Best 3 Christmas Baklava Recipes

GREEK BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175 degrees C). Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
• Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside. Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to fit pan. Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered. Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go. The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.
• Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp.
• Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
• Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers. This freezes well. Leave it uncovered as it gets soggy if it is wrapped up.

BAKLAVA

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the walnuts, sugar, cinnamon and cloves; set aside. Brush a 15x10x1-in. baking pan with some of the butter. Unroll 1 package phyllo dough; cut stack into a 10-1/2x9-in. rectangle. Repeat with remaining phyllo. Discard scraps., Line bottom of prepared pan with 2 sheets of phyllo dough (sheets will overlap slightly). Brush with butter. Repeat layers 14 times. (Keep dough covered with a damp towel until ready to use to prevent it from drying out.) , Spread with 2 cups walnut mixture. Top with 5 layers of phyllo dough, brushing with butter between each sheet. Spread with remaining walnut mixture. Top with 1 layer of phyllo dough; brush with butter. Repeat 14 times. Cut into 2-1/2-in. squares; cut each square in half diagonally. Brush remaining butter over top. Bake at 350° for 40-45 minutes or until golden brown., In a large saucepan, bring syrup ingredients to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer for 10 minutes. Strain and discard zest; cool to lukewarm. Pour syrup over warm baklava.

MINCE PIE BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 160C/140C fan/gas 3. Mix the mincemeat with the pistachios, almonds, orange zest and a good pinch of salt, then set aside. Melt the butter, then use a little to brush the bottom and sides of a 20 x 30cm baking tin. Cut the sheets of filo so they're the same size as the tin, then cover with a damp tea towel to stop them from drying out.
• Press one sheet of filo pastry into the tin and brush with the melted butter. Continue to layer the pastry in this way until you have used up one pack of pastry (around 10 sheets). Evenly spread the mincemeat mixture over. Top with the remaining pastry, continuing to brush the layers with melted butter as you go. Brush the final layer generously with melted butter. Using a very sharp knife, cut deep, diagonal lines all the way through the pastry to form a diamond pattern. Bake in the oven for 1 hr until golden.
• Meanwhile, make the syrup. Put the sugar and 75ml water into a saucepan, and cook over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved. Simmer until the syrup is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and stir in the Grand Marnier or brandy. Once the baklava has baked, remove from the oven and increase the temperature to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Pour the syrup over the baklava, then return it to the oven for 5 mins or until the syrup has been absorbed. Leave to cool completely in the tin, then slice into pieces along the diagonal lines. Will keep for up to one week in an airtight container.