Flaky Honey Walnut Baklava (Print Version)
# Ingredients:
→ Baklava Layers
01 -
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
02 -
454 g walnuts, chopped into small bits
03 -
284 g unsalted butter, melted
04 -
454 g phyllo dough, thawed as package says
→ Syrup
05 -
30 ml lemon juice, freshly squeezed
06 -
120 g honey
07 -
200 g white sugar
08 -
120 ml water
→ Garnish (optional)
09 -
Walnuts, chopped super fine
10 -
Chocolate chips, melted
# Instructions:
01 -
Grab your phyllo and let it chill in the fridge overnight. Pull it out to warm up for an hour on the counter before you jump in.
02 -
Slice phyllo sheets to fit your 33x23 cm pan if they’re too big, tossing a damp towel on top so they don’t dry out.
03 -
Brush melted butter all over the inside and bottom of your non-stick pan. Make sure you don’t miss a spot.
04 -
Toss sugar, water, honey, and lemon juice into a saucepan. Turn heat to medium-high until it boils and the sugar’s gone. Drop the heat and simmer 4 minutes, then kill the heat and let the syrup cool off.
05 -
Throw walnuts in a food processor and pulse until chunky. Stir together with cinnamon in a bowl so it’s mixed well.
06 -
Put down 10 phyllo sheets in your pan, painting each with butter as you go. Scatter about 75 g of the nut mix over them.
07 -
Next, stack 5 more sheets with butter, add more nut mix. Do the butter-and-nut routine four more times, keeping the walnuts spread out. Top with 10 last buttered sheets and coat the top with extra butter.
08 -
Slice the tray into strips about 4 cm wide, then cut diagonal diamonds. Bake at 163°C for 75 minutes till the top’s golden and crisp.
09 -
Once you pull the pan out, pour your cooled syrup evenly over everything. Listen for the sizzle and let the pastry soak it up.
10 -
Let everything sit out uncovered until cool. Don’t eat right away—it gets better if you let it rest at least 4 hours or overnight.
11 -
Right before serving, toss on some chopped walnuts or drizzle melted chocolate if you want. Dig in!
# Notes:
01 -
Keep a damp towel over phyllo sheets while working so they stay soft, not crackly.
02 -
Leaving the pastry to soak in syrup for hours (even overnight) makes the texture super even and tasty.