Baklava

Dessert of the Gods

Servings: 18 bars | Prep Time: 30 mins | Cook Time: 1 hr

How to make baklava, dessert of the gods. Our baklava recipe for this Greek dessert features layers upon layers of alternating phyllo dough and sweet cinnamon walnuts, drenched with a spiced honey syrup. We take no shortcuts. Every layer is brushed with love and butter, making it divinely flaky. It's bold, sweet, but not too sweet, and seriously scrumptious. It will leave you licking your fingers and wanting more.

• 1 pack frozen phyllo dough, thawed
• 1 lb walnuts, finely chopped
• 1/8 cup sugar
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, melted

Syrup
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1/4 tsp black pepper, fresh cracked
• 1 cup sugar
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup honey
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice

Planning ahead:

Thaw phyllo dough ahead of time for when you need it. It takes approximately 5 hours at room temperature to thaw frozen phyllo dough. Refrigerate thawed phyllo if not using immediately after thawing. Follow box instructions.
Plan on baking baklava 8 hours ahead of serving time to allow the phyllo pastry to be fully infused with the syrup for the best flavor and texture.

Start by infusing the water portion of the syrup with the spices. Put the first 3 ingredients of the syrup (water, cinnamon sticks, and black pepper) into a small saucepan. Bring to boil then cover saucepan, lower heat and simmer for 15 minutes to infuse flavors. Uncover and strain infused water. Discard spices. Given some evaporation, there should be slightly more than 1/2 cup of infused water left.
Over medium low heat, add the following syrup ingredients to saucepan with infused water: sugar, salt, and vanilla extract. Stir until sugar melts completely. Add honey. Stir to mix well. Turn off heat. Add lemon juice at the very end. Mix well. Cover and set aside.
In the meantime, thoroughly mix walnuts, 1/8 cup sugar, cinnamon, and 1/2 tsp salt in a bowl. Set aside.
Prepare a 9"x13" baking pan. Brush melted butter on the bottom of the pan. Adjust oven rack to lower middle position and preheat oven to 350° F.

Open thawed phyllo dough package. Phyllo sheets are 17"x13". Cut the phyllo sheets down to half size, 8.5"x13", so they'll fit nicely into the baking pan. Reserve 6 sheets for the top phyllo set.
Start assembly by laying down a single sheet of phyllo into the buttered pan, then brush top with melted butter. Lay down a second sheet then butter that layer. Repeat for total of 6 layers for the foundation. (Too few layers and the bottom will not be sturdy enough or become soggy.) Just remember to brush butter over every phyllo sheet.
Now we work on the internal layers. Sprinkle 1/3 cup walnut mixture evenly over that last layer. Then layer phyllo-butter-phyllo-butter for 3 sheets this time. Sprinkle another 1/3 cup walnut mixture thinly and evenly. (If your walnut mixture is piled too thick in any one spot, your layers could separate easily when biting into a baklava bar later.)
Repeat previous step for all internal layers, topping with more walnut mixture. (It's OK to have some walnut mixture left over.)
Now finish off with the top set of 6 sheets, repeating the same phyllo-butter-phyllo-butter sequence as you did for the foundation, not using anymore walnuts.
Pat down all layers to compact it slightly. Brush butter on top liberally. Then cut 3 rows width-wise (along 8.5" side). Now cut diagonal rows to create angled bars. Bake 50-55 minutes, until golden brown.
Then remove and immediately pour still warm honey syrup over baklava evenly and into the cuts. Allow to cool completely on countertop, uncovered. Baklava will soak up syrup yet maintain maximum flakiness.
Allow baklava to sit at room temperature overnight covered, or make it at the beginning of the day to be ready for dinner. Serve and enjoy!