Baklava, my way!

Hello everyone!  I am so sorry I haven't posted a blog for a few days.  Sometimes life gets busy and really cuts into my blogging time.  I will work on that, I swear!  

I feel kind of strange.  I have no funny stories about this recipe. I mean, usually something hilarious happens or there is a good history.   I forgot how hard it was to work with phyllo dough and just cussed alot.  I know, imagine it.  Anyway, I wanted, as usual to change things up.  I have never made baklava, only eaten it, and eaten it, oh and eaten it.  So here is what I came up with and I think it was dang good.   So get your baklava making pants on, you know the ones with a stretchy waist so you have room to grow as you pick and eat and pick and eat. Yeah!  Those are the ones.  You comfy now?

I had some serious camera issues during this experiment.  This is why the top cover photo, isn't just a piece, it is missing the glaze and the pistachio's on top.  Don't ask, just accept it.  It was a miserable camera day!  

Here is what you will need:
1 box Phyllo dough
3/4 cup roasted almonds
3/4 cup macadamia nuts-roasted
1 cup butter-melted
2 tsps cinnamon
1/3 cup brown sugar (can use splenda brown sugar)
3/4 cup pistachio's crushed (use a rolling pin to get them crushed)

Simple Syrup Mixture:
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup honey
2 tsps vanilla extract
Combine all ingredients in small saucepan.  Heat until it comes to a boil, only swirling the pan, and not stirring.  When it comes to a boil, shut it off and set it aside to cool, add vanilla at this time and stir!

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Melt butter and using a pastry brush, brush the pan, bottom and sides LIBERALLY and set aside. In a food processor combine brown sugar, nuts, and cinnamon. Process until your mixture is in small bits, not completely mutilated, you still want SOME texture.

 

Use a damp CLEAN kitchen towel and roll out your phyllo dough on it.  Trim up the dough with a serrated knife if you need to, so it fits your pan.  Keep it covered it will dry out SO fast.  Using a pastry brush, brush butter on the top layer, cover the entire thing and then carefully place it in the baking dish.  

Do this with 10 sheets of dough.  Stacking them on top of each other.  Then sprinkle 1/3 of your nut mixture on top.  Layer 7 more sheets of dough in the same manner, brush with butter and place on top.  Then add another 1/3 of your nut mixture.  Layer 5 more sheets and then the rest of your nut mixture.  Add 3 sheets on top and you are done!

 

Make sure to cut your pieces before baking as it will be to brittle and crispy to cut nicely afterwards.  Bake for 25-35 minutes, when the top is nicely browned it is done.  Don't let it go to far, but make sure to let it get nice and brown, not just barely tan. 

 

You know what I mean?  I thought so.  

 

Now just as soon as you take it out, pour over the simple syrup mixture.  Cover the entire pan of baklava with it and here is the hard part.  Let it sit for at least 1 hour, 2 is better.  Let it cool COMPLETELY and the syrup to soak in well!  While the syrup is still sticky on top, sprinkle over crushed pistachio's.  *this particular photo, bombed, thus the top photo of the baked baklava with no syrup or pistachio's!  

I hope you enjoy it!!  We sure did!

Your "my husband loved it but called it MOCKlava" chefwannabe

Chris

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