Baklava

Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2008

Show: Good EatsEpisode: Switched on Baklava

Rated: 5 stars out of 5Rate itRead users' reviews (29)

RECIPE
COMMENTS & REVIEWS(29)

Cook Time:
1 hr 0 min
Level:
Intermediate
Yield:
about 28 pieces

Times:

Prep: 1 hr 0 min
Inactive Prep: 8 hr 0 min
Cook: 1 hr 0 min
Total:: 10 hr 0 min

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Ingredients

For the filling:

1 (5-inch piece) cinnamon stick, broken into 2 to 3 pieces or 2 teaspoons ground
15 to 20 whole allspice berries
6 ounces blanched almonds
6 ounces raw or roasted walnuts
6 ounces raw or roasted pistachio
2/3 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon rose water
1 pound phyllo dough, thawed
8 ounces clarified unsalted butter, melted

For the syrup:

1 1/4 cups honey
1 1/4 cups water
1 1/4 cups sugar
1 cinnamon stick
1 (2-inch) piece fresh orange peel

Directions

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Place the cinnamon stick and whole allspice into a spice grinder and grind.

Place the almonds, walnuts, pistachios, sugar and freshly ground spices into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped, but not pasty or powdery, approximately 15 quick pulses. Set aside.

Combine the water and rose water in a small spritz bottle and set aside.

Trim the sheets of phyllo to fit the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch metal pan. Brush the bottom and sides of the pan with butter; lay down a sheet of phyllo and brush with butter. Repeat this step 9 more times for a total of 10 sheets of phyllo. Top with 1/3 of the nut mixture and spread thinly. Spritz thoroughly with the rose water. Layer 6 more sheets of phyllo with butter in between each of them, followed by another third of the nuts and spritz with rose water. Repeat with another 6 sheets of phyllo, butter, remaining nuts, and rose water. Top with 8 sheets of phyllo brushing with butter in between each sheet. Brush the top generously with butter. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove pan from the oven and cut into 28 squares. Return pan to the oven and continue to bake for another 30 minutes. Remove pan from the oven, place on a cooling rack, and cool for 2 hours before adding the syrup.

Make the syrup during the last 30 minutes of cooling. Combine the honey, water, sugar, cinnamon stick and orange peel in a 4-quart saucepan and set over high heat. Stir occasionally until the sugar has dissolved. Once boiling, boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat and discard the orange peel and cinnamon stick.

After the baklava has cooled for 2 hours, re-cut the entire pan following the same lines as before. Pour the hot syrup evenly over the top of the baklava, allowing it to run into the cuts and around the edges of the pan. Allow the pan to sit, uncovered until completely cool. Cover and store at room temperature for at least 8 hours and up to overnight before serving. Store, covered, at room temperature for up to 5 days.

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Comments & Reviews

recipe Baklava
Camille Rawlins, WY 02-02-2010
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FANTASTIC
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

Alton. I love you for this one. Happy Deliciousness in my mouth.
recipe Baklava
null null, null 01-11-2010
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Best Baklava I've ever had!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This was my first time making Baklava and it was extremely easy to do following the directions offered in this recipe... The... end result was a beautiful golden delicious dessert that both me and my boyfriend loved... A little on the sweet side -- but the combination of nuts is just amazing!Read more
recipe Baklava
Crystal Slidell, LA 12-30-2009
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SUGAR TEMPERATURE!!
Rated: 4 stars out of 5

This would have been a great recipe if it were more specific than "10 minutes" on the cooking of the syrup. I only let it go... to 6 minutes and still reached hard crack and it was inedible except as a candy. I'll try this again with a candy thermometer rather than a time constraint.Read more
recipe Baklava
null null, null 12-25-2009
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The Best Baklava EVER!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I made this as part of my Christmas baking frenzy, and included it in some gift baskets for friends and a goody tray for my... husband to take to work for his crew. My friend's exact words were (cut and pasted from her note): best "bahk-lah-vah" I've EVER had!!!!! oh my gosh... oh my gosh... oh my gosh!!! And my husband's coworkers asked him where we BOUGHT it! It got raves all around.... I used raw honey from our beehives, which I think made it even BETTER! This recipe is definitely a keeper!Read more
recipe Baklava
Kat Upper Sandusky, OH 12-24-2009
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Awesome Baklava!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

This is the first time I've tried making Baklava, and it turned out fantastic! I usually try my new recipes out on the guys... my husband works with, and they were drooling the rest of the day LOL! Thanks, AB. for making these scary recipes a bit less scary for those of us who are a bit nervous about baking!Read more
recipe Baklava
Tom Hooksett, NH 12-23-2009
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Rookie Baklava Maker Finds Success with AB Recipe!
Rated: 5 stars out of 5

I made baklava for the first time using this recipe. I was a little nervous heading in due to ?very scary? issues other... experienced with the phyllo (fillo printed on the box) dough. But it ended up being a piece of cake. Don?t worry about tearing a sheet or two. The box I purchased contained two packages of 20 sheets apiece. Since the recipe calls for a total of 30 sheets, you end up with 10 extra to rip and tear. I nuked the dough for 60 seconds (not minutes!) and this process greatly assisted my preparation. Next time I will individually grind the nuts. My pistachios were harder and I ended up with larger chunks than the rest. I used a Magic Bullet to grind the allspice and cinnamon and it did an OK job. The final product ended up a winner! Winner winner, baklava dinner (desert didn?t rhyme)! I did use a little more clarified butter but I was really slopping it on during the first few layers. In the end, this recipe isn?t difficult at all, just a little time consuming. I put the pre-baked product in the chill chest to cool for an hour before baking. I cut halfway through prior to baking as commented. I let it cool for 2 hours, finished cutting all the way through and draped the sweet topping concoction all over the top. After sitting overnight, I had a piece for breakfast and it totally rocks! Since I love sweets, I did not find this recipe too sweet (tout suite?). I did not use the rose water. I also added a little cardamom. I have a convection oven but only convection cooked for first 30 minutes at 350, flipped the pan around, then decided to cook for an additional 20 minutes without convection at 350 due to quick browning on the top. Next time I will cook for one hour without convection as I am not too confident baking with convection. I normally cook and do not bake. Try this recipe and you will not be disappointed. Read more