Turkish Honey Baklava (Crispy Filo with Pistachios in Honey Syrup)

About This Recipe

Baklava (باقلوا / μπακλαβάς) is arguably the most famous pastry of the Middle East and Mediterranean, and the Turkish version — particularly as made in Gaziantep, Turkey's baklava capital — is considered by many pastry authorities the pinnacle of the form. What makes Turkish baklava from Gaziantep distinctive: the use of raw, unsalted pistachios (fıstık) from the Antep pistachio orchards, the extraordinary thinness of the yufka (filo) sheets produced by local ustalar (master pastry makers), and the restraint of the syrup — a light sugar and honey mixture with lemon that does not overpower the nut filling the way heavier Middle Eastern syrups can. The essential technique of making baklava is in the layering and buttering: each sheet of filo is brushed individually with clarified butter (tereyağı or sade yağ), and the layers must number at least 30–40 in a proper baklava to achieve the characteristic crunch. The hot-syrup-on-cold-baklava (or vice versa) rule is absolute: the temperature differential is what drives the syrup through the layers without making the pastry soggy.

Ingredients

Serves 24

• 500 gfilo (yufka) pastry sheets(thawed if frozen; thin as possible)
• 250 gunsalted butter(clarified (melted and skimmed))
• 300 graw unsalted pistachio nuts(finely ground)
• 400 gcaster sugar(for syrup)
• 300 mlwater(for syrup)
• 3 tbsphoney(a floral variety)
• 1 tbspfresh lemon juice
• extraground pistachios(for topping)

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the syrup first

   Combine sugar and water in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Add honey and lemon juice. Simmer 10 minutes until slightly syrupy. Cool completely — the syrup must be cold when the hot baklava comes out of the oven.

   The cold-syrup-on-hot-baklava rule is absolute. Warm syrup on hot baklava = soggy pastry.

2. 2

   Clarify the butter

   Melt the butter slowly in a saucepan. Skim the white foam from the surface. Carefully pour off the clear yellow fat, leaving the milky solids at the bottom. This clarified butter has a higher smoke point and will not burn in the oven.

3. 3

   Layer the bottom half

   Preheat oven to 180°C (355°F). Butter a 30x20cm metal baking tray. Lay a sheet of filo in the tray — it will likely overhang the sides. Brush with clarified butter. Add another sheet, brush with butter. Repeat until you have used half the filo sheets (15–20 layers).

   Work quickly — filo dries out fast. Keep unused sheets covered with a barely damp cloth.

4. 4

   Add pistachio filling

   Spread the ground pistachios evenly over the buttered filo base in a single, even layer about 4–5mm deep. Do not press down.

5. 5

   Layer the top half

   Continue laying and buttering the remaining filo sheets on top of the pistachio layer. Tuck in the overhanging edges neatly. Brush the top generously with clarified butter.

6. 6

   Cut and bake

   Using a very sharp knife, cut the baklava into diamond shapes all the way through before baking. Bake at 180°C for 40–45 minutes until the top is deeply golden.

7. 7

   Pour cold syrup

   Remove baklava from the oven. Immediately and evenly pour all the cold syrup over the hot baklava. It will sizzle dramatically. Leave undisturbed for at least 2 hours to absorb. Scatter extra ground pistachio over the top.

Variations

• •

  Walnut baklava: substitute walnuts for pistachios and add 1 tsp cinnamon to the filling.

• •

  Şöbiyet: a variation stuffed with a sweetened cream (ashta) filling instead of nuts.

Storage

Baklava keeps at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Do not refrigerate — cold makes the filo soggy. Baklava does not freeze well after syruping.

Frequently Asked Questions