FOODPORN
  • Home
  • Food & Beverage
  • Animal Kingdom
  • Tech & Finance
  • Home & Living
  • Wine & Cocktails
  • Recipes
No Result
View All Result
FOODPORN
  • Home
  • Food & Beverage
  • Animal Kingdom
  • Tech & Finance
  • Home & Living
  • Wine & Cocktails
  • Recipes
No Result
View All Result
FOODPORN
No Result
View All Result

What Is Baklava & Why You Should Know About It?

FoodPorn by FoodPorn
April 8, 2021
in Baking & Dessert, Fun Facts, Recipes
0
pastry chef
Share on FacebookShare on WhatsappShare on Email

Have you tried baklava yet? Read on to learn all about baklava, why it's important, and why you should try it as soon as possible.

baklava

Think of it: a dessert made with layer after layer of buttery paper-thin pastry sandwiched around crushed nuts soaked in sweet syrup. If that sounds appetizing to you, you’ll be happy to know that it exists in the form of baklava. Baklava is a beloved dessert by the Turks, Greeks, and other ethnic groups that has a surprisingly long history.

Many people have found reason to love baklava and it’s time to discover it for yourself too.

So what is baklava? What are the different regional variations of the dessert? If you want to know about baklava and why you should try it, then keep reading.

What is Baklava?

The baklava is a pastry dessert or patisserie that is layered with flaky phyllo dough, nuts, butter, sugar, and covered in a sweet syrup or honey. This pastry is beloved and traditionally made by people in the Middle East, Eastern Mediterranean, Balkans, and the Caucasus; the groups most closely associated being Turks, Arabs, Jews, Greeks, Armenians, and Bulgarians. 

What’s most remarkable about baklava is how it can be made into multiple shapes and sizes without losing its sweet taste.

Baklava History Through the Years

Many countries throughout history have tried to lay claim to this layered dessert, ranging from northern Africa all the way to Central Asia. Yet, the spread of baklava is mainly attributed to the rise of the Ottoman Empire. Baklava was first baked in 1473 inside the Imperial Ottoman Palace in Constantinople, which was the ultimate culinary hub of the empire.

Until the nineteenth century, it was a dessert only served to the upper class and the rich. One example of the power it used to have is the Turkish saying “I am not rich enough to eat baklava every day”. Nowadays, 

The origin of the name of the dessert itself is controversial. The Turkish people say it comes from the word baklağı or baklağu. In another case, it may come from the Mongolian root baγla, meaning “to tie, wrap up, pile up”. In another form, some claim that the suffix –va at the end of the name suggests it has Persian or Arab origins.

In any case, baqlawa/baklawa is used in the Arab world today whereas the Greeks call it baklava.

Baklava Ingredients You Need

To make this, you need a lot of ingredients to make your baklava into pure perfection. The ingredients you need for the typical baklava are:

  • Phyllo dough
  • Finely chopped walnuts, hazelnuts, or pistachios
  • Unsalted butter
  • Cinnamon
  • Honey
  • Sugar
  • Lemon juice
  • Water

For the phyllo dough, you can choose to make it homemade or with pre-made dough stored in a refrigerator. While some of these things may not be part of your usual home baker’s pantry, be rest assured that you will come up with a delectable dessert that will have your yiayia grinning throughout the meal.

Turkish Baklava

The Turkish baklava is the most well-known variation of the baklava and Turkey has become the most famous country producing it. Phyllo sheets are often rolled out until they appear almost transparent before it is layered and buttered. The nuts used are typically Gaziantep pistachios, Aegean almonds, walnuts, or hazelnuts derived from the Black Sea region of Turkey. The Turkish also prefer using simple syrup over honey.

Russian Baklava

One immediate difference you can see when looking at Russian baklava is that instead of piling each layer on one at a time, the entire box of premade phyllo dough is rolled tightly so every nut, chunk of butter, and sugar is easily distributed inside of it. It makes for a very unique look. Another difference is they prefer putting honey as opposed to simple syrup.

How to Make Baklava

Reading about baklava’s history is interesting, but how exactly do you make it? Here is how you can make baklava the next time you are hosting a dinner party.

  1. Preheat oven to 325F
  2. Let premade phyllo sheets come to room temperature
  3. Combine water, honey, sugar, and lemon juice, heating until sugar is dissolved to make syrup
  4. Set the syrup aside and let cool
  5. Mix nuts and cinnamon together
  6. Melt the needed butter
  7. Layer 8 layers of phyllo in the pan and brush each layer with butter
  8. Sprinkle the nuts on top of it
  9. Add 4 more phyllo sheets and brush the layers with butter
  10. Repeat until there are no more nuts
  11. Cut into horizontal strips, then cut diagonally
  12. Bake for fifty minutes to an hour until the top is golden brown
  13. Top with syrup once removed from the oven
  14. Let cool before serving

Guests will ooh and ahh at the flaky layers made during the process. It may require a lot of steps, but the end result is worth the hard work.

Bake Some Baklava at Your Next Party

Baklava in all forms has found many fans and devotees from around the world who love it for its nuttiness and sweetness while fulfilling what most people want in a dessert. Whether you try out the Turkish, Russian, or other countries’ versions of it, you will end up with a delicacy that everyone will be begging you to make for each special occasion. Just be sure to thank the Ottomans for spreading it around the world!

We hope you enjoyed learning about how to make baklava. We offer other recipes that will fulfill your food porn desires. Check out our Baking & Dessert section to learn about more baking methods and recipes.

ShareSendSend

Related Posts

Birthday Cake
Reviews

15 Best Rated Birthday Cake We’ve Tested from Eat Cake Today

Are you struggling to choose the perfect birthday cake for you? Learn about the best birthday cakes tested from...

by FoodPorn
January 1, 2022
farm fresh milk
Reviews

33 Best Rated Farm Fresh Milk Brand We’ve Tested in Malaysia

Have you tried out Farm Fresh Milk yet? We've tested a number of products and found 33 of them...

by FoodPorn
March 14, 2022
bake with yen
Reviews

20 Best Rated Bake With Yen Products We’ve Tested in Malaysia

Are you looking for new recipes to try this holiday season? Read here for the 20 best-rated Bake With...

by FoodPorn
January 16, 2022
heavy cream
Reviews

17 Best Rated Heavy Cream Brands We Have Tested

Are you looking for a variety of heavy cream brands? Then check out some of these amazing brands that...

by FoodPorn
August 15, 2022
Next Post
Types of pastries

Can You Guess How Many Types of Pastries There Are in the World?

Discussion about this post

FoodPorn

Separated they live in Bookmarksgrove right at the coast of the Semantics, a large language ocean. A small river named Duden flows by their place and supplies it with the necessary regelialia. It is a paradisematic country, in which roasted parts of sentences fly into your mouth.

Subscribe Our Newsletter

[mc4wp_form]

© 2019 JNews - Premium WordPress news & magazine theme by Jegtheme.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Baking & Dessert
  • Food & Beverage
  • Recipes
  • Reviews
  • Travel
  • Wine & Cocktails
  • Tech & Finance
  • Animal Kingdom

© 2021 FoodPorn - Feeding The Super Rich By FoodPorn.