Have You Made Baklavas?

I love making baklava. Some people prefer it light and crispy, some like it packed in and squishy.

Keep the pastry sheets moist at all times by keeping a layer of wet paper towel or two over it. If you are the former, then be quick with the butter and layering. I am the latter so I use alot of filling. The longer it sits, the better it is, imo, bc all the butter and honey gets to really soak into the pastry and get it gooey. If you don't like it squishy and gooey and soggy, then just don't use alot of honey in your filling and spread just a little filling in each layer.

Yes, you can leave it out - it should stay crispy for a few hours. I think if you leave it out for a whole day, it might lose its crispiness. But it is still good.

I've used pecans and pistachios before (in separate pans) and I like cutting them in diamonds...it gives it more of a prettier presentation.

good luck!

I'm no help, but it did make me remember the episode of Roseanne where the door-to-door salesperson died at their kitchen table, and the Greek policeman helped Darlene make baklava with the body still there, covered in a sheet.

And now I want baklava!

The sauce is a simple syrup of 1 part sugar to 1 part water. You can use "rose water" instead if you like that taste.

It is true about the sauce and the baklava not being at the same temp. One has to be hot, the other or room temp. If not you'll have a soggy mess on your hands.

We bake, and sauce ours, and leave ours out for up to a week, stored in tupperware, and its no trouble.

I prefer to make it jelly roll style. 3 sheets of fillo dough buttered, topped with a 4th not buttered. roll up the long edges to form a bit of a frame. spread your your nut cinnamon and sugar mixture on. then roll and place in a cookie tray. when you've finished your box of fillo, and you have all your rolls snug up against each other, cut on the bias for 2" long pieces. Butter over top, especially into the cuts, and bake until golden brown.

I prep the syrup before I roll the baklava. That way the syrup is well and cool when the baklava comes out of the oven.

let us know how it turned out.
F. B.

I use this recipe -

http://myweb.cableone.net/gob/Recipes/BAKLAVA.HTM

It has never let me down!

It's not hard -- but it is time consuming. The 'sauce' is sugar, honey and water with a little vanilla that you pour over the baklava after you take it out of the oven. It gets better the longer it sits - so the sauce gets into all the layers of the phyllo. I don't put it in the fridge, just cover it and leave it on the counter. So yummy and everyone loves it!

Really worth the time and effort you put into it.