Walnut Baklava Recipes

WALNUT-AND-HONEY BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a food processor, pulse walnuts, cinnamon, and 1/2 cup sugar until finely ground.
• In a medium saucepan, heat 1 cup water and remaining 1 1/4 cups sugar over medium-high; bring to a boil. Immediately reduce to a simmer; cook until slightly thickened and sugar is dissolved, 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in honey. Let syrup cool completely.
• Brush a 12-by-2-inch round cake pan with butter. Trim each phyllo sheet into a 13-inch round (cover with plastic and a damp towel as you work). Carefully layer 7 phyllo sheets in pan, brushing butter between each layer. Sprinkle one-third of nut mixture over top. Repeat process twice more, brushing butter between each layer. Top with remaining 7 phyllo sheets, brushing butter between each layer.
• Generously brush top layer with butter. Using a sharp knife with a very thin blade (such as a boning knife), cut baklava into quarters, cutting through all phyllo layers. Halve each quarter to create 8 equal wedges. Working within one wedge at a time, make two straight cuts, 1 inch apart, parallel to one side of wedge. Make two more cuts, parallel to opposite side of same wedge, creating a diamond pattern. Repeat process in remaining 7 wedges.
• Bake until deep golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Remove from oven; pour syrup over baklava. Let cool completely before serving.

HONEY WALNUT BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Stir the nuts, sugar and cinnamon together in a large bowl and set aside.
• Remove the phyllo dough from the package and unroll on the counter. Trim to 9" x 13" (23 cm x 33 cm) and cover with a damp cloth.
• Brush the bottom of the pan with melted butter and place a sheet of phyllo dough into the pan. Carefully brush melted butter onto the sheet of pastry and top with another sheet. Butter and repeat until you've used 5 sheets of phyllo dough.
• Divide the nuts mixture into 3 equal portions and sprinkle one third over the pastry layers in the pan.
• Repeat the pastry and buttering process with 5 more sheets of phyllo dough, and top with another third of the nuts.
• Repeat with butter and pastry sheets again; top with nuts, then one last time with 5 more sheets of pastry and butter.
• Using a sharp knife, cut halfway through the layers (lengthwise into 3, and crosswise into 4). Next cut each piece in half, diagonally to end up with 24 pieces total.
• Bake in 300°F (150°C) oven for about 1 1/2 hours or until top is golden brown. Remove from oven.
• Heat honey until hot, then spoon over hot baklava as soon as it comes out of the oven. Allow to cool in tray on cooling rack. Keep at room temperature, covered with aluminum foil.
• To serve, cut all the way through the layers to remove the pieces from the pan.

WALNUT BAKLAVA

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the walnuts, sugar and cinnamon; set aside. Grease a 13-in. x 9-in. baking dish with some of the melted butter. Unroll phyllo dough sheets (keep dough covered with plastic wrap while assembling). , Place one sheet of phyllo in baking dish; brush with butter. Top with a second sheet; brush with butter. Fold long ends under to fit the dish. Sprinkle with about 1/4 cup nut mixture. Repeat 18 times, layering two sheets, brushing with butter and sprinkling with nut mixture. Top with remaining dough; brush with butter. Cut into 2-in. diamonds with a sharp knife. , Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, combine the syrup ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Pour over warm baklava. Cool on a wire rack.

WALNUT BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Mix together the walnuts, sugar and cinnamon.
• Select a pan the size of the phyllo sheets and brush well with melted butter.
• Use 4 sheets of phyllo for the bottom layer, brushing each one with butter before adding the next, and top with a sheet of unbuttered phyllo.
• Sprinkle with a handful of the walnut mixture.
• Cover with a buttered sheet, an unbuttered sheet, and another sprinkling of walnuts.
• Repeat until the ingredients are used up, reserving 5 sheets of phyllo for the top layer.
• Brush each of the top 5 sheets with ample butter, and pour the remaining butter over the top of the last sheet.
• Trim the edges if necessary, and cut the baklava into the traditional diamond pattern.
• Do not cut through the bottom layer.
• Sprinkle the top of the baklava lightly with water from your fingertips.
• Bake in a preheated 250°F (120°C) oven for about 1 hour.
• Remove from oven and cool.
• For the syrup, combine the sugar and water in a large pot and boil for 5 minutes.
• Add the honey, cinnamon stick and cloves, and boil for 5 minutes more.
• Pour the hot syrup over the cooled baklava.
• Do not pour over a hot baklava, it will turn soggy.
• Cool then cut through the bottom layer of phyllo following the previous cuts.

CINNAMON-WALNUT BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Brush a 13-by-9-inch baking dish with butter; set aside. In a medium saucepan, combine 3 cups sugar, lemon juice, and 1 1/2 cups water; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer until sugar dissolves and mixture is syrupy, about 10 minutes. Set syrup aside.
• In a food processor, pulse walnuts with cinnamon and remaining 1/2 cup sugar until finely ground. Set walnut filling aside.
• Place stack of thawed phyllo sheets on a work surface. Using a sharp knife, trim stack into a 13-by-9-inch rectangle; discard trimmings. Place 1 sheet of trimmed phyllo in prepared baking dish (keep remaining sheets covered with a damp cloth or paper towel). Brush gently with butter; repeat with two more sheets of phyllo, laying each on top of the other. (You now have a 3-sheet stack of buttered phyllo.)
• Sprinkle phyllo stack in dish with 1/3 cup walnut filling. Repeat with 7 more buttered phyllo stacks, sprinkling each with walnut filling. Top with one more stack; brush generously with butter.
• Using a sharp knife, cut unbaked baklava into 24 squares. Bake until puffed and golden, 30 to 35 minutes. Transfer pan to a wire rack; pour syrup over baklava. Let stand at room temperature until syrup is absorbed, at least 3 hours.

SYRIAN WALNUT BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350 degrees. Chop walnuts by hand into small pieces. (A food processor will bruise and pulverize the walnuts, creating a powdery effect.) Transfer to a bowl and mix with confectioners' sugar and orange blossom water.
• Cover phyllo pastry with a clean, lightly damp kitchen towel. Layer a pastry sheet into a 13-by-18-inch pan, securing it in a few places with dabs of clarified butter in the bottom of the pan. Brush sheet lightly with butter before layering on the next sheet. Continue layering butter and sheets; once half the sheets have been used, scatter the walnut mixture evenly over the top, being careful not to rip the pastry or leave any spots uncovered.
• Layer the remaining sheets, brushing each lightly with butter, including the top one. If your sheets are larger than the pan, trim the stack all at once so the edges are flush with the pan. Cut baklava into 3-inch squares, and pour any remaining butter around the edges. Bake for 40 minutes, or until top is a light golden brown.
• Meanwhile, prepare simple syrup: Boil granulated sugar and 3/4 cup/180 milliliters water together in a small pot over medium-high heat, stirring to combine. Remove from heat and add lemon juice. Stir, set aside and let cool to lukewarm.
• If there is excess butter in the baklava pan, carefully tip it over the sink to drain. While baklava is still hot, drizzle over the lukewarm syrup, being sure to get it in the gaps between pieces. Once completely cool, the baklava is best stored covered at room temperature and eaten within a few days.