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Baklava recipe

Perfect, crispy, not overly sweet baklava with homemade phyllo dough.
Prep Time1 hr 25 mins
Cook Time50 mins
Total Time2 hrs 15 mins
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: turkish
Author: Mihaela K. Sebrek

Ingredients

  • Homemade Phyllo dough recipe follows or 1 pkg (16 oz) phyllo dough; thawed according to package instructions
  • 300 grams finely chopped nuts (pistachios, walnuts, hazelnuts, pecans, almonds, or mixture) 10.5 oz
  • 230 grams butter

Syrup:

  • 1000 ml water 4 cups
  • 700 grams granulated sugar 25 oz
  • 1/2 tsp ground cardamom
  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

Homemade Phyllo dough:

  • 240 ml milk or mix of water and milk
  • 1 large egg
  • 120 ml vegetable oil 1/2 cup; 4 fl oz
  • 500 grams all-purpose flour 17 oz
  • 2 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 250 grams corn starch 9 oz
  • 3 tbsp flour

Instructions

Syrup:

  • In a medium saucepan, combine water, sugar, cardamom and lemon juice. Bring to a boil over medium high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then reduce heat to medium low and boil additional 5 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat and let syrup cool to room temperature while preparing baklava.

Baklava with homemade dough (use YouTube clip listed above if necessary):

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
  • Pulse walnuts 10 times in a food process or until coarsely ground/ finely chopped.
  • In a bowl of stand mixer add egg, milk, water and oil. With a wire whip mix about 30 seconds to 1 minute. Replace the wire whip with dough hook, add most of the flour (3 1/2 cups), along with baking powder and salt. Mix until smooth, adding remaining flour until you get smooth and non-sticky dough, about 5-7 minutes. The bowl should be clean when mixing is complete. Let it rest for 15 minutes.
  • Scrape the dough onto a lightly floured surface and gently knead into a smooth, firm ball.
  • Cut in 3 equal pieces. Then cut every piece to 4 and then 4 again, until you have 16 pieces from one piece at the end. Do the same with the rest 2 pieces. You should have 48 pieces at the end. Shape every piece to a ball and cover with kitchen towel, so they won't get dry.
  • Mix 2 cups of corn starch with 3 tbsp all-purpose flour and set aside.
  • Take the first batch of 16 pieces. Take 1 ball and put it in the corn starch mixture and coat it heavily. Roll the dough ball with rolling pin in a round shape until the size of dessert plate about 4-5 inches (12cm).
  • Sprinkle the rounded dough generously with corn starch and set aside.
  • Put the second piece and repeat the same step. Put the second piece on top of the first. It should be generous amount of corn starch between every piece of dough.
  • Repeat the step with other pieces, using cornstarch mixture generously.
  • After rolling the first batch of dough, repeat the same steps with two remaining batches.
  • At the end you should have 3 batches with about 16 layers of dough.
  • Take the first batch, press it a little with your hands and using rolling pin, roll all together in a size of your round baking pan. While rolling flip the dough from time to time to roll it evenly. Don't worry, if you have put enough corn starch between every sheet, the sheets won't stick together, they will roll out easily and they will be very thin.
  • Melt 1 stick of butter in a sauce pan under low heat.
  • Butter your baking pan, and transfer the first batch of dough sheets into it. Spread few tablespoons of butter and add half of the nuts on top of it. Put the second batch of sheets, spread few tablespoons of butter and remaining nuts on top of it and cover with the third batch of dough sheets (If you want more layers of nuts, cut the every batch in half and use 8 dough sheets at the time).
  • Cut your baklava with very sharp knife in diamond shapes ( or any other shape you prefer).
  • Melt remaining butter and pour hot over baklava.
  • Place the pan of baklava in the oven and bake for about 50 minutes or until golden. Check half way through and rotate the pan for even browning.
  • Remove from oven and immediately spoon cooled syrup evenly over the hot baklava. Let baklava cool completely at room temperature.
  • Garnish baklava with finely chopped nuts.

Baklava with store bought dough:

  • Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).
  • Pulse nuts 10 times in a food process or until coarsely ground/ finely chopped.
  • Thoroughly butter your pan using a pastry brush.
  • Unwrap the phyllo sheets and carefully unroll onto the assembly surface, keeping the large sheet of plastic used to roll the sheets underneath. Dampen the tea towel and lay it over the phyllo.
  • Melt 1 stick of butter in a sauce pan under low heat.
  • Place 10 phyllo sheets into baking pan one at a time, brushing each sheet with butter once it's in the pan before adding the next. Sprinkle chopped nuts over phyllo dough. Add 5 buttered sheets of phyllo, then another layer of nuts. Repeat four times. Finish off with 10 layers of buttered phyllo sheets. Brush the very top with butter. Cut your baklava with very sharp knife in diamond shapes ( or any other shape you prefer).
  • Melt remaining butter and pour hot over baklava.
  • Place the pan of baklava in the oven and bake for about 50 minutes or until golden. Check half way through and rotate the pan for even browning.
  • Remove from oven and immediately spoon cooled syrup evenly over the hot baklava.
  • Let baklava cool completely at room temperature.
  • Garnish baklava with finely chopped nuts.

Notes

***In Croatia, we are using grams and milliliter. My every recipe has a measuring in cups, grams (milliliter) and ounces. I own cups and spoons measuring tools and I try to be exact when I convert weight into volume, but there is a slight possibility of deviation from the exact amount. Due to differences in measurement, I recommend that you use a kitchen scale, if you have one.
Tried this recipe?Tag @mihaela_biteitquick on Instagram! I would love to see what you've baked!