Friday, December 12, 2008

My 12 Days of Cookies - Day 12

Every year the Food Network features 12 Days of Cookies. If you sign up here you can receive a new cookie recipe in your inbox each day.

Some of them look pretty good and some of them are not my style. This year I decided to do my own version of 12 Days of Cookies. Feel feel to join me in this challenge and make your own 12 cookie recipes (one each day).




Baklava

1 (16 ounce) package phyllo dough
1 pound chopped nuts
1 cup butter
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup water
1 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup honey

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175 degrees C). Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.
2. Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside. Unroll phyllo dough. Cut whole stack in half to fit pan. Cover phyllo with a dampened cloth to keep from drying out as you work. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 8 sheets layered. Sprinkle 2 - 3 tablespoons of nut mixture on top. Top with two sheets of dough, butter, nuts, layering as you go. The top layer should be about 6 - 8 sheets deep.
3. Using a sharp knife cut into diamond or square shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan. You may cut into 4 long rows the make diagonal cuts. Bake for about 50 minutes until baklava is golden and crisp. (mine was done after 40 minutes)
4. Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.
5. Remove baklava from oven and immediately spoon sauce over it. Let cool. Serve in cupcake papers. This freezes well. Leave it uncovered as it gets soggy if it is wrapped up.


I know this really isn't a cookie but I was trying to find a bar cookie recipe that sounded good and was something I've never made before. When I did a search a came across this recipe. This was my first time to make Baklava but I've always wanted to try. It is one of my favorite desserts but it seemed very complicated. This recipe was actually really easy. I will definitely make this again.

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