A layered dessert (or sweet snack) made with flaky buttered filo sheets filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup. Walnuts or pistachios are traditional; I substituted cashew nuts.
Cook’s notes
There are so many formulas for making baklava. Some have only two layers of nuts. The number of filo pastry sheets at the bottom, between the nut layers and on top can be anywhere from four to ten.
Filo sheets and butter
In this recipe, twenty filo sheets were used. Six on the bottom, six on top and two layers each with four sheets in the middle. What’s the logic behind the number of filo sheets in each layer? Well, this recipe is based on Alton Brown’s. I trust the guy so I just followed his instructions. Each filo sheet (not each stack) is dabbed with melted butter. The delicate sheets won’t break if you’re careful with the application of butter. Dab rather than brush to avoid tearing them. You might be thinking that’s a lot of butter if every filo sheet has to be dabbed with it. You’re right. You’ll need 250 grams (two sticks) of butter. You need that much to prevent the filo sheets from sticking to one another during baking.Nuts
The nuts are added in three increments. A third goes on top of six filo sheets, the second portion on top of a second stack of four filo sheets and the last portion goes on top of another stack of four filo sheets.Binding the nuts and buttered filo sheets
The layers of filo sheet and nuts are cut into squares (well, I like diamonds) before the pan goes into the oven. During baking, the filo sheets turn crisp. What you need now is something to bind the layers together without ruining the delicate puffy texture of the baklava. So, you in pour syrup. Sugar, honey, water and a little lemon juice to cut through the sweetness so that the baklava does not become cloying.Soaking before serving
You need to let the syrup spread through all the layers before cutting the baklava. If you serve it immediately after pouring in the syrup, the baklava will be too drippy but still quite dry between the layers. So let it rest for a few hours to allow the syrup to do it job. No, the syrup won’t make the filo sheets soggy. That’s the magic of baklava. Soaked in sticky syrup but still crisp.Cashew baklava
Ingredients
- 20 sheets filo pastry thawed
- 2 cups crushed roasted cashew nuts divided into three portions
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- â…› teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 250 grams butter melted
Syrup
- ¾ cup white sugar
- ¾ cup honey
- ¾ cup water
- ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350F.
- Spread the filo pastry on your work area and cover with a damp kitchen towel to avoid drying out. If the size of the sheets is not the same as the size of your baking pan, cut the sheets to make sure that they will fit snugly. You can refreeze any excess.
- Whisk together the crushed nuts, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
- Brush the bottom of the baking pan liberally with melted butter.
- Carefully lay a filo sheet on the bottom of the pan. Dab with melted butter. Repeat until you have a stack of six filo sheets all dabbed with melted butter.
- Spread one portion of the nuts on the stack of filo pastry.
- Make a stack of four filo sheets on top of the nuts, each dabbed with melted butter.
- Spread the second portion of the nuts on the second stack of filo pastry.
- Do another stack of four filo sheets, all dabbed with butter, then spread the remaining portion of the nuts on top.
- For the top layer, make a stack of six filo sheets–again, each sheet dabbed with melted butter.
- Take a sharp knife and cut the unbaked baklava into two to three-inch squares or diamonds, and bake at 350F for 30 minutes.
- While the baklava bakes, make the syrup by simmering together the sugar, water and honey until the sugar is dissolved. Stir in the lemon juice.
- Take the baking pan out of the oven and recut the baklava. Make sure that all pieces are cut all the way through.
- Pour the syrup over the hot baklava. Allow to soak for a few hours before serving.
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