Pistachio Baklava Recipe
Made with multiple layers of delicately crispy and flaky phyllo sheets, this Pistachio Baklava is SO delicious. It's rich, it's buttery, it's sweet, and it's filled with 2 layers of ground pistachio then finished with my aromatic Lebanese simple syrup.
Servings: 25 pieces
Equipment
- 9 x 14" non stick pan.
- cooking brush
Ingredients
- 2 16 oz. 9 x14" phyllo dough sheet 1 box has 2 rolls
- 1 cup ghee melted
- 1¼ cup Simple Syrup More or less to preference
- ground pistachios for garnishing
The Filling
- 1 lb. pistachio raw, unsalted
- ½ cup powdered sugar or less to preference
Instructions
- Prepare the simple syrup first and let it cool.
- Preheat oven to 350 F.
- Process the pistachios and powdered sugar in a processor. Transfer to a bowl and set aside. You will split the amount into 2 portions, leaving some fir garnishing
- Unfold the phyllo sheets and smooth out to flatten. Cover with a damp towel, not wet, to prevent it from drying.
- Brush the base of a 9 x 14 inch pan with some ghee. Place one sheet of phyllo and brush again with ghee. Repeat to get a total of 15 sheets, brushing ghee in between each sheet. Add in half of the ground pistachio and spread evenly.
- Add in one sheet over the nuts and brush by dabbing only because it will move if you brush it normally. Add 9 more sheets, total 10 sheets, brushing in between each sheet. Press press down the surface very well with your palm to compress the nuts.
- Add the other half of the ground pistachio and top with 15 more sheets the same way you did the first layer. Before brushing the top with ghee for the last time, press down the surface really well again with your palm to compress the layers.
- Using a sharp knife with a pointed tip, cut the baklava into diamond shapes. Refer to my blog photos for step-by-step photo reference.
- Place the tray on the middle rack of your oven and bake for 40 minutes. At this point the edges and baklava should be lightly brown in color and you can turn on the top broiler for just 1-2 minutes watching it "very closely" until you get the golden color you prefer. Do not take your eyes off of it or else they will burn super fast.
- Remove from the oven and drizzle 1-1¼ cup of simple syrup evenly all over the baklava. Use more or less to preference. I like using a squeezable bottle to spread the syrup evenly on the baklava.
- Garnish with crushed pistachio, allow to cool and enjoy.
Notes
- Be sure to thaw your phyllo sheets ahead of time. They’re sold frozen from the store so you’ll have to thaw them overnight in the fridge or quickly on the counter at room temperature. If there’s still kind of frozen and damp, the moisture will make the phyllo hard to work with.
- If your phyllo pastry rips, it’s ok, don’t fret. After it’s been baked, no one will notice!
- Cover the phyllo sheets with a damp towel as you work your way through them to prevent them from drying out. If you forget to do this, your sheets might crack as you lift them to transfer to the pan.
- Be sure to start your syrup early so it has time to cool. If the syrup is hot, you’ll find that it’s difficult for the baklava to absorb it.
- Be sure not to forget to cut the baklava before you bake it! It’ll be much harder to slice clean pieces after it’s been baked as the phyllo sheets are so flaky and won’t cut evenly.
- The baklava will shrink a bit as it bakes, that's totally normal.
- You may add some cinnamon or nut meg to the nuts if you like, but I prefer not to.
Nutrition
Calories: 220kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 18mg | Sodium: 11mg | Potassium: 197mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 16g | Vitamin A: 75IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 21mg | Iron: 1mg