Recipe of the Day: Baklava

Oh man I came across this recipe and it just makes me want to try it! Baklava for beginners! I absolutely love this dessert!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. butter, melted
• 1 lb. phyllo pastry leaves
• 1 lb. walnuts, shelled and chopped
• 2/3 cup sugar
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
• 2 tsp. cinnamon, ground
• 1 tsp. allspice
• 3 doz. whole cloves
• SYRUP:
• 1 cup honey
• 1 1/2 cup water
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 tsp. orange rind, grated
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract

Methods/steps:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. Combine all ingredients for syrup in saucepan and bring to boil. 
3. Simmer for 10 min., strain, and allow cooling. 
4. Mix egg, sugar, cinnamon and allspice together. 
5. Coarsely grind or chop walnuts, and mix thoroughly with breadcrumbs and egg mixture. 
6. Brush a 9 x13 x2 inch pan with butter and lay a sheet of phyllo in bottom.
7.  Brush with butter, cover with another sheet of phyllo, and repeat process until you have used a dozen sheets. 
8. Spread 1 thin layer of nut mixture on top of phyllo and cover with a sheet of phyllo. 
9. Brush with butter, cover with another layer of nuts, and repeat process until all nuts are used. 
10. Cover with remaining phyllo sheets, brushing each sheet with butter. 
11. With a very sharp knife, cut the top phyllo sheets into triangles (cutting diagonally across pan). 
12. Insert clove in center of each triangle. 
13. Bake at 350 degrees for 1 hr. until baklava is evenly browned. 
14. Remove baklava from oven and pour cooled syrup evenly over it, so that it penetrates the layers.
15. Cool several hours before serving.