Recipe
Baklava
Walnut baklava from store-bought phyllo: dozens of butter-brushed layers around a cinnamon-walnut filling, cut before baking and drenched - hot pastry, cooled syrup - in lemon syrup.
Baklava takes about 90 minutes and makes 12 servings. Each serving has 549 kcal.
- Preparation
- 40 minutes
- Cooking
- 50 minutes
- Total time
- 90 minutes
- Servings
- 12
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 549 kcal
- Protein
- 7.5 g
- Carbohydrates
- 55 g
- Fat
- 34.5 g
Ingredients
- Phyllo sheets400 g
- Walnuts300 g
- Butter250 g
- Cinnamon1 tsp
- Sugar400 g
- Warm water300 ml
- Lemon1 pc
Instructions
- 1
Grind the walnuts with the cinnamon until fine but still sandy - stop before they turn to powder.
- 2
Melt the butter gently and skim off the white foam so only clear butter remains.
- 3
Butter a baking tin and layer in half the phyllo sheets one at a time, brushing every single sheet with melted butter.
Tip: Do not rush the brushing - every dry sheet is a layer that will not crisp. Thin coats, but on every sheet, edges included.
- 4
Spread the walnut filling in an even layer.
- 5
Layer the remaining sheets on top, buttering each one, and brush the top generously.
- 6
With a sharp knife, cut the baklava all the way to the bottom into diamonds - this must happen before baking.
Tip: Cutting after baking shatters the crisp layers into shards. Score deep and clean now, wiping the blade between cuts.
- 7
Bake at 170 °C for 45–50 minutes, until evenly deep golden all the way to the center cuts.
- 8
Meanwhile simmer the sugar and water for about 12 minutes until lightly syrupy, add the lemon juice, and take it off the heat.
- 9
Let the syrup cool completely while the baklava finishes baking.
- 10
The moment the baklava comes out of the oven, pour the cooled syrup slowly over the hot pastry, aiming along the cuts.
Tip: The golden rule: hot pastry plus cooled syrup equals crisp baklava. Hot syrup on hot pastry turns the whole tray soggy.
- 11
Let it rest uncovered for at least 2 hours, better overnight, so every layer drinks its share of syrup.
Cooking methods
On the stove
The stove only makes the syrup: a small pot at a steady middle simmer, no stirring after the sugar dissolves or it may crystallize. The baklava itself bakes at 170 °C, middle rack, conventional heat.
On induction
Syrup on level 5–6: bring it up, then let it bubble steadily - induction will not scorch a sugar syrup at that setting. The bake stays a normal oven job, 170 °C without fan if possible.
Over an open fire
Not a dish for open flame - the layers need long, even, all-around oven heat. Over fire you could only manage the syrup; bake the tray in a proper oven or a well-managed covered Dutch oven with coals on the lid.
Recipe questions
- How long does this recipe take?
- Plan for about 90 minutes from start to finish.
- How many servings does this recipe make?
- This recipe makes 12 servings.
- Can I cook this recipe on induction?
- Yes. Syrup on level 5–6: bring it up, then let it bubble steadily - induction will not scorch a sugar syrup at that setting. The bake stays a normal oven job, 170 °C without fan if possible.
- Can I cook this recipe over an open fire?
- Yes. Not a dish for open flame - the layers need long, even, all-around oven heat. Over fire you could only manage the syrup; bake the tray in a proper oven or a well-managed covered Dutch oven with coals on the lid.
- Which dietary preferences does this recipe support?
- This recipe is tagged: vegetarian.
In the app
Cooking the way it should feel
One step on screen, a timer that keeps going, and clear progress until the dish is done.
