Title: Baklava
Ingredients:
- 1 1/2 butter
- 1 cinnamon sticks
- 20 ground cinnamon
- 6 allspice berries
- 6 ground allspice
- 6 walnuts
- 2/3 pistachios
- 2 sugar
- 2 water
- 1 rose water
- 1 1/4 phyllo dough
- 1 1/4 orange blossom honey
- 1 1/4 water
- 1 sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 ground cardamom
- 4 rose water
Instructions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Clarify the butter: Cut butter into 1 inch pats. Melt over low heat. Let stand for 15 minutes. With a spoon, carefully remove all the white foam that collects on top. With another spoon, very carefully spoon the liquid into a measuring cup being careful not to mix or disturb the solids that collect on the bottom. The solids can be discarded. Set the clarified butter aside.
3. If using whole spices, place them in a spice grinder and grind finely.
4. Combine the water and rose water in a small food safe spritz bottle and set aside.
5. Place the almonds, walnuts, pistachios, sugar and spices into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped, but not pasty or powdery, about 12 to 15 quick pulses. Divide evenly into three parts. Set aside.
6. Have ready a damp towel to cover the phyllo sheets if they start to dry out. If you work quickly and the day is not too dry you probably won’t need this. Trim the sheets of phyllo to fit the bottom of a 13 X 9 X 2-inch metal pan. Brush the bottom and sides of the pan with clarified butter. Lay down a sheet of phyllo and brush with clarified butter using a pastry brush. Repeat this step 11 more times for a total of 12 sheets of phyllo. Top with 1/3 of the nut mixture and spread thinly and evenly over the phyllo. Spritz thoroughly with the rose water mixture – you want it to be damp, not soaking wet. Layer 6 more sheets of phyllo with butter in between each of them, followed by another third of the nuts and spritz with rose water mixture. Repeat with another 6 sheets of phyllo, butter, remaining nuts, and rose water mixture. Top with 10 sheets of phyllo brushing with butter in between each sheet. Brush the top generously with butter. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes. Remove pan from the oven and cut into about 36 squares on the diagonal, being sure to cut all the way through. Return pan to the oven and continue to bake for another 30 minutes. Remove pan from the oven, place on a cooling rack, and cool for 2 hours before adding the syrup.
7. Make the syrup during the last 30 minutes of cooling. Combine the honey, water, sugar, cinnamon stick, orange peel, cardamom, and 2 Tablespoons of rose water in a 4-quart saucepan and set over high heat. Stir occasionally until the sugar has dissolved. Let the mixture come to a boil then for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat. Pour the mixture through a sieve into a large container, preferably one with a spout. Stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons rose water. Discard the orange peel and cinnamon stick.
8. After the baklava has cooled for 2 hours, re-cut the entire pan following the same lines as before. Pour the hot syrup evenly over the top of the baklava, allowing it to run into the cuts and around the edges of the pan. If your container does not have a spout, use a ladle. Allow the pan to sit, uncovered until completely cool. Cover and store at room temperature for at least 8 hours and up to overnight before serving. Store, covered, at room temperature for up to 5 days.