Baklava

Image via WikipediaLast week when we visited the Mısır Çarşı, a couple of you commented on the Baklava and wanted to know if I make it, can I make it, etc...

Here's my recipe. It's not a "Turkish" recipe. I got it from a friend who's married to a Greek guy and she got it from a neighbor up in (I don't remember where) who was from Lebanon (I think.) Who knows where it originated anyway? It's popular all over the Middle East and Mediterranean.

Start with the Syrup:

2 cups Sugar
2 cups Water
3 Tablespoons Honey

Boiled and Reduced.  Add:

1 teaspoon Vanilla
Juice of`1 Lemon

Cool and Refrigerate. Always pour COLD syrup on the hot Baklava (or whatever else you're making.)

Filling:

3 1/2 cups of Walnuts
2 1/2 cups of Almonds
1/4 cup Brown Sugar
1 Tablespoon Cinnamon
1 teaspoon Nutmeg

Mix it all together in the food processor until the nuts are ground pretty well. (Not too fine or it'll be paste!)

Melted Butter (1+ Sticks)
1 Package Phyllo

Butter the pan (I use a half sheet pan). Unroll the Phyllo and cover with a clean dishcloth. (The stuff dries out very quickly!) Then layer about 10 sheets of phyllo in the pan. (Always covering the unused phyllo with the cloth and thoroughly buttering between each layer). Layer of half of the nut mixture, then 10 more layers phyllo, the other half of the nuts, layer the rest of the phyllo. Cut into diagonal baklava shape BEFORE baking at 350 F for about 30 minutes, or until desired golden color develops.

Using some almonds cuts the oily nut factor of the walnuts, but you can use just walnuts if you like. Turkish Baklava is usually made with Pistachios, but the unsalted, shelled variety is expensive and not so readily available here. If I was making the pistachio kind, I'd omit the vanilla and cut the lemon in half. Alesa, who is very clearly a foodie, has even tasted one with peanuts. She advises us to pass on that one and find a more suitable way to waste a calorie! Baklava is also made in different shapes, rolls, etc... Basically, they all taste similar, depending on the filling of course.

The one rule of Baklava: Don't ask about the calories!

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