Baklava. Simple, yet complex. Just gather the ingredients and get a comfy chair. You might be here for a while. But not to worry, assembly is almost therapeutic. Repetitive and soothing. You can make it…
A. while drinking a beer
B. while chatting with a friend
C. while enjoying some good tunes
D. while using the time to think
E. all of the above
My mother-in-law, Lori, is known for her baklava. It’s always a hit at the holidays, and was at our wedding too. A while back she promised she would make it with me. To blog of course. We don’t want to keep delicious things a secret. Since Steve and I made the trip across the state, Lori and I had a Saturday to spend together. I thought, what better way to spend the time?! It’s always easier learning a recipe from a person instead of a piece of paper.
A piece of paper can’t tell me to be gentle with the phyllo dough AKA old people skin (totally could relate to skin tears, working with the geriatric population).
It also couldn’t tell me to chop a few more nuts, just in case. They can always go into the freezer for next time.
Or to relax…it will taste good no matter what.
So here’s my best blog version, with all the nitty gritty details…
Hopefully it’s closer to the supervised practice version than the paper one.
Ingredients
- 6 cups walnuts, finely chopped
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 tablespoon cinnamon
- 1 pound unsalted butter, melted
- 1 16 ounce package phyllo dough
- 12 ounces honey
Tools
- 9 X 13 in pan
- pastry brush
Directions
*Toss together nuts, cinnamon, and sugar; set aside.
*Unroll phyllo dough and cover with a damp towel to prevent from drying out.
*Layer in the pan:
- 2 phyllo sheets
- generous spread of butter
- 2 phyllo sheets
- generous spread of butter
- 2 phyllo sheets
- generous spread of butter
- 1 cup nut mixture
*Repeat until you are nearing the top of the pan, about 6 layers. Good luck keeping track of layers if you are talking! End with 4-6 layers of phyllo and butter on top.
*Cut about 2/3 thickness to allow the dough to poof nicely and so it is easier to cut later. Don’t miss any…
*Bake at 300 degrees for about 1 hour and 5 minutes, or until golden brown.
*While it’s baking, heat honey until hot, but not boiling. You can use a water bath or the microwave.
*Immediately after removing from the oven, drizzle honey over baklava. Be sure to drizzle along the cuts so the honey seeps into the layers.
*Cool and enjoy!
My first go certainly wasn’t perfect, but it’s still delicious. Turns out, even after making it many times, it’s still a learning experience. I thought I was putting enough butter on the layers, but when I got to the end I only used about half of the total amount. Last time Lori made it, she thought she used too much butter. I guess we’ll try to find a happy medium next time. I probably wouldn’t use the whole pound of butter, but I certainly would go for more than just half!
The most important part of the recipe is to just have fun! It’s not rocket science, so don’t stress. 
