Orange Blossom Cardamom Baklava

Photo by LetMeCookTV

Ingredients

Baklava

1. 1 & 3/4 cups chopped walnuts, plus more for garnish

2. 1 cup lightly salted pistachios, plus more for garnish

3. Zest from 1/4 an orange

4. 1 teaspoon cinnamon

5. 1 teaspoon cardamom

6. 1 16oz box of phyllo dough

7. 2 & 1/2 sticks salted butter, melted

Orange Blossom Simple Syrup

1. 1 cup water

2. 1 & 3/4 cups sugar

3. 1 tablespoon orange blossom water

4. 1 tablespoon honey

5. 1 cinnamon stick

6. 3 orange peel strips

Prep time: 1 hour

Cook time: 30 minutes

Cool time: 4 hours [For best results, cool in fridge covered overnight)

Total time: 5 & a half hours

Servings: About 34 pieces

Baklava can be stored covered in the fridge for up to 5 days.

Steps

1. Defrost phyllo dough on the counter until it comes to room temperature.

2. In a pot over medium heat, combine water, sugar, orange blossom water, honey, orange peels, & cinnamon stick & bring to a gentle boil. Once mixture comes to a boil, lower heat & let cook until all of the sugar is dissolved. Once sugar is dissolved, turn off stove & let simple syrup cool off to the side. Once cool, remove cinnamon stick and orange peels.

3. While simple syrup cools, finely chop walnuts and pistachios in a food processor. You want them to be finely chopped, not a dust. Next, mix in cinnamon, cardamom, salt, & orange zest.

4. Preheat oven to 350 degrees [F].

5. Melt 2 & 1/2 sticks salted butter & lightly grease a 9x13 inch baking pan. Gently layer 1 sheet of phyllo dough at a time, brushing each sheet with butter with a pastry brush. Repeat 5 more times. Once you have 6 sheets down, cover with 1/3 nut filling, then repeat these steps 2 more times. After you’ve layered the final 1/3 nut filling, layer with 8 sheets of phyllo dough, again brushing butter on top of each sheet, including top sheet.

6. Using a sharp knife, gently cut length-wise through the baklava, making sure not to hit the bottom of the pan. Then score baklava diagonally to make diamond shapes.

7. Cook baklava for 30 minutes or until top is golden brown and crispy.

8. Once cooked, remove from oven and immediately pour simple syrup over baklava. Let baklava come to room temperature on the counter, then cover and place in the fridge. Let baklava sit for a minimum of 4 hours to let the simple syrup soak the entire pastry. For best results, cover baklava and let sit in the fridge overnight.

9. Optional: garnish with crushed walnuts or pistachios before serving!