Baklava is a Turkish cake bathed in syrup or honey syrup, with crushed walnuts, almonds and pistachios. Discover how to make it at home with this traditional recipe.
Arab cuisine, and in particular Turkish cuisine, stands out for its wide diversity of aromas, flavors and textures. As you surely know, it is a gastronomy in which the use of nuts and spices is essential, in fact enjoying a certainly outstanding position, as for example could be the case of almonds or pistachios.
Although it is tremendously popular typical dishes that have reached our streets, such as the Kebab (a type of meat popular not only in Turkey but in other countries such as India, Iran or Pakistan, which is minced and marinated), the truth is that Turkish cuisine is quite rich in a wide variety of dishes and recipes.
An example is the Tasty Kebab, consisting of a kind of meat stew that is prepared in a traditional way in a ceramic container, which is broken at the moment of serving it. Or the chicken with honey, with that characteristic flavor and texture.
However, who can deny the most typical Turkish sweets and desserts? An example is the wonderful and exquisite Turkish delight, which consists of a Turkish sweet made with sugar, with a gelatinous texture, which is flavored with rose water or lemon water.
But if there is a known dessert inside and outside this country, it is the Baklava, which also has other names such as Baklava or Baklavas.
What is Baklava?
Baklava is a cake that is made with a sweet base of crushed nuts, which are distributed in a kind of filo dough, and that is finally bathed in honey syrup or syrup.
There are different varieties, so that the crushed nuts can be replaced by other nuts, such as almonds or hazelnuts.
Its origin seems to go back to ancient Mesopotamia, although there is evidence that even the Assyrians back in the 7th century BC were the first to place a few layers of bread dough next to crushed nuts, adding a little honey and baking it in wood ovens. Primitives.
Turkish Baklava Recipe
This traditional Turkish cake is typically made from walnuts, pistachios and almonds, which -as we indicated above- are crushed. Its preparation is extremely simple. Do you dare to make it at home?
Ingredients:
- 180g of nuts
- 180g peeled almonds
- 180g of pistachios
- 150 grams of butter
- 90 grams of sugar
- Sheets of filo pastry
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of nutmeg
- Syrup
Preparation of the baklava:
- With the help of a food processor, grind the peeled almonds, the walnuts and the pistachios, all together so that they integrate very well.
- In a large bowl or bowl, mix the crushed nuts with the sugar, ground cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Now in a microwave safe bowl melt the butter, stirring from time to time.
- Now, so that the cake does not stick, grease a rectangular mold with a little butter, both on its walls and on the base.
- Preheat the oven to 170ºC.
- Put two sheets of filo pastry in the mold and spread them with a little of the melted butter, covering the bottom with these two sheets.
- Now on top of the sheets spread a not very thick layer of the mixture of nuts and sugar.
- Recolor a new sheet of filo pastry, spread it with butter and put another layer of nuts.
- Repeat this operation as many times as you want, until you finish with the filling. Of course, it always ends with a layer of two sheets of filo pastry, spread on top with butter.
- Put in the oven and let the pasta set for 20 to 30 minutes.
- Then remove from the oven, cut into squares and put in the oven again. Bake this time for another 10 minutes.
- When you notice that the filo pastry is golden, cover it with a layer of syrup on top.
- Ready! Now you can enjoy this delicious Turkish dessert.
Turkish tea recipe to accompany Baklava
What would baklava be without a delicious Turkish tea to serve as a side dish? Although this tea is traditionally made in Turkey with two kettles, we are going to reduce the process and explain how to make this wonderful and typical hot drink in a simpler way.
Ingredients:
- 1 tablespoon of black tea for each cup
- Water
Preparation:
- First heat the kettle with a little hot water.
- Meanwhile, boil some water in a saucepan.
- Remove the hot water from the kettle and add the tablespoon of black tea.
- Now pour the boiling water into the kettle and let it steep for 4 minutes.
- Ready! Serve and sweeten to taste.
