“This is a variation on pralines. Use cinnamon and nutmeg to taste, and dust a little powdered sugar on top. Yum!”
Well, OK, not really fat. But Big. And Greek. And Baklava!
This stuff is amazing. Really.
It’s a little time consuming if you don’t have a food processor. Which I didn’t when I first started making it.
But oh, so worth it.
And today I just happened to be home all alone so I decided to go play in the kitchen.
Christmas baklava, layers of filo pastry with cinnamon, and fruit mince, soaked in a little homemade syrup and topped with crushed almonds.
Ingredients :
1/2 pound chopped pecans
1/2 pound chopped walnuts
2-3 tbsp. ground cinnamon
1 pound package of Phyllo dough
1-1/2 cups butter, melted
2-1/2 cups honey
1 tsp. vanilla
1 tsp. grated lemon zest
Mix nuts together in a large bowl and toss with the ground cinnamon. Set aside.
Directions :
Butter a 9×13 inch baking dish.
Place 2 sheets of phyllo in the bottom of prepared dish. Brush generously with melted butter.
Sprinkle 2-3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Repeat layers until all the nuts, butter, and phyllo are used.
End with about 6 layers of phyllo on the top. If you still have some butter left, brush it over the top layer.
Using a very sharp knife, cut through all layers of the baklava. Cut 3-4 sliced length-wise.
Then make diagonal cuts to make diamond shapes.
Bake in heated 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes, until golden and crisp.
While baklava is baking, heat honey in a sauce pan until close to boiling. Stir in vanilla and lemon zest.
When baklava is done baking, immediately pour the honey mixture over the top.
Let cool completely in the pan.