Sweet, crunchy, multi-layered baklava flowing with honey syrup is an oriental delicacy beloved by many. There are many recipes for this dessert. There is plenty to choose from to make the perfect complement to a cup of strong black coffee.
Pick your recipe
Classical Turkish Baklava
Do you want to cook such baklava as you served the Ottoman Sultan? Use the traditional Turkish recipe. It does not have honey, spices, fragrant water, but this does not prevent the delicacy from being surprisingly tasty.
You will need:
- 400 g filo dough;
- 500 g of granulated sugar;
- 350 g unsalted peeled pistachios;
- 500 g unsalted butter with a fat content of 82.5%;
- 600 ml of water;
- ¼ lemon.
Take syrup. Put the pan with sugar and water on a medium heat, squeeze the juice from the lemon and cook, stirring occasionally, until the syrup becomes thick. Cool to room temperature.
Grind pistachios in a food processor. They should not turn into a paste, but nuts should be chopped very finely, while maintaining the texture. Melt the butter over low heat. Stoke until the foam rises and solids begin to sink to the bottom. It takes about 10-15 minutes. Remove the foam with a slotted spoon. Line the bottom of the colander with gauze and strain the oil.
Filo dough can be prepared independently, but only very patient people can do this process. The recipe is simple, but the dough should be stretched for a long time and painstakingly with your hands so that it becomes thin and transparent. Confectioners say that through a good filo dough, you can safely read the newspaper. Therefore, in most homemade baklava recipes, it is recommended to take a finished filo.
Heat the oven to 180 ° C. Take a deep rectangular baking dish. A baking sheet 30 by 20 cm and at least 4 cm in depth is best suited. Cut the filo sheets to fit the shape. Thin dough is most conveniently cut with scissors. Cover the sliced sheets with a slightly damp towel and hold the dough under it so that it does not dry out.
Lubricate the bottom and sides of the mold with melted butter and start spreading the dough. Generously grease each new coat with oil. Every three layers, sprinkle the filo with a thin layer of crushed pistachios. When you use about half of the dough, sprinkle a thick layer of nuts and begin to pour a little more until you have about 10 sheets of dough left. They do not need to be interspersed with nuts.
With a sharp knife, cut the workpiece into equal parts, drawing seven parts across and six along. Make sure you cut the baklava to the bottom. Pour generously with the remaining oil and put in the oven for 30-35 minutes. Ready baklava golden brown and flaky. Pour the hot pastries with syrup and leave for 30 minutes to soak the pastries. Sprinkle with crushed pistachios and serve.
Easy recipe for Greek baklava
Cooking Greek baklava is not so much a process that is different than the ingredients in the dish. Generous Greeks do not spare nuts, spices, honey.
You will need:
- 200 g peeled walnuts;
- 200 g peeled pistachios;
- 200 g of peeled almonds;
- ¼ Art. granulated sugar;
- 2 tbsp. tablespoons ground cinnamon;
- a pinch of ground cloves;
- 18 tbsp. tablespoons of butter;
- 400 g filo dough.
For syrup:
- ¾ Art. granulated sugar;
- 1 tbsp. cold water;
- 1 cup liquid honey;
- 1 tbsp. l orange extract;
- 5 cloves of cloves;
- 1 lemon.
Grind pistachios in a blender bowl. Set aside 3 tablespoons to decorate the dessert. Grind the remaining nuts in a blender and add to the ground pistachios with sugar and spices. Shuffle. You can change the proportion of nuts to your taste, putting a little more than those that you like. Melt the butter over medium heat, wait until the foam appears and remove it with a slotted spoon. Strain the melted butter through a frequent sieve to remove solid particles.
Lubricate the deep square baking tray with oil. Cut the filo dough so that it fits into the pan. Lay the sheets on top of one wet towel and cover with the other. Start collecting baklava. Lay out the filo sheets one by one, generously lubricating with oil. When using about a third of the dough, sprinkle thickly with half the nut mixture. Lay out another third of the dough and use the second half of the nuts. Finish collecting the baklava by laying out the remaining dough. The trick that allows you to get an air baklava - as little as possible to press on the dough layers when laying. Lubricate the top of the baklava with melted butter. Slice into portions. Place the pastries in an oven preheated to 180 ° C. Cook from 45 minutes to 1 hour. Baklava should become golden. Check availability with a bamboo stick.
While the baklava is baking, take syrup. Pour water into a small saucepan, add sugar and simmer over medium heat, stirring until sugar is completely dissolved. Add honey, orange extract and cloves. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a minimum and cook for about 20-25 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly. Squeeze the juice from the lemon and add to the syrup. Remove the cloves of cloves.
Pour the cooked baklava with warm syrup. Sprinkle with the remaining pistachios. Leave the sweets to soak for several hours.
Unusual baklava recipe
Want to cook an unusual baklava? Here is an interesting recipe that uses an unusual product - sesame seeds.
