Baklava

Ingredients

Baklava

• 1 1/2 cups (8 ounces) whole raw almonds, toasted
• 1 2/3 cups (8 ounces) raw pistachios, plus 3 tablespoons chopped toasted pistachios
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cardamom
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 1/4 cups (2 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted
• One 16-ounce package frozen phyllo dough, thawed

Honey Syrup

• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup good-quality raw honey
• One 3-inch strip orange peel (with pith)
• 1 tablespoon fresh orange juice

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. In a food processor, combine the almonds, the 1 2/3 cups of pistachios, the sugar, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and pulse until finely chopped, about 12 times, leaving some of the nuts in larger pieces.
3. Brush a 9x13-inch baking pan generously with some of the melted butter. Lay the phyllo sheets on a piece of plastic wrap and cover with another piece of plastic wrap followed by a damp towel. Place 1 sheet of phyllo on the bottom of the prepared pan and trim it to fit. Brush generously with melted butter and repeat with 5 more sheets of phyllo, gently pressing them on top of each other.
4. Sprinkle with one-third of the nut mixture (about 1 cup). Top the nut mixture with a phyllo sheet and brush it generously with butter. Repeat with 5 more phyllo sheets.
5. Repeat with another one-third of the nut mixture and 6 phyllo sheets, brushing each with butter. Sprinkle with the remaining nut mixture.
6. Top with 10 phyllo sheets, brushing each sheet generously with butter. (Reserve the remaining phyllo for another use.)
7. Using a sharp knife, cut the phyllo layers into 24 (about 2 1/4-inch) squares. Cut each square in half on the diagonal. Bake until golden brown, 40 to 45 minutes. Set the baklava pan on a wire rack.
8. Meanwhile, make the honey syrup: (The syrup should be ready when the baklava comes out of the oven.) In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar, honey, 1 cup of water, and the orange peel. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and stir in the orange juice. Discard the orange peel.
9. Slowly pour all the warm syrup over the hot baklava, covering the entire surface. Sprinkle the 3 tablespoons of chopped toasted pistachios on top.
10. Let stand at room temperature on a wire rack at least 4 hours or up to overnight before serving.
11. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

“Magnolia Table: A Collection of Recipes for Gathering, Volume 2” by Joanna Gaines © William Morrow 2020. Provided courtesy of Joanna Gaines. All rights reserved.