Baklava With Dandelion Blossom Syrup Recipes

ROSE WATER AND ORANGE BLOSSOM BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Combine the walnuts, cinnamon and sugar in a large bowl and set aside. In the bottom of a greased 9 by 13-inch pan, put 1 layer of phyllo and brush liberally with butter. Repeat 6 more times, buttering each delicate layer, until you have 7 layers of phyllo. Spoon 1/3 of the nut mixture over the phyllo and top with 5 more individually buttered sheets of phyllo. Repeat the process 2 more times and finish with 7 layers of phyllo. Brush the final layer with butter and bake until golden brown, about 50 minutes.
• While the baklava is baking, make syrup. Add all of the syrup ingredients to a medium pot and bring to a boil over medium-low heat. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 10 minutes.
• Remove the baklava from the oven and pour the syrup evenly over the top. Cut into squares or diamonds and serve.

DANDELION SYRUP

Steps:

• Pick dandelion petals off the stems. Wear gloves to avoid staining your hands. Measure 5 1/2 ounces of petals and discard the stems and leaves.
• Transfer dandelion petals to a container and cover completely with water. Cover and steep in a cool, dark place, up to 24 hours.
• Drain through a fine-mesh sieve into a saucepan, squeezing petals as dry as possible with your hands. Stir in sugar and lemon juice and bring to a boil over medium heat. Simmer uncovered until a thin syrup forms, about 45 minutes. Cool until syrup thickens slightly.
• Pour into a bottle and place in the refrigerator.

BAKLAVA WITH HONEY SYRUP

Steps:

• Coat a 13x9-in. baking pan with cooking spray. Unroll phyllo dough; trim to fit into pan., Layer two sheets of phyllo dough in prepared pan, spritz with cooking spray. Repeat three times. (Keep remaining phyllo covered with a damp towel to prevent it from drying out.) Sprinkle with 3 tablespoons nuts. Top with two sheets of phyllo and spritz with cooking spray. Repeat layering with nuts, phyllo and cooking spray 10 times. Top with remaining phyllo dough, spritzing every other sheet with cooking spray., Using a sharp knife, cut into 30 triangles. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine syrup ingredients. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour over warm baklava. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and let stand for several hours or overnight.

BAKLAVA WITH DANDELION BLOSSOM SYRUP

Steps:

• BAKLAVA:.
• Combine nuts with sugar and spices and melt butter.
• Layer 8 sheets fillo into a buttered 9x13 pan, brushing every other sheet with butter using a pastry brush. Sprinkle evenly with 1/2 of the nut mixture.
• Repeat step 2.
• Layer the rest of the fillo sheets, brush the top layer generously with butter.
• Cut carefully into 30 squares with a sharp knife before baking.
• Bake at 375 for about one-half hour. when slightly browned, remove from oven.
• Pour 3/4 cup room temperature Dandelion Blossom syrup over the hot baklava, cool and serve.
• DANDELION BLOSSOM SYRUP:.
• Put blossoms and water in a pot and bring just to a boil, turn off heat, cover, and let sit overnight.
• The next day, strain and press liquid out of spent flowers.
• Add sugar and sliced citrus and heat slowly, stirring now and again, for several hours or until reduced to a thick, honey-like syrup. Makes 1 pint.

APRICOT AND PISTACHIO BAKLAVA WITH ORANGE CARDAMOM SYRUP

Steps:

