Lebanese Baklava

Side angle shot of sliced pieces of baklawa on a plate

5 from 545 votes

Make homemade baklava in a fraction of the time with this deliciously easy method! Filled with walnuts and finished with an orange blossom simple syrup.

Course Dessert

Cuisine Lebanese, Middle Eastern

Diet Vegetarian

Prep Time 15

Cook Time 50

Total Time 1 5

Servings servings

Calories 500kcal

Author Yumna Jawad

Equipment

Ingredients

1 pound box of phyllo 9"x14" sheets, room temperature
¾ cup clarified butter or ghee

For the Simple Syrup

1 cup granulated sugar
¾ cup water
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon orange blossom water

For the Sugared Nuts

3 cups raw or roasted walnuts coarsely chopped in food processor
½ cup granulated sugar

Instructions

To make the simple syrup, combine the water, sugar and lemon juice in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer, stirring occasionally until the sugar is dissolved and the mixture is thickened but still clear colored, about 5-7 minutes. Remove from heat, add the orange blossom water, and set aside to cool to room temperature.
In a large bowl, combine the walnuts and granulated sugar until well mixed.
Preheat the oven to 350°F. Brush the bottom of a 9 x 13 pan with clarified butter.
Open the two sleeves of phyllo sheet - each will have about 20 sheets. Unroll them and cut off an inch at the end to make them fit into the 9 x 13 pan.
Lay one stack of 20 phyllo sheets in the pan. Add about 5-10 more phyllo sheets on top of the first stack. Spread the nuts mixture over the phyllo in one even layer. Lay the remainder 10-15 phyllo sheets over the nuts.
Cut the baklava into diamonds by making 4 cuts lengthwise and 9 cuts crosswise on the diagonal, holding down the phyllo sheets with your other hand as you cut carefully.
Pour the melted clarified butter over the baklava evenly. Allow the butter to settle in, about 5 minutes.
Bake until golden brown all the way into the cut lines, about 50-60 minutes, rotating the baklava halfway through baking.
Remove the pan from the oven and immediately pour the cooled simple syrup evenly over the baklava. Allow to cool at room temperature for several hours before serving.

Notes

Recipe: I learned how to make this recipe from Maureen Abood. Check out her blog for much more detail and expertise on this recipe.

Storage: Keep the baklava lightly covered in the pan or storage container at room temperature or in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

Substitutes: For best results, follow the recipe as is. However here are some common substitutes that would work well in this recipe.

Instead of walnuts, you can use other types of nuts like pistachios or pecans.
Instead of cane sugar, you can use white granulated sugar.
Instead of ghee, you can use butter, but I recommend clarifying the butter first.

Nutrition