The best thing about baklava, next to it’s taste, is that it looks like you spent hours making it, when in fact it’s quite easy. Once you get over the inherent fear of working with phyllo (which everyone seems to possess), assembly is quite quick. I can put a baklava together in 15 minutes or so, so I no longer bother covering the phyllo. Until you get the hang of it though, keep it covered as you go. It may slow you down a bit, but it will ensure your phyllo doesn’t dry out. Once it does, it’s a lost cause. Speaking of which, do not open the phyllo until you’re ready to start working with it.
Traditionalists may balk at my use of the butter-floured cooking spray, but it’s a real time and calorie saver and I don’t think the end product suffers for it (some melted butter is poured over the baklava prior to baking). If you’d prefer to use melted butter to brush over the layers, feel free; you’ll need about a cup, I’d think.
1-1/2 c water
1-1/2 c sugar
¾ c honey
1-1/2 t vanilla
1 T orange blossom water (optional)
1 lb chopped nuts (any mixture of almonds, pistachios, walnuts)
1 t cinnamon
1 pkg phyllo dough
Butter-flavoured cooking spray
¼ c butter, melted
Start by preparing the syrup. Put water and sugar in a medium saucepan, and heat on high until sugar is dissolved. Add honey, vanilla and orange blossom water. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Remove from heat.
Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350. Spray the bottom and sides of a 9 X 13 inch pan. Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half widthwise to fit pan. Cover phyllo with a lightly dampened towel to keep from drying out as you work.
Place two sheets of dough on counter, spray, and put into bottom of pan. Repeat three more times until you have eight sheets in your pan. Sprinkle a generous 3 tablespoons of the nut mixture over dough.
Spray another two sheets and top with another 3 generous tablespoons of the nut mixture; continue layering in this manner until you have 8 sheets of phyllo left. If you have extra nut mixture, just use all of it on the last layer. With the last eight sheets, spray individually and add to top.
Using a sharp knife, cut into 16 pieces, but do not go all the way through to the bottom. Pour the melted butter along the cuts you have made, and around the perimeter of the baklava. Bake 40 to 45 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
Remove baklava from oven. Immediately spoon sauce over it, and let cool. Leave uncovered as it will get soggy if wrapped up. Once the baklava has cooled, re-trace your original cuts, this time going all the way through to the bottom of the pan.
Traditionalists may balk at my use of the butter-floured cooking spray, but it’s a real time and calorie saver and I don’t think the end product suffers for it (some melted butter is poured over the baklava prior to baking). If you’d prefer to use melted butter to brush over the layers, feel free; you’ll need about a cup, I’d think.
1-1/2 c water
1-1/2 c sugar
¾ c honey
1-1/2 t vanilla
1 T orange blossom water (optional)
1 lb chopped nuts (any mixture of almonds, pistachios, walnuts)
1 t cinnamon
1 pkg phyllo dough
Butter-flavoured cooking spray
¼ c butter, melted
Start by preparing the syrup. Put water and sugar in a medium saucepan, and heat on high until sugar is dissolved. Add honey, vanilla and orange blossom water. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes. Remove from heat.
Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350. Spray the bottom and sides of a 9 X 13 inch pan. Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half widthwise to fit pan. Cover phyllo with a lightly dampened towel to keep from drying out as you work.
Place two sheets of dough on counter, spray, and put into bottom of pan. Repeat three more times until you have eight sheets in your pan. Sprinkle a generous 3 tablespoons of the nut mixture over dough.
Spray another two sheets and top with another 3 generous tablespoons of the nut mixture; continue layering in this manner until you have 8 sheets of phyllo left. If you have extra nut mixture, just use all of it on the last layer. With the last eight sheets, spray individually and add to top.
Using a sharp knife, cut into 16 pieces, but do not go all the way through to the bottom. Pour the melted butter along the cuts you have made, and around the perimeter of the baklava. Bake 40 to 45 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
Remove baklava from oven. Immediately spoon sauce over it, and let cool. Leave uncovered as it will get soggy if wrapped up. Once the baklava has cooled, re-trace your original cuts, this time going all the way through to the bottom of the pan.
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