Baklava (Pakhlava)
Ingredients:
For the baklava:
- 1 Filo dough package (16 oz) thawed
- 0.5 lb walnuts
- 0.5 lb pecans
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp ground cloves
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup butter (melted) + more for greasing
- 1 egg yolk
For the syrup:
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 cup sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 cup honey
Directions:
- Preheat the oven to 350 °F (175 °C)
- Generously butter a 9×13 inch pan
- In a food processor, ground the walnuts and pecans until they are finely chopped, but still have a few larger pieces to add some crunch
- In a large bowl, mix the ground nuts with the sugar and spices
- Place 1 fillo sheet in the pan, and using a pastry brush generously cover it with the melted butter
- Making sure than each sheet is generously covered in butter, place 3 filo sheets on the base of the baklava
- Sprinkle about 2 tablespoons of the filling onto the filo sheets
- For every layer above the base use 2 filo sheets, making sure to cover each of them in butter
- Repeat steps 6-8 until you reach the top of the pan
- For the final layer, use 3 filo sheets, similar to the base but do not spread butter on the final sheet
- Using a pastry brush, spread the egg yolk on the final sheet to help with the browning in the oven
- Grease a very sharp knife on both sides, and carefully cut in a diagonal crosshatch pattern
- Take whole pecans and place them on each diamond shape
- Bake baklava in the oven for about 50 minutes, or until golden and crispy
- In the meantime in a medium saucepan over medium heat dissolve the sugar and water in a low simmer
- Add in the honey and melt it completely
- Remove from the stove and add in the vanilla extract
- In the last 15 minutes of baking, take the baklava out of the oven and go over the pattern with a sharp knife, and pour the remaining melted butter over the cuts
- Once the baklava is ready take it out of the oven and pour the syrup over it while it is still hot
- Leave it to cool down before taking them out of the pan, and serve with a cup of black tea
Enjoy!