I hope that your holiday season has been a happy one, and that your new year will be the best so far!

And just in case you didn’t get enough dessert, here is my recipe for Baklava. Make it soon – you’ll be glad you did.

mmmmmm!

1 pound finely chopped pecans (they taste better than walnuts, almonds or pistachios – I promise!)
4 tablespoons of cinnamon (more is okay – less is not)
Cinnamon to sprinkle
1/2 cup white sugar (the fake stuff won’t work right – don’t bother)
2.5 cups of water
2.5 cups of honey
1 tablespoon of real vanilla extract
2 (16oz) packages of Phyllo dough (make sure it is thawed)
4 sticks of melted butter (don’t use the fake stuff here, either)
Preheat oven to 350F

-Combine the pecans and cinnamon in a bowl; set to the side.

-Combine the water, sugar, honey and vanilla in a saucepan; set to the side.

-Use a brush to butter the sides and bottom of the baking dishes. Lay two sheets of Phyllo dough in the pan and then lightly brush with melted butter. Using two sheets at a time, continue process until there are at least eight sheets laid in the bottom of the pan (with butter between every two).

I keep the Phyllo that is not being used yet covered with a damp paper towel while making the layers. It will get dry the longer it is left in the air, but if you are quick there won’t be any problems.

-Spread the pecan and cinnamon mixture over the buttered Phyllo. Cover with two sheets of Phyllo, lightly brushed butter, two sheets of Phyllo, lightly brushed butter, pecan mixture, and so on – until there are three layers of nuts with at least four to six sheets of Phyllo in between each of those nut layers.

You can do four layers of nuts, but any more and it starts to be “too much” as these are very rich!

-For the last layer of Phyllo, use at least eight sheets with butter brushed on after every two sheets are laid. Butter the top and final layer.

Yes…I know it’s a lot of butter. But it’s the holidays – quit thinking of ways to scrimp. The diet begins January 1, okay?

-Take a sharp knife and cut the baklava into squares; divide the squares into two triangles each. Sprinkle with cinnamon.

*If you are making this to give away and are using aluminum pans – be very careful with the cutting – you don’t want to poke the pan or there will be a major mess later.

Some people trim the edges off the baklava so it will be “prettier”, but the thicker crunchy edges are my favorite part.

-Bake for 50 minutes on the top shelf of the oven, rotate if you have pans on the bottom. Baklava will be golden brown with crispy edges when it’s ready.

-With 20 minutes left to go on the baklava baking, take the pan with the sugar, water, honey and vanilla mixture and begin cooking on medium heat, stirring with a wooden spoon. Let it come to a low boil, then back the heat down to low – stirring occasionally. It will make a light syrup.

-After the baklava has finished baking, put the pans on wire racks to cool. Ladle the syrup mixture on top of the pan and listen to the sizzle..smell the steam…mmmmmm!

This recipe will make two 13 x 9 glass pans, or one 13 x 9 glass pan and three  8 x 8 aluminum foil cake pans. Nothing here is exact science, for instance – you may end up with extra nuts, if so just freeze them for next time.

You can eat it as soon as it’s cool enough not to burn your tongue, but it really is better if you can wait at least a day to dig in. Just let it sit – uncovered or lightly covered with a sheet of waxed paper – you don’t want it to get too moist. There’s nothing in it that needs refrigeration – so don’t worry.

Baklava will last a couple of weeks on the kitchen counter, but it can also be frozen – just wrap it well with plastic wrap after it has cooled, stick it in the freezer, and then let it thaw uncovered to room temperature when you are ready to eat it.

guaranteed not to last long at my house

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