Baklava
- 1 (5-inch piece) cinnamon stick, broken into 2 to 3 pieces or 2 teaspoons ground
- 15 to 20 whole allspice berries
- 6 ounces blanched almonds
- 6 ounces raw or roasted walnuts
- 6 ounces raw or roasted pistachio
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 teaspoon rose water
- 1 pound phyllo dough, thawed
- 8 ounces clarified unsalted butter, melted
- 1 1/4 cups honey
- 1 1/4 cups water
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 1 (2-inch) piece fresh orange peel
- Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place the cinnamon stick and whole allspice into a spice grinder and grind.
- Place the almonds, walnuts, pistachios, sugar and freshly ground spices into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until finely chopped, but not pasty or powdery, approximately 15 quick pulses.
- Set aside.
- Combine the water and rose water in a small spritz bottle and set aside.
- Trim the sheets of phyllo to fit the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch metal pan.
- Brush the bottom and sides of the pan with butter; lay down a sheet of phyllo and brush with butter.
- Repeat this step 9 more times for a total of 10 sheets of phyllo.
- Top with 1/3 of the nut mixture and spread thinly.
- Spritz thoroughly with the rose water.
- Layer 6 more sheets of phyllo with butter in between each of them, followed by another third of the nuts and spritz with rose water.
- Repeat with another 6 sheets of phyllo, butter, remaining nuts, and rose water.
- Top with 8 sheets of phyllo brushing with butter in between each sheet.
- Brush the top generously with butter.
- Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
- Remove pan from the oven and cut into 28 squares.
- Return pan to the oven and continue to bake for another 30 minutes.
- Remove pan from the oven, place on a cooling rack, and cool for 2 hours before adding the syrup.
- Make the syrup during the last 30 minutes of cooling.
- Combine the honey, water, sugar, cinnamon stick and orange peel in a 4-quart saucepan and set over high heat.
- Stir occasionally until the sugar has dissolved.
- Once boiling, boil for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
- Remove from the heat and discard the orange peel and cinnamon stick.
- After the baklava has cooled for 2 hours, re-cut the entire pan following the same lines as before.
- Pour the hot syrup evenly over the top of the baklava, allowing it to run into the cuts and around the edges of the pan.
- Allow the pan to sit, uncovered until completely cool.
- Cover and store at room temperature for at least 8 hours and up to overnight before serving.
- Store, covered, at room temperature for up to 5 days.
cinnamon, berries, almonds, walnuts, pistachio, sugar, water, water, phyllo, butter, honey, water, sugar, cinnamon, fresh orange peel
Taken from www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/baklava-recipe.html (may not work)