One of those pleasant childhood memories I have is when we went to visit relatives at the holidays. My mother's cousin used to make baklava at Christmas, and I thought it was the greatest thing I had ever tasted. Everybody thought it was too hard to make to bother with it except for the holidays, so that's the only time I ever got any. In reality, it is quite simple to make and today I made some for friends and family. Here it is fresh out of the oven.
First, pick up some flllo dough in the pastry freezer at the store.
Also pick up a pastry brush if you don't already have one.
Then follow this recipe.
1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
1 lb. chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, or pistachios)
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup honey
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside.
Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to fit pan. (this is not necessary with Athens brand)
Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered.
Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go. The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.
Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers.
For those that are too lazy to make it yourself, Athens also makes the finished product.
And for those in the sticks and can't get the dough or baklava from the store, fear not, the internet has everything, even baklava.
First, pick up some flllo dough in the pastry freezer at the store.
Also pick up a pastry brush if you don't already have one.
Then follow this recipe.
1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
1 lb. chopped nuts (pecans, walnuts, or pistachios)
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup honey
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside.
Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to fit pan. (this is not necessary with Athens brand)
Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered.
Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go. The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.
Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers.
For those that are too lazy to make it yourself, Athens also makes the finished product.
And for those in the sticks and can't get the dough or baklava from the store, fear not, the internet has everything, even baklava.
