Baklava

Chef: Jus-Rol

Prep: 30 mins

Cook: 60 mins

A simple recipe to create an impressive dessert with minimal effort

1 x 270g pack Jus-Rol filo pastry sheets (unwrap and keep under a damp tea-towel until ready to use)

150g butter, melted

100g pistachios, shelled

100g walnuts, shelled

100g blanched almonds

2 tbsp granulated sugar

1 tsp ground cardamom, or 6 pods, seeds removed and ground

1 tsp ground cinnamon

For the syrup

300g granulated sugar

300ml water

1 tbsp orange blossom water (optional)

Preheat the oven to 180C (160C in a fan oven) Gas 4

To make the syrup, heat the sugar, water, lemon juice and orange blossom water in a small, heavy-based saucepan and cook over a medium heat for approximately 15 minutes until the sugar has melted and a syrup has reduced by 1/3

Set aside to cool

Grease a 17cm x 28cm (11in x 7in) baking tray with butter

Place the nuts in a blender and blitz until coarse.

Transfer to a bowl with the sugar and spice

Lay 2 sheets of filo pastry, one at a time, into the tray, brushing each sheet with butter before adding the next

Pour half the nut mixture on top

Layer up the next 2 sheets, brushing each sheet with butter, as before

Top with the remaining nut mixture and finally, top with the remaining 2 sheets of filo

Using a sharp knife, cut a criss-cross (diamond) pattern into the top layers of the pastry

Place in a preheated oven for approximately 20 minutes, decrease the temperature to 150C/Gas 2 and cook for a further 30 minutes, or until the pastry is slightly puffed and golden on top.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool slightly.

Pour half of the cooled syrup over the Baklava and allow to stand for 5 minutes before pouring over the remaining syrup

Leave for a further 10-15 minutes before cutting into small diamond-shaped pieces

Great recipes brought to you by Jus Rol

Serves
6-10

Preparation Time
30 minutes

Cooking Time
60 minutes

Main ingredients
Nuts, Spice, Pastry

Level of Difficulty
Easy

It might be easier to cut the criss cross pattern all the way through the pastry before cooking, make it easier after

Don’t make the diamonds too small, or it looks messy when you try to take them out