As the result of my recent post, Save the Honey Bees, Save the Baklava, I’ve gotten a lot of requests for my baklava recipe, so here is an authentic baklava recipe straight from my Greek family’s recipes. My yiayia used to make her own phyllo dough, and as yummy as it is, I find it just as tasty (don’t tell her that) to use pre-made. Even though I am familiar with this particular style of baklava, there are many cultures around the world (Lebanese, Turkish, Albanian, etc) that also make this sweet treat with their own variations. Some roll it in the phyllo dough, others make it int tight little rolled triangles, and some even create a spiral wreath. So without further ado, break a plate, throw on some bouzouki rebetika music and shout out one last Oupah for good measure.

Here’s how to make some pretty brilliant baklava, dictated to me by my mom by phone…

What you need 11 x 7 x 2 baking dish – greased w/ butter

1 pound phyllo dough – preferably from a Greek deli

3-4 sticks unsalted butter melted

2 – 3 cups walnuts (can use 2 cups walnuts, 1 cup blanched almonds or pistachios)

1 cup sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup lemon juice

1/4 cup honey What to do Preheat oven to 350

Melt the butter

Finely chop nuts to uniform size – can use food processor, but carefully

Mix together 1/4 cup of sugar and the cinnamon, then add in chopped nuts

Put a 6 or 7 sheets of phyllo into your greased pan, brushing generously with butter between each layer

Layer a handful or two of the nut mixture evenly

Then cover in another sheet of phyllo, and butter

Repeat a few times

Then cover with another 6 layers of phyllo and butter

Cut into diagonal diamonds. Make sure to cut through ALL the layers!

Bake until golden and crispy for about an hour Make the syrup Heat remaining sugar, water, lemon juice and honey in a small saucepan over low heat till sugar dissolves

Pour over hot cooked baklava

loosely cover and let stand for a few hours or over night Oupah!

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