It wouldn't be a food festival without baklava. Some recipes call for a mixture of walnuts, pistachios and almonds, so feel free to experiment. This recipe is adapted from Healthy Syrian and Lebanese Cooking by Helen Corey (CharLyn Publishing House 2004).
Makes 2 dozen pastries
Pastry
2 pounds chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
2 pounds frozen phyllo dough
1 1/2 pounds rendered butter, melted
Syrup
3 cups sugar
2 cups water
1 teaspoon orange blossom water*
Juice of 1 lemon
*Available at Middle Eastern markets
Preheat oven to 250 degrees.
Combine walnuts, cinnamon and cloves.
Defrost the dough according to the package directions. Brush a baking tray with butter. Place the phyllo, one sheet at a time, on the buttered baking tray, brushing each sheet with butter. Stack the sheets until they number 15.
Sprinkle the nut mixture over the sheets, about half-inch thick. Lay phyllo atop the nut mixture one sheet at a time, buttering each sheet. Stack another 15 sheets in all. Make sure to butter the top sheet. With a sharp knife, cut the nut stack into diamonds. Bake for 2 hours until the top turns light golden brown.
While the pastry is baking, prepare the syrup.
Mix the sugar, water and orange blossom water. Boil until slightly thick, then add lemon juice. When syrup is cool, pour very slowly over the cooled baklava in the pan. Garnish with ground nuts, if desired, and serve.
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