Baklava

YIELD:

serves 18- 20

ACTIVE TIME: 45minutes

TOTAL TIME: 2 hours

Ingredients

• 1 package phyllo dough thawed 
• 1 pound unsalted butter melted
• 4 cups nuts finely chopped (walnuts, pistachios, cashews, almonds)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground cloves
• 1/4 cup brown sugar

For the syrup

• • 1 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 1/4 cup water
  • 1 1/4 cup honey 
  • juice from one lemon 

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 360oF.
2. Butter the bottom and sides of your baking pan.
3. In a medium bowl, stir together: the nuts, sugar, cinnamon, cloves. 
4. Unroll the phyllo dough from the plastic sleeve and place one sheet of phyllo on a working surface and brush with the butter. Spread some of the filling, making a lane on the edge of the larger side of the phyllo sheet and roll into a ‘sausage’. Then form a “snail” and place it on the baking tray.
5. Repeat with the rest of the dough, placing the snail- rolls in the baking tray.
6. Bake at 360˚F for 50-60 or until tops are golden brown.
7. Remove from oven and let baklava cool completely, uncovered and at room temp. 
8. Let it cool and make the syrup. Combine the honey, sugar, water, and lemon juice in a saucepan, then bring to the boil. Boil for about 10 minutes until the syrup has thickened slightly.
9. Immediately spoon hot syrup evenly over the baklava.