• Thaw the phyllo overnight in the refrigerator. Then put the phyllo box on the counter to come to room temperature, 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
• Make the filling: Put the pistachios, apricots, and sugar in a food processor. Process until the nuts and apricots are finely chopped (the largest should be the size of small dried lentils), 30 to 45 seconds. Set aside.
• Assemble the baklava: Unfold one pack of the phyllo sheets and stack them so that they lie flat on your work surface. Cover the top with plastic wrap, letting some excess plastic fall over all four edges. Dampen and wring out a kitchen towel and drape it on top of the plastic wrap; this will hold the plastic in place and prevent the phyllo from drying out.
• Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Brush the bottom of a 9x13-inch metal pan (preferably with straight sides and a light-color interior to prevent overbrowning on the edges) with some of the butter. Remove a sheet of phyllo from the stack, re-cover the rest (be sure to cover the remaining sheets each time you remove a new one), and put the sheet in the bottom of the pan. Brush the sheet with some of the melted butter but don't soak the phyllo (remember, you'll have about 40 layers of buttered phyllo by the time you're done). Repeat until you have layered and buttered about half the sheets from the first pack-about 10 sheets in all. If your pan has slightly angled sides, arrange the sheets so the excess falls on the same side of the pan and cut the extra off every few layers with a paring knife. Sprinkle about one-third of the filling evenly over the phyllo.
• Repeat layering and buttering the remaining sheets from the first pack and sprinkle on another third of the filling. Open, unfold, and cover the second pack of phyllo. Layer and butter it as described above, sprinkling the remaining filling after layering about half the phyllo, and ending with a final layer of phyllo (you may not need all of the butter). Cover loosely and put the pan of baklava in the freezer for 30 minutes (this makes it much easier to cut the pastry).
• Bake the baklava: Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F.
• Before baking, use a thin, sharp knife, preferably serrated,and a gentle sawing motion to cut the baklava on the diagonal at 1-1/2-inch intervals in a diamond pattern. Try not to compress the pastry by pressing down on it with one hand while cutting with the other. Not only are you cutting serving portions, you are also cutting pathways for the flavored syrup to permeate the pastry, so be sure to cut the pastry all the way to the bottom of the pan. If you have an electric carving knife, pull it out and use it now. Bake the baklava until golden, 40 to 45 minutes. Transfer to a rack and let cool completely. Run a knife along the cut lines to help the syrup absorb evenly.
• Make the syrup: Simmer the sugar and orange juice in a small pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the sugar is dissolved and the liquid is clear, about 5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the cardamom. Pour the syrup evenly over the entire surface of the baklava, allowing it to run down into the cut marks and along the sides of the pan. Allow the baklava to cool to room temperature before serving.
• Make Ahead Tips. The baklava is at its best about 24 hours after the syrup is added. It will keep at room temperature for up to 5 days, though the texture changes from flaky and crisp to more solid and crystallized as time goes by.

PERSIAN SPICED BAKLAVA ROLLS WITH ORANGE BLOSSOM SYRUP

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 or a little lower if your oven runs hot.
• Combine all the filling ingredients, mix well.
• Butter a 12-by-9-inch or 13-by-9-inch baking pan or 15-by-10-inch jelly roll pan.
• Remove the phyllo from the package and lay it flat on your counter. Cover the phyllo with wax paper or plastic wrap and place a slightly damp cloth over top.
• Remove one sheet of phyllo and place flat on clean, dry counter top, butter as evenly as possible repeat with 3 more sheets of phyllo so there are 4 sheets buttered on top of one another as evenly as possible.
• Place a few large spoonfuls of the mixture along the bottom of the top sheet of phyllo and fold the phyllo on the same end over the mixture. Then butter the edge of the sheet and continue to roll the phyllo as tightly and evenly as possible. Once you get to the end of the sheet, you need to butter the edge as well before closing it. It should now basically be a long thick cigar shape.
• Cut off the uneven ends slightly angled like a slash (but don't throw them away, just throw it into your remaining mixture).
• Cut the roll into 2 inch pieces (slightly angled like a slash). Butter the ends of each before placing on the buttered baking sheet.
• Repeat this same procedure until you have finished using all of the phyllo and mixture.
• Once you have finished rolling the phyllo and placing the rolls, buttered on each end, on your pan, butter the top of each roll. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes (this really depends on your oven; keep in mind that the baklava has to bake slowly at a low heat until GOLDEN BROWN).
• Prepare the syrup noting that either the syrup should be hot and the baklava cool or visa versa when pouring it over top. (I leave the baklava to cool overnight on the counter and make the hot syrup to pour over the cooled baklava in the morning.).
• Mix sugar and water and bring to the boil.
• Add lemon juice and boil for 7 more minutes.
• Remove from heat and add orange blossom water, stir.
• Pour over cooled baklava.
• Allow the baklava to sit for about 20 minutes. Then turn over the individual rolls to allow both sides to soak in the liquid.
• Leave the whole day or over night before serving.
• Enjoy!

