Sweet Baklava

Baklava is a decadent and impressive dessert that originates from the Middle East and Mediterranean. It’s made of countless layers of paper-thin phyllo dough, brushed with butter and filled with a mixture of chopped nuts. Once baked to a perfect golden-brown crisp, it’s drenched in a sweet, fragrant syrup, often made with honey and a hint of citrus. The result is a pastry that is simultaneously rich, sweet, flaky, and crunchy. While it looks complex, the process is mostly about patiently layering the phyllo sheets. It’s a perfect make-ahead dessert for special occasions, as its flavor only improves as it sits and soaks up the syrup. The most important thing to remember when working with phyllo dough is to keep it from drying out. It is paper-thin and can become brittle very quickly. Keep the sheets you are not working with covered with a piece of plastic wrap and a damp towel. The patient layering and buttering of each sheet is what creates the hundreds of flaky, crispy layers in the final product. When you pour the hot syrup over the hot baklava right out of the oven, the sizzle is the sound of success! This allows the syrup to be fully absorbed into every layer.