Baklava With Spiced Nuts Ricotta Chocolate Recipes

CHOCOLATE BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Butter a 15x10x1-in. baking pans. Unroll one package of phyllo dough; cut stack into a 10-1/2x9-in. rectangle. Repeat with remaining phyllo. Discard scraps., Line bottom of prepared pan with two sheets of phyllo dough (sheets will overlap slightly). Brush with butter. Repeat layers 8 times. (Keep dough covered with plastic wrap and a damp towel until ready to use to prevent it from drying out.), In a large bowl, combine the nuts, chocolate chips, sugar, cinnamon and lemon zest. Sprinkle 2 cups over top layer of phyllo., Top with four layers phyllo dough, buttering each layer. Top with 2 or more cups nut mixture. Top with four layers phyllo dough, buttering each layer; top with remaining nut mixture. Top with the remaining phyllo dough, brushing each layer with butter. Drizzle any remaining butter over top. , Using a sharp knife, cut baklava into 1-1/2-in. diamonds. Bake at 325° for 50-60 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, combine the syrup ingredients in a saucepan; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes. Pour over warm baklava. Cool completely in pans on wire racks.

BAKLAVA WITH SPICED NUTS, RICOTTA & CHOCOLATE

Steps:

• First, make the syrup. Tip the sugar into a large saucepan with 650ml water. Stir over a low heat until the sugar has dissolved, then turn up the heat and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 15 mins, then squeeze in a few drops of lemon juice and simmer for a further 5 mins. Remove from the heat and leave to cool. Meanwhile, for assembling the baklava later, melt the butter in a small pan over a low heat for 5 mins, skimming and discarding any froth that rises to the surface.
• For the filling, crush all of the nuts in a pestle and mortar, or blitz in a food processor - you want a mixture of finely ground nuts with a few chunky pieces. Tip into a bowl, stir through the spices and set aside.
• In a separate bowl, mix the ricotta with the lemon and orange zests and vanilla. Heat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Brush the bottom of a large baking tray (about 35 x 47cm) with some of the melted butter. Working with one sheet of filo at a time (covering the rest with a damp tea towel to prevent it drying out), lay the sheet out on a board so one of the short ends is facing you. Sprinkle 30g of the nut mixture evenly over the whole sheet, then spoon 1 tbsp of the ricotta mixture across the end closest to you. Fold this end over to enclose the filling, then lay a long, thin skewer next to the folded edge and roll the pastry around it to create a long roll. When it's fully rolled up, it should be roughly the thickness of a chipolata sausage. While holding one end of the rolling pin or skewer, gently scrunch the filo roll like an accordion and carefully push it off the skewer and onto the prepared tray. Repeat with the rest of the filo and fillings - you should get about 12 rolls. Cut each roll into four to make 48 large baklava, or eight to make 96 mini.
• Brush with the remaining melted butter. Bake for 20-25 mins until evenly golden, turning the tray around halfway through. While still hot, immediately pour over 5-6 ladlefuls of the syrup. You should hear the syrup sizzle as it hits the hot baklava. Set aside to cool and absorb.
• Melt the dark chocolate in a heatproof bowl set over a pan of simmering water, ensuring the bowl doesn't touch the water, or in the microwave in short bursts. Drizzle this over the cooled baklava and sprinkle with the ground pistachios.

BAKLAVA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4 and grease a 21cm x 21cm square cake tin with butter. Chop the nuts into small pieces using a food processor, taking care not to blitz them to a paste. Put them into a bowl, stir in the honey and a pinch of salt and set aside.
• Melt the butter in a pan over a low heat. Cut the first pack of filo pastry sheets in half (so that they fit the tin). Put one sheet in the tin and brush with the melted butter. Lay another sheet on top and brush with butter again, keep layering like this until the whole pack is used up.
• Spread the honey and nut mixture over the pastry and press it down lightly with the back of a spoon. Open the other pack of filo, cut in half and continue the layering and buttering process. When you reach the last sheet pour any remaining butter over the top to finish. Use a sharp knife to cut deep lines into the pastry to create either squares or diamond shapes then bake in the oven for 20 mins.
• Reduce the heat to 150C/130C fan/gas 2 and bake for a further 45 mins. While the baklava cooks put all the syrup ingredients into a saucepan and add 200ml water. Heat gently until the sugar has dissolved then boil the mixture for 8-10 mins or until it has reduced to the consistency of runny honey.
• When the baklava comes out of the oven, pour the warm syrup over the top, allowing it to run into the lines you have cut. Leave it to soak in and serve when it's completely cold.