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Baklava
Recipe by: Ruby Ziogas
For a 12”x18” pan:
2 ½ pounds of filo dough
2 ½ pounds of chopped walnuts
1 cup of sugar
1tsp. cinnamon
1 lb. melted unsalted butter
½ cup of Crisco oil
Approx. 80 cloves
For the syrup:
5 cups of sugar
4 cups of water
1 cup of honey
2 cinnamon sticks
2 Table spoons of lemon juice
½ lemon peel
In a large pot bring the water, sugar, lemon peel and cinnamon sticks, to boil for about 50 minutes under medium heat. Add the lemon juice and continue to boil for another 10 minutes. Remove pot from the heat and add the honey while steering to mix well with the syrup. Let the syrup cool well while working on the baklava.
In a large bowl mix the walnuts with the sugar and cinnamon. Combine the melted butter with the oil and keep it warm while working with it. Take the pan and brush all sides and bottom with butter.
Start lairing the pan with 15 sheets of filo while buttering each one on the pan as you lair it (the filo should extend over all sides of the pan by about 4”). Now you continue to lair the next pound and a half of filo (inside the pan only) by drizzling with your brush some butter every sheet and spreading the walnut mixture on every other sheet of filo. When you finish spreading the walnuts, you start turning to the inside of the pan all the excess filo of the first 15 sheets while buttering each sheet you turn in. You finish the lairs with the rest of the filo sheets while buttering well each lair. With a sharp knife, you cut the baklava in 1 ½” strips and then in diagonal strips to form diamond shape pieces. Add one clove in the center of each piece and you are ready to bake in a preheated oven at 325 degrees for 1 ½ hours.
Pour 7 cups of syrup on the baklava as soon as it is out of the oven and let it cool completely uncovered. You can cut and serve the next day, or you can also freeze it in a well covered container.