Who knows, maybe yours will also sell for 14 btc one day. š
Pastry ingredients:
1lb walnuts
1 cup sugar
2/3 tsp cinnamon
Dash of clove
1 lb butter (melted)
2lbs #4 fillo dough (#4=thin)
Syrup ingredients:
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 cup buckwheat honey (key ingredient)
Pinch of clove
Couple dashes cinnamon
Preheat oven to 325F.
Add walnuts, 1 cup sugar, cinnamon and clove to a food processor using the mixing/chopping blade.
30 seconds in a Cuisinart will grind the walnuts to meal-like consistency.
The fine grind is key.
Using a pastry brush, spread butter along the inside of the pan.
Make a base layer of 10 sheets of fillo, buttering each sheet as you place it.
Press down on excess dough around the edges. Poke the bottom layer with a fork to prevent air bubbles during baking.
Now lightly sprinkle walnut mixture into the pan.
Add 2 sheets of fillo and repeat these steps (2 sheets then walnuts) until only 10 fillo sheets remain.
Add remaining walnuts to the pan.
Your last 10 fillo sheets are the same as your first 10 - 1 sheet, butter, 1 sheet, butter, etc until the fillo is gone.
Now you're done assembling the baklava!
Final step before baking is scoring. You can cut the baklava however you like. I keep it basic.
Now we bake at 325F for 40 minutes.
Syrup time!
Mix sugar, spices, & water in a sauce pan. Heat until sugar is fully dissolved.
Add 1 cup buckwheat honey, stir, & remove from heat.
If there's a "secret ingredient," it's the buckwheat honey. Other honeys will radically change the flavor.
After 40 minutes your baklava will look like this, but we want to brown the top.
Turn oven up to 375F & bake for another 10-12 minutes, or until top layer is golden brown.
Remove from oven and immediately pour syrup over the baklava, spreading it evenly.
Allow baklava to sit for 4-6 hours to cool and soak the syrup.
Mandrik's baklava is best served chilled.
You can freeze baked baklava for months, and it's good in the fridge for many weeks.
I'd love to see results from anyone who makes their own baklava with this recipe.
Enjoy! š
