Chef John’s Baklava
I typically prefer a substantial proportion of nuts to pastry, not only to balance out the abundant sugar content but also because I believe it yields the most appealing texture. While you have the freedom to add as many filo layers as you desire, exercise caution, as an excessive number may not fully cook, and the only way to go wrong here is by undercooking the dough. It's crucial for both the top and bottom layers to dry out and become perfectly crisp; otherwise, when you pour the syrup over them, you'll end up with a soggy disaster.
Ingredients
Nut Mixture
- 2 ½ cups walnut halves
- 1 cup shelled pistachios
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
Dough
- ½ cup unsalted butter, melted
- 12 sheets phyllo dough, thawed if frozen
Syrup
- 1 ½ cups sugar
- ¾ cup water
- ¼ cup honey
- 3 whole cloves
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 ½ teaspoons orange flower water
Instructions
- Place walnuts, pistachios, and cinnamon in bowl of a food processor. Pulse on and off until mixture is chopped but not too fine.
- Brush bottom of 9-inch round baking pan with melted butter. Place one round of phyllo dough in the pan; add a second round of dough. Drip about 1 tablespoon of melted butter over the top. Add 2 more sheets and drizzle with butter. Add 2 more sheets and drip with butter creating 6 layers for the bottom. (While you work keep the phyllo sheets covered with a damp, nearly dry, cotton towel to keep dough from drying out.)
- Sprinkle with 1/3 of the nut mixture. Top with a sheet of phyllo and drip with melted butter; repeat with 1 more sheet of filo. Add another 1/3 of the nut mixture.
- Place another sheet of phyllo on the nuts, drip with butter. Top with another sheet and drip with butter. Add the remaining nut mixture.
- Top with 2 sheets of phyllo; drip with butter. Add 2 more sheets, drip with butter. Top with the last 2 sheets and drizzle generously with the remaining butter. Cover pan with plastic and refrigerate until completely chilled, about 1 hour.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
- Cut baklava into about 12 diamond-shaped pieces approximately the same size.
- Bake in preheated oven until browned and crisp, about an hour.
- Place sugar, honey, and cloves in a saucepan. Pour in water. Place pan over medium-high heat and whisk to combine. Bring to a boil; remove from heat. Whisk in vanilla and orange blossom water.
- After baklava has rested 5 minutes, ladle syrup over the top. Cool down to room temperature before serving.
Nutrition
Calories: 466kcalCarbohydrates: 47gProtein: 8gFat: 30gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 20mgSodium: 138mgPotassium: 238mgFiber: 3gSugar: 32gVitamin C: 1mgCalcium: 46mgIron: 2mg
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