Baklava – An original Turkish confection now popular in India as well

-Milk Baklava

This variety of baklava is made in milk. Since milk is poured over it instead of sugar syrup, it is low in calories. Although this variety has a short shelf life due to being made from milk, it spoils quickly.

-Walnut Baklava

This variety of baklava made with walnuts is less sweet than the variety made with pistachios. Baklava made with walnuts is a great option for those who want a dessert that is less sweet and also nutritious.

Baklava, an original Turkish dessert that has gained huge popularity in India over the past few years, is now gaining worldwide acclaim. Baklava is made of several layers of thinly layered dough with chopped dried fruit and takes its final shape when the layers are placed on top of each other and cooked in a sugar syrup mixture. The method of making it has such uniqueness due to which people are choosing it more and more. Baklava has become a favorite dessert option among Indian food lovers in recent times. This dry fruit sweet from Turkey is very chewy and Indians are known for eating sweets.

According to experts, Baklava is giving stiff competition to Indian sweets due to its method of preparation and its appearance. Baklava is a dessert rich in sweetness and dry fruits and Indians love to eat sweets that are elegant in appearance, delicious and rich in dry fruits. This is why it has become an important part of the buffet in recent times. Even on occasions, guests have been making special requests for baklava.

Baklava has also become popular along with Indian sweets such as Kaju Katri, Jalebi, Gulab Jambu and Ladoo. In various communities in India, the custom of serving baklava has also started to be served by people on religious occasions.

Apart from being delicious, baklava is also considered a great health option. It is also considered healthy as it is roasted and contains plenty of dry fruits. It is high in sweetness and fat, but also nutritious.

Baklava is made in many ways in India. It has different varieties according to its composition.

Dry Baklava

It is also known as kuru baklava. Dry baklava is not topped with sugar syrup but topped with powdered sugar. Dry fruits and flour only give it natural sweetness.

Pistachio Baklava

This is the most popular variety of baklava. Usually a square or rectangular shaped baklava is stuffed with chopped pistachios, and topped with chopped pistachios.

-Mixed Nuts Baklava

material

-100 grams of pistachios

-100 grams of almonds

- 30 grams of rose water

-40 grams of castor sugar

-100 grams of ghee

-14 filo pastry sheets

method

- Keep the ingredients ready and heat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Combine all the dry fruits and crush them in a mixer.

- Melt ghee in a pan or microwave.

-Cut filo pastry sheets in half so you have two nine inch wide pieces.

- To make baklava, spread ghee at the bottom of the baking dish.

-Put two sheets of filo pastry on it. Spread some ghee on it and place two more sheets. Do this twice so that there are eight sheets of filo pastry in the baking dish.

-Sprinkle one-third of dry fruit mix over it. Place two sheets of filo on it. Spread ghee on the filo. Do this again so that there are four sheets on the dry fruit mix.

-Sprinkle a third of the dried fruit mix again. Place two sheets of filo on it. Spread some ghee on the filo and repeat the process on another layer of mixed dried fruit till you have four sheets.

-Fold the rest of the dry fruit mix. Add two more sheets of filo and spread some ghee on it. Continue adding layers with ghee until the filo pastry is finished.

-Cut the baklava into four long strips. Then cut it into square pieces.

-Place the baking dish in the oven and bake uncovered for 35 minutes or until puffed and golden on top.

-To prepare syrup, heat water and sugar in a small pan. Heat until all the sugar dissolves. Then add rose water and stir well. Then let it cool down.

-Once the baklava is baked, remove it from the oven and immediately pour the cold syrup over it. Keep it for at least two hours before serving.

- Umesh Thakkar