(Manny’s Favorite)
Ingredients
Baklava
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 1¼ lb walnuts (finely chopped)
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 package filo dough (1½ lbs)
- 1 lb sweet butter, melted
Spiced Syrup
- 2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup water
- rind of a lemon peel wedge
- 1 cinnamon stick
Directions
Preheat oven to 300°.
In a food processor, whirl ½ cup sugar, cinnamon and walnuts just until finely ground.
Unroll filo dough and cover with plastic wrap to keep moist. Cover the dough as you work so it doesn’t dry out. Brush bottom and sides of a 9 x 13″ baking pan with melted butter.
Line pan with 1 sheet of filo at a time, layer 8 more sheets over the first, gathering each to fit into pan and brushing with butter.
Sprinkle ¼ of the nut mixture over the buttered filo in pan. Lay another sheet on top, gathering it to fit into pan and brushing with butter. Repeat layering nut mixture with filo sheets and butter until all nut mixture is used.
Lay the last sheet on and trim to fit pan. With a sharp knife, cut a 2 inch diamond pattern, be sure the knife touches the bottom of the pan as you cut.
Heat the remaining butter to sizzling and pour over the top.
Bake until top is golden and crisp and edges pull away from pan sides, 1¼ hours.
In a sauce pan, mix ingredients and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, allow syrup to boil for 7 minutes.
Discard cinnamon stick. Remove from oven and set pan onto cooling rack and spoon cooled syrup over the entire pastry.