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4.89 from 17 votes
A serving dish with baklava.
Homemade Baklava Recipe
Prep Time
40 mins
Cook Time
1 hr
soak for a minimum of
4 hrs
 

Flakey phyllo dough, layers of sweet nuts, and all the flavor you love in a homemade Baklava recipe — it's no wonder this dessert is beloved!

Course: Dessert
Cuisine: Greek
Servings: 20 pieces
Author: Gemma Stafford
Ingredients
For the Syrup:
  • 1 cup (10oz/283g) honey
  • 1 cup (8floz/225ml) water
  • 1 cup (8oz/225g) sugar
  • 1 cinnamon stick
  • 3 (2- inch) strips orange peel
  • 3 (2- inch) strips lemon peel
For the Baklava
  • 2 cups (10oz/284g) raw shelled pistachios
  • 2 cups (10oz/284g) raw almonds
  • ½ cup (4oz/115g) granulated sugar
  • teaspoons cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon allspice
  • ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1 pound (16oz/450g) phyllo dough
  • 1 cup (8oz/225g) butter (melted)
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C).

  2. Make the syrup: In a small saucepan, combine the honey, water, sugar, cinnamon stick, orange peel, and lemon peel and heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and set aside. (this syrup can be made up to 2 days in advance)

  3. In the bowl of a food processor, pulse together the pistachios, almonds, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, and cloves until the nuts are chopped small (but not ground). Remove to a bowl and set aside.

  4. Set up a workstation with the phyllo dough unrolled and under a damp kitchen towel, the melted butter, and a pastry brush.

  5. Lightly brush a 9x9-inch (23x23cm) square baking dish with butter and lay a sheet of phyllo dough in the pan. Fold over the edges to fit into the pan. Brush lightly all over with butter.

  6. Add another layer of phyllo dough, fold to fit, and brush with butter. Repeat this process until you have used 8 sheets of phyllo dough. Keep the unused dough under the towel to prevent it from drying out.

  7. Sprinkle ¼ of the nut mixture onto the dough layers, then top the nuts with two sheets of phyllo dough, brushing each sheet of dough with butter after placing it in the pan. Repeat this process until you have created 4 layers of nuts with two layers of phyllo dough in between.

  8. Top the nuts with the remaining phyllo dough, brushing each layer with butter, including the final layer.

  9. With a very sharp knife cut the baklava into about 20 squares or diamond shapes.

  10. Bake for about 1 hour, or until the pastry is a deep golden brown.

  11. Remove the baklava from the oven. Immediately remove the cinnamon stick and the orange and lemon peels from the cold syrup and pour evenly over the hot baklava. Let the syrup absorb for at least 4 hours or overnight before serving.

  12. Enjoy Baklava as is! Store loosely covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.