Baklava

Total Time: 25 hrs Preparation Time: 24 hrs Cook Time: 1 hr

Ingredients

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup honey
• 3/4 cup water
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• lemon zest (1 inch wide strip)
• 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 lb shelled pistachios
• 1/2 lb shelled walnuts
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter (2 sticks)
• 1 lb phyllo dough, thawed

Recipe

• 1 start off by making the syrup: in a medium saucepan, combine all of the syrup ingredients. cook over medium heat until the sugar is dissolved, stirring occasionally. lower the heat to medium-low and cook until the syrup is slightly thickened. this takes about 10 minutes. remove the lemon zest and set the pan aside to cool.
• 2 preheat the oven to 350°f
• 3 prep the nut filling: finely chop the nuts with either a sharp knife or food processor (take care not to over process). stir in the ground cinnamon and salt.
• 4 melt the butter in a small saucepan over low.
• 5 use a pastry brush and brush a light coat of the melted butter to grease a 9" by 13" baking dish.
• 6 unroll the phyllo sheets. if they are larger than the baking dish, take a sharp knife and trim them to fit. cover with plastic wrap or a barely damp kitchen towel. if left uncovered, the phyllo will dry out.
• 7 lay one phyllo sheet in the baking dish. lightly brush with melted butter. continue alternating butter and phyllo until you have 7 sheets stacked. take 3/4 cup of the nut mixture and spread over the top of the phyllo. repeat layering and buttering 7 sheets of phyllo and 3/4 cup of nuts until all of the nuts have been used. layer and butter any remaining phyllo sheets on top.
• 8 score the phyllo: using your trusty sharp knife, cut 4 lengthwise lines about 1 1/2" apart. this will give you 5 rows. then cut diagonally every 1 1/2". these cuts will form a diamond pattern. you should come out with close to 36 pieces of baklava this way. it is very important to score before you bake!
• 9 bake for 40 minutes, or until golden brown.
• 10 remove from the oven and set aside on a wire rack to cool for 5 minutes. using a ladle or small measuring cup, drizzle the cooled syrup over the warm baklava. allow the baklava to soak up the syrup for several hours -overnight is better - before serving. cover with plastic wrap.
• 11 note: i've not made this since i read this trick, but women's weekly suggests using a clean small foam paint roller from the crafts dept. to butter your phyllo sheets. next time, i'm going to try it to see if it speeds things up a bit.