This honey baklava is flaky, crisp and tender and I love that it isn’t overly sweet. It’s basically a party in your mouth. I am a huge fan of baklava and this is the BEST baklava recipe I have ever tried. Hands down.
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You will love the hint of mellow lemony flavor which offsets the sweetness and compliments the cinnamon. It’s truly delicious.
Store-bought baklava has nothing on this and trust me, I’ve been around the block when shopping for baklava. This baklava recipe is well loved wherever it goes and it is definitely a reader and family favorite!
How to Make the Best Baklava (See Video Below):
Ingredients for Baklava Recipe:
You will need 1 (16 oz) package of phyllo (fillo) dough*; thawed according to package instructions *Fillo dough should be paper thin – even thinner than paper. Each package has 2 rolls with a total of 40 sheets. Do not use thick sheets of fillo dough for this recipe.
Also, don’t skimp on the butter or any part of the syrup (lemon juice, water and honey) since the recipe needs it to moisten and soften the sheets. Otherwise the baklava layers can end up dry and won’t stay together easily.
The chocolate is optional but a nice touch to fancy up a tray of baklava.
How To Make Baklava:
1. Thaw phyllo dough according to package instructions (this is best done overnight in the fridge, then place it on the counter for 1 hour before starting your recipe to bring it to room temp).
2. Trim phyllo dough to fit your baking sheet. My phyllo dough package had 2 rolls with a total of 40 sheets that measured 9×14 so I had to trim them slightly. You can trim one stack at a time then cover with a damp towel to keep from drying out.
3. Butter the bottom and sides of a 13×9 non-stick baking pan.
Start with your honey sauce (which will need time to cool as your baklava bakes).
1. In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup honey, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, and 3/4 cup water. Bring to a boil over med/high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then reduce heat to med/low and boil an additional 4 minutes without stirring. Remove from heat and let syrup cool while preparing baklava
How to Assemble Baklava:
Preheat Oven to 325˚F.
1. Pulse walnuts about 10 times in a food processor until coarsely ground/ finely chopped. In a medium bowl, stir together: 4 cups finely chopped walnuts and 1 tsp cinnamon
2. Place 10 phyllo sheets into baking pan one at a time, brushing each sheet with butter once it’s in the pan before adding the next (i.e. place phyllo sheet into pan, brush the top with butter, place next phyllo sheet in pan, butter the top, etc. etc.).
Keep remaining phyllo covered with a damp towel at all times. Spread about 1/5 of nut mixture (about 3/4 cup) over phyllo dough.
3. Add 5 buttered sheets of phyllo, then another layer of nuts. Repeat x 4. Finish off with 10 layers of buttered phyllo sheets. Brush the very top with butter.
Here’s the order:
10 buttered phyllo sheets, 3/4 cup nut mixture,
5 buttered phyllo sheets, 3/4 cup nut mixture,
5 buttered phyllo sheets, 3/4 cup nut mixture,
5 buttered phyllo sheets, 3/4 cup nut mixture,
5 buttered phyllo sheets, 3/4 cup nut mixture
10 buttered phyllo sheets and butter the top.
4. Cut pastry into 1 1/2″ wide strips, then cut diagonally to form diamond shapes. Bake at 325˚F for 1 hour and 15 min or until tops are golden brown
5. Remove from oven and immediately spoon the cooled syrup evenly over the hot baklava (you’ll hear it sizzle). This will ensure that it stays crisp rather than soggy. Let baklava cool completely, uncovered and at room temperature
Tip: For best results, let baklava sit 4-6 hours or overnight at room temperature for the syrup to penetrate and soften the layers. Garnish baklava with finely chopped nuts or drizzle with melted chocolate. Store at room temp, covered with a tea towel for 1 to 2 weeks.
So many juicy layers of flavor! This is hands down, our favorite baklava. Check out the glowing reviews below and add the ingredients to your grocery list. 🙂
Watch Baklava Video Tutorial:
Any baklava is a little tedious to make, but I’ve shared all of my best tips and advise to ensure you are successful in making yours. You will love that this recipe can be made several days in advance of your shindig and keeps beautifully at room temperature for at least a week.
Dessert Recipes to Explore:
- Blueberry Lemon Cake – this went viral for good reason
- Strawberry Layer Cake – loaded with fresh strawberries
- Banana Bread Recipe – moist and fully loaded
- Strawberry Sauce – you’ll want this over every dessert & pancakes!
Baklava Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 oz phyllo dough, thawed by package instructions
- 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, 10 oz or 2 1/2 sticks, melted
- 1 lb walnuts, finely chopped, about 4 1/4 cups unprocessed
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice, juice of 1/2 lemon
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup honey
- Melted chocolate chips & chopped walnuts for garnish, optional
Instructions
Preparation
- Thaw phyllo dough by package instructions (this is best done overnight in the fridge, then place it on the counter for 1 hr before starting your recipe to bring it to room temperature).
- Trim phyllo dough to fit your baking dish. My phyllo package had 2 rolls with a total of 40 sheets that measured 9x14, so I had to trim them slightly. You can trim one stack at a time, then cover with a damp towel to keep from drying out.
- Grease - Butter the bottom and sides of a 13x9 non-stick baking pan.
- Make the honey syrup - In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup honey, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, and 3/4 cup water. Bring to a boil over medium/high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then reduce the heat to medium/low and boil an additional 4 min without stirring. Remove from heat and let the syrup cool while preparing baklava.
