when it's had time to absorb the syrup.
10. Storage and Freezer Instructions: Be sure baklava is compeletly cool before storing. Cover it very well and store it at room temperature the first night, if you like. To store for a longer period, transfer the baklava to airtight glass containers and leave at room temperature or in the fridge for a few days or freeze for later use. Thaw frozen baked baklava in the fridge overnight or at room temperature for a few hours before serving.

Special nutrution Note :

• baklava is often high in fat, sugar and butter.be carefull to take more and more.

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