Traditional Greek Baklava

recipe

Traditional Greek Baklava

No comments

Baklava is the perfect dessert for the cook who wants to enjoy her own party - not only is it straightforward to make, but you can make it one or two days in advance. Don't be put off by the quantities of butter and sugar in the recipe - baklava is so rich that individual servings are very small.

Adapted with permission from The Greek Mama's Kitchen: Authentic Home-style Recipes by Rosemary Barron, MQ Publications, £14.99.

Ingredients

SYRUP
340g Hymettus or other strongly flavoured honey
115g caster sugar
zest of 1 small organic orange
1 cinnamon stick, broken into large pieces
225ml water
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons orange flower water (optional)
FILLING
340g finely chopped walnuts
115g finely chopped almonds
175g Hymettus or other strongly flavoured honey
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cloves
175g unsalted butter, melted

Serves: 24

Directions

More recipes like this

Heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas Mark 4
Make the syrup. Place a syrup pan or heavy saucepan over a low-medium heat and add the honey, sugar, orange zest, cinnamon stick and water. Bring to the boil and simmer for 10 minutes or until the syrup lightly coats the back of a metal spoon. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly. Add the lemon juice and the orange flower water, if using.
Make the filling. In a small bowl, combine the walnuts, almonds, honey, cinnamon and cloves.
Brush a 23x30 cm baking pan or cake pan, with sides at least 6cm deep, with melted butter (or choose a pan that fits the size of your filo sheets). Arrange one filo sheet in the pan, and brush with a little butter; repeat with two more sheets. Divide the filling into four portions. Very lightly, spread one portion over the filo (avoid pressing down on the pastry). Cover with one filo sheet, brush with melted butter and place another sheet on top. Brush this with butter, spread a second portion of filling over it, and repeat until filling and filo are used (ending with filo). Liberally brush with butter. With a small, sharp knife, carefully cut through (score) the top two filo sheets to make squares or diamond shapes.
Bake for 40 minutes or until the top is golden brown. Immediately after you remove the baklavas from the oven, use a sharp knife to cut into the shapes you have scored; cut through to the bottom of the pan. Strain over the syrup and discard the cinnamon stick and orange zest. Cover the pan with a clean tea towel and set aside for at least four hours.

Source: The Greek Mama's Kitchen