YIAYIA'S ROLLED BAKLAVA WITH HONEY SYRUP

Steps:

• You will need a disposable aluminum baking pan that is 19" long x 12" wide x 2" high.
• Mix the ground nuts, zwibeck/bread crumbs and cinnamon together in a large bowl. You will need a 1/2 cup measuring cup for portioning the mixture. Keep mixture close to your workstation.
• Melt the butter and Crisco over medium-low heat and keep close to your workstation. You will need a pastry brush- 2"- 3" wide works best.
• Open the plastic covering of the phyllo and remove. Lay out on a flat surface and unroll so that the entire sheet is visible. It may be wise to cover with a VERY lightly damp towel so that it does not dry out.
• Take your pastry brush and butter the pan- keep near your workstation.
• On a clean surface, start by taking an entire sheet of phyllo and laying it out in front of you with the long side facing you. Butter the sheet lightly and then place another sheet of phyllo on top of it. Butter this sheet.
• With the two sheets in front of you, take the next sheet and place on top with the top of the sheet covering only half of the full sheets. You will have the other half hanging below -this will stay unbuttered for now. Butter the top half and then fold over the hanging unbuttered half and let it rest on top. Butter this layer. REPEAT WITH ONE MORE SHEET OF PHYLLO.
• Using 1/2 cup measure, scoop out a portion of nuts and distribute evenly along the bottom half of the phyllo ( the area where there is now 6 layers).
• Starting at the edge where the nuts begin, roll the baklava tightly so that you have a "tube" that is 19" long and about 1 1/2" wide. Place this tube into the buttered pan, placing it against the side so that there is room for the 7 additional rolls that will join it. Butter the top and side of the tube and move on to your next roll.
• Repeat all steps until you have 8 rolls that fill the pan. Brush the entire top with more melted butter. Run your hand under cold water and sprinkle the water on top of the baklava. You want some water droplets on top but be careful not saturate it with too much!
• Place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F while the baklava is in the fridge.
• Take the baklava and with a sharp knife cut the top into pieces- start by "trimming" the end 1/4" then start your cuts from there.
• Each roll can be cut into either 8 or 10 pieces and each roll will need to be cut individually.The cuts should be made at a 45° angle so that the pieces are diamond shaped. DO NOT CUT ALL THE WAY THROUGH- you are simply scoring the pieces 3/4 of the way through.
• Place in hot oven and bake for 45 to 55 minutes- the baklava needs to be a deep golden brown before it leaves the oven.
• Allow to cool completely, uncovered.
• At this point the baklava can be tightly wrapped in heavy duty foil and kept in a cool, dry place for up to 3 weeks.
• Two days before you are ready to serve, the syrup will need to be prepared and poured on top of the baklava.
• Take the sugar and water and bring to a medium boil. Time the syrup for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. After 5 minutes add the lemon juice and return to a boil- time for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes add the honey and boil for an additional 4 minutes. Take off the heat.
• Using a ladle, put the hot syrup onto the baklava in an even manner, making sure that the entire pan is covered.
• Allow to sit uncovered until bottom of pan is cool, about 2 hours. Re-cover with foil and allow to sit for a minimum of 24 hours but preferably 48 hours. This allows the syrup to absorb into all of the phyllo layers.
• Using a serated butter knife, cut into pieces and enjoy. Be careful if you choose to use a sharp knife when cutting the pieces all the way through- puncturing the bottom of the pan will leave a goody mess behind!
• Variation- use 3 cups lightly toasted ground pecans and 1 cup mini chocolate chips in place of the walnuts. Omit the cinnamon but still use the 1/3 cup of zwibeck or bread crumbs. Finish pieces with a drizzle of melted dark chocolate. YUMMY!