Baklava

Have you ever walked by pastry shops and seen picture perfect, diamond shaped baklava wishing you could  make this delectable dessert on your own? If you have, then I'm here to make your wishes come true! And if not, well, then I have an amazing recipe that you should give a go. The process is a bit time intensive, but it's pretty straight-forward, and well worth it in the end when you get to eat all that sticky-sweet, nutty goodness.

Here's what you need.

Start by pre-heating the oven to 350 degrees and then coarsely
grind a pound of nuts and a cup of graham crackers together
(Any combination of nuts you like will work, but I'd go for
pistachios and walnuts!). Finish off the mixture with a
teaspoon of cinnamon.

Now for the assembly! Begin by brushing a 9x13 dish with
melted butter, and don't be stingy!

Layer 10 pieces of phyllo along the bottom, brushing melted butter
between every layer. Helpful tip: for all you perfectionists out there
(not me!), most frozen phyllo is a little larger than 9x13, so you can
take a knife and trim the whole stack to fit the dish perfectly!

Next, layer a quarter of the nut mixture (about a cup) on top,
followed by four pieces of phyllo,  another quarter  of the nut
mixture, four more pieces of phyllo, a quarter more of the nut
mixture, four pieces of phyllo, and the final quarter of nut mixture,
 making sure to brush melted butter between every sheet of phyllo.

Finish layering with 10 more sheets of phyllo, each with melted
butter inbetween. Make sure to hit the top layer with some extra
butter to get a nice golden brown after baking and cut the bakalava
 into diamonds (hopefully you can do a better top than me!)

Pop the bakalava into the oven for about an hour, and meanwhile,
you can work on the syrup. Start by bringing  3 cups of sugar,
6 ounces of honey, and 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil.

If you want a little extra flavor, in your syrup, you can also try
adding lemon zest, star anise,  nutmeg, and/or cinnamon
(sticks work best, but the ground type suffices).

Once the syrup reaches a boil, cook for about 15 minutes.
Then add some lemon juice and  boil for two more minutes.

You should now have a delicious looking brown syrup! Let it
coolfor a bit while you wait for the baklava to finish.

Once you get this golden brown top, your baklava is ready to
come out of the oven.

Pour the cooled syrup right over the warm baklava, and
let it sit and soak, uncovered, for at least six hours,
but preferably overnight.

Garnish these babies with some chopped nuts, and enjoy your pastry shop quality baklava!  

Baklava Recipe (yields about 36 pieces):

Ingredients:

1 pound ground nuts (pistachios, walnuts, pecans work best)

1 cup ground graham crackers

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

3 sticks unsalted butter, melted

32 sheets phyllo dough

3 cups sugar

6 ounces honey

1 1/2 cups water

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Optional: Lemon zest, star anise, cinnamon sticks, grated nutmeg, to taste

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and make sure to position a rack on the lower third.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the ground nuts, graham crackers, and cinnamon.
3. Brush a 9x13 dish with melted butter.
4. Layer 10 sheets of phyllo in the dish, brushing butter between each sheet.
5. Alternate a quarter of the nut mixture with four pieces of phyllo, until out of nut mixture, making sure to brush melted butter between each sheet of phyllo.
6. Layer 10 sheets of phyllo on top, brushing melted butter between each layer and brushing extra on top of the last sheet.
7. Cut the baklava into small diamonds, a 9x4 array works best. 
8. Bake the baklava for about 1 hour, or until the tops are golden brown, in the lower third of the oven.
9. Start the syrup by boiling the sugar, honey, and water together. 
10. Add the lemon zest, star anise, cinnamon, and/or nutmeg, if desired.
11. After boiling mixture for 15 minutes, add lemon juice and boil for two more minutes.
12. Let syrup cool, then poor over the warm baklava.
13. Let the baklava soak in syrup, uncovered, for at least 6 hours, preferably overnight.