Baklava

 Ingredients: Ingredients 1 package of thin pastry sheets (covered with a damp towel until use) 200 g butter (82% fat) For the filling: 125 g pistachios 125 g walnuts 100 g almonds 55 g (1/4 cup) sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves For the syrup: 300 g honey 150 g sugar juice from 1 lemon

To prepare a delicious and aromatic baklava, the first step is to take care of the pistachios. We grind 2 tablespoons of pistachios, which will be used for the final decoration of the dish. The rest of the pistachios, along with walnuts and almonds, are ground together, making sure to achieve a medium texture, not too fine, to add flavor and consistency to the filling. Once we have the nut mixture, we add our favorite spices, which can include cinnamon, cloves, or even vanilla, to enhance the aroma of the baklava.

We preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius (gas mark 4) and prepare our baking tray, which should be approximately 18 cm x 28 cm. We melt the butter and use a brush to thoroughly grease the tray, ensuring that every corner is covered. We take the first sheet of filo pastry and place it in the tray, making sure that half is inside the tray and the other half is outside. We brush this sheet with melted butter, then fold the outside part over the one in the tray, brushing again with butter. This process is repeated with four more sheets, ensuring that each sheet is placed so that the outside parts are opposite each other.

After placing the five sheets, we add half of the nut filling evenly, making sure it is distributed across the surface of the sheets. We continue by placing two more sheets of pastry, brushing them with butter as well. We add the remaining filling, followed by another four sheets, each brushed with butter to ensure a crispy crust.

To mark the portions, we use a sharp knife to cut through the first two sheets diagonally, forming a diamond pattern. The baklava is now ready to be placed in the preheated oven. We let it bake for 30 minutes.

In the meantime, we prepare the sweet syrup that will enrich the taste of the baklava. In a saucepan, we combine the syrup ingredients with 200 ml of water and bring them to a boil over medium heat. Once it starts to boil, we reduce the heat to low and let the syrup reduce for about 20 minutes. After the syrup has thickened, we let it cool to room temperature.

After the 30 minutes of baking, we cover the baklava with aluminum foil and leave it in the oven for another 20 minutes to allow the flavors to meld. When the baklava is ready, we take it out of the oven and pour the cooled syrup evenly over the entire surface. We let the baklava cool completely before cutting the portions according to the markings made earlier. This delicacy is ideal for serving on special occasions or simply to indulge the taste buds.

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