Pistachio Phyllo Pastry
Description
Pahleva is a famous confectionery item of Eastern cuisine made from layered dough with nuts and honey. I assure you that you will absolutely love pahleva—the recipe with photos will help you prepare it as deliciously as possible.
Instructions
- 1
Step 1
1. Remove filo dough from the freezer and place in the refrigerator to thaw for 24 hours. Take the dough out of the refrigerator 1 hour before using. When working with filo dough, remove only as many sheets as you need and keep the rest covered with plastic wrap and then a damp cloth. Mix together chopped walnuts and cinnamon. Set aside.
- 2
Step 2
2. Preheat the oven to 175 degrees. Generously grease a rectangular baking pan. Make sure the phyllo dough sheets generally fit the size of the pan. If they are slightly larger, that's fine. If they are much larger, trim them using a sharp knife. Brush one phyllo sheet with melted butter.
- 3
Step 3
3. Then take this sheet and an ungreased sheet, and place them on the baking tray greased side down. Repeat this process 2 more times until there are 6 sheets of dough on the tray (3 greased, 3 ungreased). Gently press them onto the surface of the tray.
- 4
Step 4
4. Brush the top layer of dough with butter and spread walnuts in a single layer. Brush two layers of dough with butter and place them on top of the walnuts, buttered side down.
- 5
Step 5
5. Add the walnuts, then another two buttered sheets of filo dough. Repeat this process several times. Brush 4 more filo sheets with butter and place them on top. Brush the top sheet with butter on the outside.
- 6
Step 6
6. Cut diagonally into rhombuses with a sharp knife. Bake for 45 minutes, until the baklava turns golden brown.
- 7
Step 7
7. While the baklava is baking, mix 1 stick of butter, honey, water, sugar, and vanilla extract in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to low.
- 8
Step 8
8. When you take the baklava out of the oven, pour half of the honey mixture over the top. Let it absorb for a minute, then pour the remaining mixture. Allow the baklava to cool for several hours.