Baklava is a type of dessert found in the Middle East and Mediterranean that dates as far back as the Ottoman Empire. It is also found in parts of Asia. This dessert is a type of pastry that is incredibly rich and also very sweet. It is often served in very small portions, which could be due to how rich and intense the flavor is.
It is essentially made up of multiple layers of filo pastry with a filling of honey or syrup and also chopped nuts. Though it is prepared in a large pan, it is cut up into much smaller bite-sized portions in different shapes prior to baking. The most common shapes for it are triangles, rectangles or parallelograms.
It is made by laying down many phyllo dough layers in a baking pan. Each layer is coated with melted butter. The chopped nut filling is placed in between the bottom set of layers and the top set of layers. The filling can be made using walnuts, pistachios or even hazelnuts and almonds. The pastry is finished with top layers of more dough.
After cooking the pastry, the syrup is immediately poured over the entire thing so that it can settle into the dessert. This is where the very intense sweetness of the dessert comes from. Syrup used can have honey in it, but also rosewater or other fruit extracts. Some regions in Turkey top the dessert with ice cream that has a milk flavor in the summer time, or another topping that is known as 'kaymak'.
Across the region where the dessert is common, different ways of preparing it are noted, sometimes with additional or substitute ingredients. One of the reasons for varied methods of preparation is religion. An example of this is how the Greeks prepare it using the same number of layers of dough as the number of years Christ lived.
Paklava is the name given to the same dessert in Armenia. There, ingredients like cinnamon and cloves are also included. Sour cream and also vanilla are just two of the many ingredients used in Georgia. Egg yolks can be used to prepare the pastry dough in Albania. The Persian style of this dessert does not taste as rich or sweet as in the Middle East.
It is possible to buy phyllo dough in the frozen section of the grocery store. While there are many variations on how to make the dessert, it is not hard to make. Start by placing a couple of sheets of the dough in a pan that has been buttered and cover these sheets with melted butter. Repeat this process three more times. Once there are 8 layers of dough, cover the layers with a mixture of chopped nuts and cinnamon. Place two more layers of dough over the nuts, butter them and add more nuts.
Place 6 to 8 further layers of phyllo dough on top to finish. Cut the pastry into squares or diamonds with a knife and put it in the oven to bake for 50 minutes in an oven preheated to three hundred and fifty degrees fahrenheit. While it is baking, make the syrup by boiling water and white sugar together, then adding some vanilla extract and half of a cup of honey. Simmer the mixture for 20 minutes and pour it over the dessert as soon as it emerges from the oven.
It is essentially made up of multiple layers of filo pastry with a filling of honey or syrup and also chopped nuts. Though it is prepared in a large pan, it is cut up into much smaller bite-sized portions in different shapes prior to baking. The most common shapes for it are triangles, rectangles or parallelograms.
It is made by laying down many phyllo dough layers in a baking pan. Each layer is coated with melted butter. The chopped nut filling is placed in between the bottom set of layers and the top set of layers. The filling can be made using walnuts, pistachios or even hazelnuts and almonds. The pastry is finished with top layers of more dough.
After cooking the pastry, the syrup is immediately poured over the entire thing so that it can settle into the dessert. This is where the very intense sweetness of the dessert comes from. Syrup used can have honey in it, but also rosewater or other fruit extracts. Some regions in Turkey top the dessert with ice cream that has a milk flavor in the summer time, or another topping that is known as 'kaymak'.
Across the region where the dessert is common, different ways of preparing it are noted, sometimes with additional or substitute ingredients. One of the reasons for varied methods of preparation is religion. An example of this is how the Greeks prepare it using the same number of layers of dough as the number of years Christ lived.
Paklava is the name given to the same dessert in Armenia. There, ingredients like cinnamon and cloves are also included. Sour cream and also vanilla are just two of the many ingredients used in Georgia. Egg yolks can be used to prepare the pastry dough in Albania. The Persian style of this dessert does not taste as rich or sweet as in the Middle East.
It is possible to buy phyllo dough in the frozen section of the grocery store. While there are many variations on how to make the dessert, it is not hard to make. Start by placing a couple of sheets of the dough in a pan that has been buttered and cover these sheets with melted butter. Repeat this process three more times. Once there are 8 layers of dough, cover the layers with a mixture of chopped nuts and cinnamon. Place two more layers of dough over the nuts, butter them and add more nuts.
Place 6 to 8 further layers of phyllo dough on top to finish. Cut the pastry into squares or diamonds with a knife and put it in the oven to bake for 50 minutes in an oven preheated to three hundred and fifty degrees fahrenheit. While it is baking, make the syrup by boiling water and white sugar together, then adding some vanilla extract and half of a cup of honey. Simmer the mixture for 20 minutes and pour it over the dessert as soon as it emerges from the oven.
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