My mother taught me how to bake and I have spent endless hours with her in the kitchen especially during the holidays. I am particularly fond of dessert but there is one dessert my grandmother taught me to make. Baklava, those sweet squares of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey.
Grandma B as we called Badrieh was my father’s mother. She and my grandfather Mohamed (pa-pa) lived with us for a time. She knew baklava was one of my favorites and taught me its inner workings. Grandma B always had a secret ingredient or two that she rarely wrote down. In this case, it was a splash of lemon juice to contrast the heavy sweetness of the dish and a hint of rosewater for subtlety.
Originally it was probably Turkish in origin. Baklava is now a common dessert in Arab and Iranian cuisines. Its honeyed hand has extended to the Levant and Maghreb, along with the South Caucasus, Balkans, and Central Asia. I made this batch last night and my father Rami almost cried. He stared out the window saying it tasted just like his mom’s and she would be very pleased. Thanks, Grandma B.
Ingredients
1 pkg defrosted Phyllo pastry sheets
1 1/2 sticks butter – melted
1/2 cup pecans – finely chopped, or more
2 Tbsp Cinnamon sugar
* Syrup *
3/4 cup Water
1 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Honey
2 Tbsp Lemon juice – freshly squeezed, (juice of 1 lemon)
2 Tbsp Rosewater
Preparation:
- Preheat the Oven: to 325°F
- Prepare the Nut Filling: Chop nuts finely and add sugar & cinnamon. Mix well to combine.
- Prepare the Phyllo Pastry: carefully unroll the thawed phyllo pastry and place between two clean towels to keep it from drying out as you work.
- Prepare the Baking Pan: Brush a 9”x13″ baking pan with melted butter.
- Assemble the Baklava: Take one sheet of phyllo and place it in the pan. Brush the top of the phyllo sheet with the melted butter. Repeat this process for ten sheets. Then distribute about ½ of the nut mixture evenly over the top layer of phyllo. Continue layering the phyllo sheets, brushing each sheet with butter until you’ve layered another 10 sheets. Distribute the remaining nut mixture evenly across the top. Layer the remaining phyllo sheets, brushing each sheet with butter.
- Cut the Assembled Baklava: use a sharp knife, cut the pastry into diamond-shaped pieces.
- Bake the Baklava: Bake in the oven for 45 – 75 min. or until golden brown. Check every 15 min.
- Make the Syrup: Add sugar, honey, and water in a saucepan and heat over a stove on medium-high heat. Bring to a boil and stir until syrup thickens slightly. Remove from heat and add rose water, and lemon then stir to mix. Allow syrup to cool to room temperature.
- Pour the Syrup on the Baklava: As soon as you remove the baklava from the oven, pour the cooled syrup all over the hot baklava evenly.
- Let the Baklava Cool: allow to cool for several hours, or at least 1 hour, to allow the flaky phyllo layers to absorb all the syrup.