Best Syrian Walnut Baklava Recipes

BAKLAWA - SYRIAN VERSION OF BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Butter baking pans thoroughly.
• Place 1 lb.
• of dough in pan, brushing butter between each sheet.
• Do not butter top sheet.
• Combine ingredients for nut filling and spread evenly on last layer.
• Place the other 1 lb.
• dough over nut filling, brushing each layer with butter between each sheet.
• Cut in diamond shapes.
• Pour remaining butter over top.
• Bake in a preheated oven@ 400 degrees for 15 minutes.
• ,then reduce heat to 325 degrees for 45 minutes.
• *NOTE:Keep dough covered with damp cloth or plastic while using to prevent dough from drying out.
• SYRUP:.
• Mix sugar and water and boil over medium hear for 15-20 minutes Add lemon juice and rose water before removing from heat.
• Let syrup stand for 10 minutes before pouring over cold Baklawa.

CLASSIC SYRIAN BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Make syrup: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, bring granulated sugar and 1 cup water to a boil, stirring occasionally. Add lemon juice. "It helps prevent crystallization," Al Mousa explains. Reduce heat to an active simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened and reduced to a scant 1 3/4 cups, 10 to 12 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in 1 tsp. orange blossom water, and let syrup cool.
• Preheat oven to 350°. Make filling: In a large bowl, combine superfine sugar, remaining 2 tsp. orange blossom water, and 1/3 cup syrup. Add walnuts and stir until well blended. Set remaining syrup aside. Brush a rimmed baking sheet with a bit of the butter.
• Unroll filo. As you work, "keep it covered with a kitchen towel if you feel it's drying," Al Mousa advises. Lay 1 sheet filo in pan and brush generously with butter, making sure to cover all the dough. Repeat until you've used 14 sheets (any air bubbles that form will work their way out).
• Spoon filling over filo, spread evenly, and press mixture all over with back of spoon. "This way it won't fall apart when you eat it." Lay a sheet of filo on top and press it firmly with flat hands. Brush generously with butter, then repeat layering, pressing, and buttering with 5 more sheets. Layer and butter remaining 6 sheets, flattening them with your hands (no need to press).
• With a knife, trim shaggy filo edges flush with sides of pan (leave edges in pan for snacking later!). Using knife and a ruler, score filo at opposite long ends to mark 6 equal strips; then cut along score lines, using the ruler as a guide. Repeat on a diagonal, making 12 strips 1 1/2 in. wide to create diamonds.
• Bake, rotating pan twice for even browning, until filo is deep golden and crisp, including down into cuts, about 35 minutes. Using a soup spoon, evenly coat hot baklava with 1 to 1 1/4 cups of reserved, room-temperature syrup. "If the baklava has cooled or the syrup is hot, it won't be crunchy, it will be soggy," warns Al Mousa. (How much syrup is a matter of taste-some people like it sweeter.)
• Sprinkle center of each diamond with a generous pinch of pistachios. Let baklava cool in pan on a rack at least 1 hour. Re-cut if needed before serving, and cut bigger pieces in half if you like. *Find orange blossom water at grocery stores with baking and cocktail supplies, and at international markets. Find ghee at supermarkets and Indian grocery stores, and samneh at Arabic markets; a blend of butter and oil is the most economical, but all-butter tastes the best. At grocery stores, check packages of frozen, paper-thin filo dough carefully for size (you want sheets about 12 by 17 in.), and buy more than 1 box, as the quantity of sheets per pound varies by brand. To help prevent cracking, thaw in the refrigerator overnight, not on the counter. MAKE AHEAD: The syrup and the baklava, up to 1 week, airtight at room temperature.

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.