"baklava" news and stories

Happy National Baklava Day!

There is one thing that guarantees deliciousness, and that's an unhealthy amount of butter. It dresses up toast, elevates pasta, and brings out the decadence of dessert. And baklava is no exception, with its layers of phyllo pastry drenched in butter and spiced lemon syrup.

Popular in Greece and Turkey, baklava consists of alternating layers of paper-thin phyllo dough, chopped nuts, spices and butter. Lots and lots of butter. After the pastry gets baked to achieve its flaky golden crust, honey-lemon syrup is generously drizzled on top, permeating the dessert until sticky. The dessert -- which you can make yourself, with this trusty recipe from Alton Brown -- is then cut into triangles or squares and served.

Once considered an aphrodisiac for its principal ingredients, honey and pistachios, baklava might no longer be believed to stimulate desire, but it's still capable of enticing the appetite.

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Ah, baklava -- the unctuous dessert enveloping honey and nuts in buttery layers of phyllo dough. Happy National Baklava Day!

The European-Middle Eastern delicacy actually has quite an impressive history. Dating back to the 8th Century B.C., the Assyrians used to pile nuts into thin layers of dough and top the whole thing with honey before baking it. The treat was considered a luxury, enjoyed predominantly on special occasions, and affordable only to the wealthy.

It has since come a long way, traveling to the Near East, Turkey and Armenia over time, then finally to Greece with the rise of the Grecian empire -- and the rich, buttery cinnamon-walnut treat has today made it over to the Food Network, with a fabulous classic recipe by Alton Brown. If you're feeling adventurous, try a shot at more Americanized versions of the versatile international dessert with Pear Baklava or even Chocolate Baklava.

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When I think of pistachios, I automatically think sweet. Perhaps, this is due to the Egyptian and Syrian side of my family. From an early age, I associated pistachios with sweet syrupy nutty baklava and pistachio ice cream. We would alternate between pistachio baklava and the traditional one made with walnuts and almonds.

As I got older, I started to explore other pistachio flavored desserts. On a recent culinary adventure to Café Sabarsky in Manhattan I discovered the Austrian cake Mozart Torte. This one was made with pistachios, chocolate, and nougat cream. I haven't had any luck yet finding the recipe.

Below are 8 delicious pistachio recipes that are sure to fulfill your craving for something sweet and nutty:

1. Rice Pudding with Cardamom and Pistachios
2. Honeyed Goat Cheese Tart with Pistachio Crust
3. Pistachio Gelato
4. Meringue "Eggs" with Pistachio Custard and Chocolate Drizzle
5. Pistachio Almond Nougat Torroncini
6. Coconut Pistachio Meringues
7. Middle Eastern Nut Filled Multi-layered Pastry
8. Pistachio Baklava

What are some of your favorite pistachio desserts?

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We're a little behind on our a Cookie-a-Day, but we'll try to catch up before the end of the year. We have to! Starting on January 1, all of us will be forgoing cookies, candy, doughnuts, and cake, as per our New Year's Resolutions, right?

Right.

So until then, let's cut into a giant pan of baklava, which you might not consider a cookie -- rather a dessert pastry -- but hey, if we're calling brownies "cookies" because they're "bar cookies," we count baklava, too. Basically, baklava is layers of phyllo dough filled with chopped nuts, usually walnuts or pistachios. The layers are prepared in a large pan, drizzled with honey or other sweet, spiced syrup, then cut into bars or other shapes.

Yes, we know the baklava pictured above isn't as beautiful as the ones you'll see in Mediterranean or Middle Eastern restaurants, or out of the home kitchen of your favorite Greek aunt. However, it was a good attempt at working with phyllo dough, which is tricky because it's so thin and fragile.