Reminds me of my holiday in Greece! This baklava has thin layers of phyllo and raw nuts soaked in a sweet syrup. Baking them as sliced rolls makes them a perfect party food and super cute! Enjoy!
Ingredients
(makes around 30 pieces) (takes 2 hours)
Syrup
2 cups (400g) sugar
1 cup (235g) water
1/4 cup (85g) maple syrup
1 strip of orange zest, cut with a vegetable peeler
1 cardamon pod
Baklava
6 Tbs (85) vegan butter, melted
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbs (80g) neutral oil (such as grapeseed)
8 ounces (225g) raw peanuts
8 ounces (225g) raw pistachios
8 ounces (225g) raw walnuts
1/2 cup (60g) confectioners sugar
1/8 tsp ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 (1 pound/454g) package frozen phyllo dough, thawed completely*
Instructions
1. To make the syrup, mix the sugar, water, maple syrup, orange zest, and cardamom in a saucepan. Simmer over low heat, stirring until the sugar dissolves, around 10 minutes.
2. Remove from heat and let the syrup cool. Pour it into an air tight container and refrigerate until chilled, or up to 1 day in advanced.
3. To make the baklava, heat the oven to 350F (175C), with rack in the center. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Stir together the melted butter and oil of choice in a bowl.
4. In a food processor, blitz the nuts, confectioners sugar, cardamom, and cinnamon until the nuts are very finely chopped and the mixture is almost pasty.
5. Lay 3 sheets of phyllo dough stacked on top of one another on the counter or cutting board with one of the short sides closest to you. Cover the unused phyllo with a damp cloth/kitchen towel as you work, or they'll dry out.
6. Use a brush to very generously spread the top of the phyllo sheet with about 1/4 cup of the butter mixture. Spread about one third of the nut mixture on the bottom of the phyllo and pack it down with your hands. Roll the phyllo away from you to form a compact log. Keep the seam side down as you work on more rolls. Repeat with the remaining phyllo dough to form two more rolls. Place rolls on the baking sheet and leave in the freezer for 10 minutes to make them easier to slice.
7. Remove rolls from the freezer and cut the rolls into 1in slices. Arrange the slices, cut side up on the baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes or until golden brown, rotate the sheet half way through baking.
8. Remove the baklava from the oven, while they are still warm place them into a snug, deep pan or serving dish. Take out the orange peel and cardamom seed from the syrup and pour it onto the warm baklava.
9. Let it cool completely before serving.
10. Store in an air-tight container for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to a month.
Recipe inspired by Food 52
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