Baklava

There are a number of baklava recipes at Zaar. This is the one I started using decades ago. Be sure to use butter, NOT margarine. I don't usually have a flower water available, but plain water works fine. I use frozen phyllo, thawed, and keep the sheets from drying out by covering with a damp dishtowel during preparation. Extremely sweet, rich and fattening, so cut the diamonds fairly small.

• Ready In: 1 hr 30 mins
• Yields: 1 pan

Ingredients

• 30  sheets phyllo dough
• 1  cup butter
• 1  cup  finely chopped walnuts or 1  cup  coarsely ground walnuts
• 1⁄2 cup  finely chopped  almonds or 1⁄2 cup  coaresely  ground almonds
• 2  tablespoons sugar
• 1  teaspoon cinnamon
• 1⁄2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1⁄8 teaspoon clove
• 1  cup  orange blossom water or 1  cup rose water or 1  cup water
• 1  cup sugar
• 1⁄2 lemon
• 2  tablespoons honey

Directions

1. Lay 10 sheets of phyllo (cut to fit the pan) in a buttered 8 X 8-inch pan, brushing each sheet with butter.
2. Mix the nuts with the 2 Tbs sugar and the spices and sprinkle half of the mixture over the phyllo; drizzle with melted butter.
3. Repeat with 10 more phyllo sheets and the rest of the nut mixture.
4. End with another layer of 10 phyllo sheets brushed with butter.
5. Cut, without cutting through the bottom layer, into diamond-shaped pieces.
6. Bake at 350F 1 hour.
7. While it bakes, make a syrup: Boil water, 1 cup sugar and ½ lemon for 15 minutes. Remove the lemon and turn off the heat. Stir in 2 Tbs honey.
8. Finish cutting through to the bottom of the baklava.
9. Let the baklava cool, then pour warm lemon-honey syrup over it.
10. Best to let it sit for a few hours before eating.