- Chop walnuts - Pulse walnuts 10 times in a food processor until coarsely ground/ finely chopped. In a medium bowl, stir together: 4 cups finely chopped walnuts and 1 tsp cinnamon.
Assemble the Baklava
- 10 layers - Preheat the oven to 325°F. Place 10 phyllo sheets into a baking pan one at a time, brushing each sheet with butter once it's in the pan before adding the next (i.e., place phyllo sheet into pan, brush the top with butter, place next phyllo sheet in pan, butter the top, etc.). Keep the remaining phyllo covered with a damp towel at all times. Spread about 1/5 of the nut mixture (about 3/4 cup) over the phyllo dough.
- 5 layers - Add 5 buttered sheets of phyllo, then another layer of nuts. Repeat x 4. Finish off with 10 layers of buttered phyllo sheets. Brush the very top with butter.
- Cut pastry into 1 1/2" wide strips, then cut diagonally to form diamond shapes. Bake at 325˚F for 1 hour and 15 min or until tops are golden brown.
- Add syrup - Remove from oven and immediately spoon cooled syrup evenly over the hot baklava (you'll hear it sizzle). This will ensure that it stays crisp rather than soggy. Let baklava cool completely, uncovered and at room temp. For best results, let baklava sit 4-6 hours or overnight at room temperature for the syrup to penetrate and soften the layers. Garnish baklava with finely chopped nuts or drizzle with melted chocolate. Store at room temperature, covered with a tea towel for 1 week.
Notes
10 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
10 buttered sheets and butter the top. *Be sure to keep the phyllo dough covered with a damp cloth while layering Storage - Cool Baklava for at least 4 hours or overnight uncovered on the counter. Then, cover with a tea towel and store on the counter for up to 1 week. You can store it in an airtight container in the fridge for 2 weeks, but the pastry can become more chewy. Freeze - cover the pan with plastic wrap and foil, and then store in the freezer for up to 4 months. Thaw on the counter or in the fridge. You can reheat in the oven for 10 minutes if you want it to be crisper.
Nutrition Per Serving
♥ FAVORITE THINGS ♥
Shown in this post (Amazon affiliate links):
* Cuisinart 9×13 non-stick cake pan (also great for cakes!)
* Wusthof Cooks knife – an essential knife for any cook
* Zwilling sauce pan distributes heat evenly & handle stays cool
* This Cuisinart 11-cup food processor cuts prep time in half
What are YOU cooking up for Christmas?
If you’ve tried this already and are back for more, I’d love to hear from you in a comment below!
So delicious. Tedious buttering each layer but well worth the work.
Hi! I’m currently trying this recipe, but I ran out of phyllo dough/butter half way through… am I doing something wrong? Because of that I only used half of the nuts and half of the syrup and have no idea where I went wrong :/
Hi Mila! I’m sorry to hear that you’re having issues with the phyllo dough. I mentioned it a few different times through out the recipe above that my phyllo dough package had 2 rolls with a total of 40 sheets. You’ll need to verify this on your package because if can differ between brands.
I’ve made this Baklava Recipe about 4 times a year and it’s always a hit. Love all the other Natasha recipes too. My one problem is that the top 2 phillo dough layers tend to “flake off” after baking, and the lower dough layers tend to get soggy. I wish I knew of a way to keep all layers almost equally infused with the honey syrup mixture. I’ve even tried not making the cuts all the way down, but that didn’t work.
Hi Dan! Are you letting the syrup cool to room temperature before pouring it on? It needs to be poured on right after baking while baklava is hot (hot baklava + cold syrup). You could also try brushing a little more butter on the top sheets to see if that helps them adhere. Sometimes the top layers don’t get enough butter brushed between them. Make sure to pour the syrup on quickly and evenly- that should help avoid excessive soggy layers at the bottom.
I’ve made this and love it! Now I’m wondering if I could tweak it into an apple Baklava? Using an apple compote. Or might that be too heavy in the layers?
Hi Jenni. I’m not sure how that would work but definitely let us know if you experiment.
Someone used to bring this treat to our office Christmas party every year. It was so delicious and was gone soon after it arrived.
Awesome, glad you found out about this recipe. Enjoy!
We tried making this and everything was great until about the 4th sheet of the phyllo. From there everything went down hill. The Phyllo kept sticking and tearing. I followed all of the instructions on thawing it and I made a point to make sure that the tea towel was damp at all times. I’m not sure what we were doing wrong. I like all of your other recipes, and the picture looks great.
Hi Jeff. I’m sorry to hear that. Phyllo is extremely delicate and dries out in seconds if not handled correctly. It could be a quality or brand issue but since it didn’t happen until later, it may be due to drying out or even if the sheets got a little too wet. If that was the case, plastic wrap on top of the phyllo, then the towel over that — it prevents direct moisture contact.
I have been making baklava my whole life. I learned from my grandmother. Helpful hints I have learned. Try not to buy frozen filo. I buy it from a Greek or Mediterranean grocery store. But the best filo comes from a Greek bakery. If you’re lucky, they will sell it to you, by the pound. Frozen filo might work, but most of the time, it sticks together, or dries out and breaks. This could be because it defrosts and refreezes. You want the filo to be soft and ‘stretchy’. Otherwise, this is a wonderful recipe!
That’s so great to know! I’m not sure that we have a Greek or Mediterranean grocery store in Idaho but I need to look into that.