Greek Baklava

 

Greek Baklava

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Servings: 24 portions

Ingredients

1 package Phyllo Dough
1 pound Diamond Chopped Walnuts Or Pistachios
1 teaspoon Cinnamon
1-1/2 stick Butter, Melted
2 cups Honey
1/2 cup Water
1/2 cup Sugar
3 teaspoons Vanilla Extract

Steps

Remove phyllo dough package from freezer and place in the fridge for 24 hours to thaw. Remove from fridge approximately 1 hour before using.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F when you are ready to start making the Baklava. Generously butter a rectangle baking pan.
Keep phyllo dough on a baking sheet covered in a piece of plastic wrap and a damp cloth. It will dry out quickly, so only pull out what you need. Make sure dough will lay flat in the bottom of the pan, and trim if necessary.
In a bowl, toss together your nuts and cinnamon.
Take out two sheets of phyllo. Butter the top sheet of dough with melted butter, then pick up both sheets, the buttered and unbuttered sheet below it. Place into the bottom of the pan, buttered sheet facing down. Press lightly into the pan. Repeat this process twice more, so that you have six sheets of phyllo in the pan, three of the sheets buttered.
Sprinkle on 1/4 of the walnuts to make a single layer. Butter the top of two sheets of phyllo and place them on top of the walnuts, buttered side face down. Add more walnuts, then two more buttered phyllo sheets. Repeat this two more times, or until you’re out of walnuts.
Just like the bottom sheets in the pan, top with 6 more buttered phyllo sheets. Brush butter over the top. Using a sharp knife, cut a diagonal diamond pattern in the baklava.
Bake for 45 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.
While the baklava is baking, combine 1 stick of the butter, honey, water, sugar, and vanilla in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.
As soon as you remove the baklava from the oven, drizzle half the saucepan evenly all over the top. Allow it to sit and absorb for a few minutes, then drizzle on more until you think it’s thoroughly moistened. It’s okay if you have some of the honey mixture leftover. You want it to be sufficiently drenched, but not drowning in sauce. As the baklava sits, it will soak in all that delicious goodness.
This is the hard part. Allow the baklava to cool completely, and rest for several hours to soak in the syrup.
Get prepared for some sticky fingers!