Easy Baklava?

Don't let the title scare you. Thirty-something years ago, I remember tasting my first piece of delicious baklava. I was at a Greek festival in my hometown and my Mom had told me about this flaky pastry that had layers upon layers of sticky-sweet honey and nuts. After my first bite I was hooked. It wasn't until much later while in my 20's that the thought of actually making it crossed my mind. I had worked in an office where, of course, everyone brought in mounds of baked goods during the holidays. Amongst all of those goodies, one lady had brought in homemade baklava. I was so intrigued wondering to myself "How did she make this?" After drilling her with question after question, she finally told me that it's one of those baking moments where you just have to "conquer the fear of phyllo". So with that in mind, I set off to "learn" this pastry on my own.

I did research on recipes and, yes, the phyllo dough is intimidating at first but you will quickly learn that a pastry brush and melted butter are your best friends, allowing you to easily play "plastic surgeon" when and where needed on this project. My recipe was adapted from the Better Homes and Gardens Cookies Cookies Cookies book and then tweaked over the years. This has become my "signature" dessert for the holidays and friends and family tell me they always look forward to receiving it. I just love that it looks so labor intensive, yet, I can put it together in the same amount of time it takes for a batch of cookies. Just remember, if you're going to try your hand at this, make sure you go into it with a "pastry warrior" attitude. That way, when your passing it out to your family, or a curious co-worker begins asking questions, you too can say, "It's just phyllo dough and once you conquer it, you will see how easy it is." I'm jus' sayin'!

Yes Easy Baklava



Adapted from Cookies Cookies Cookies by Better Homes and Gardens

Preheat oven to 325

Pulse the following until fine in a food processor:
2 cups of roasted unsalted shelled pistachios
1/2 cup of sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Melt 1 cup (2 sticks) of butter (set aside)

1 16 oz package of frozen phyllo dough. Defrost and lay flat with a damp paper towel covering the entire stack.

Honey/citrus syrup (recipe below)



Assemble:

Line a four-sided cookie sheet (15x10x1) with a sheet of parchment paper. Using a pastry brush, lightly paint the paper with melted butter. Take 2 sheets of phyllo and lay them on the cookie sheet (you may have a little overlapping). Brush melted butter generously over the entire sheet. Proceed 2 more times. Then sprinkle the entire nut mixture over the entire sheet. Again layer 2 more sheets of phyllo and continue until all sheets are used. Butter the top. Using a very sharp knife cut through all layers to make square or diamond shapes. This can be a bit tricky but don't get discouraged, your almost done. Bake in oven for 40-45 minutes until golden brown and flaky.



While your Baklava is in the oven, make the following syrup:

In a heavy pot combine the following:
1 1/2 C. sugar
1 C. water
1/2 C. honey
1 Tbs. lemon zest
2 Tbs. lemon juice
1 tsp. cinnamon

Bring to a boil and let simmer for 15 minutes. Set aside. As soon as the Baklava is out of the oven, carefully take a pastry brush and paint each piece generously. Use all of the syrup.



Cool and put each individual piece in a muffin cup paper liner and serve. May be kept in an air tight container for 1 week. I do not recommend freezing.

Visions of Sugar Plums!

Ahhh, the visions of sugar plums danced through their heads. I totally get this. I sometimes find myself daydreaming about that very thing. During the holidays, I feel so justified when I bump up my baking a degree or two to a psychotic frenzy! Maybe it's because it's the one time of year when people allow themselves to indulge. Or maybe it's the thought of giving all those gifts of "food". Whatever the reason, I find myself entranced in the "spirit" of all things sweet and delicious. I have some stand-bys that are my "expected traditions" - baklava, truffles, salted caramels, and candied citrus peel. This year, I will have another one to add to that list.

Last year, I played around with making marshmallows. Before you get that wrinkled furrow on your forehead and that feeling of "Martha failure", just hear me out. This really is easy if you have two things. You need to have a good candy thermometer - without it, candy making is totally hit or miss. You will also need patience, this being of the utmost importance. If you're covered in these two areas then you're ready to begin. I cannot stress enough that when it comes to candy making, you need to read over the recipe several times before you start. Sometimes, it's not the ingredient that you discover you don't have on hand, but rather the utensil for the job.

I got this recipe from marthastewart.com and I plan on making several different flavors of these marshmallows this year for gift giving. Some of the flavors are Meyer Lemon (I have a tree in my backyard), Vanilla (the traditional flavor) and of course, these lovely peppermint swirls shown in the link. Give a bag of these with some homemade cocoa mix and I swear, you will be the hostess with the mostess! And when your recipients are sipping a steaming cup of cocoa with those marshmallows slowly melting and frothing up, I bet they, too, will be having visions of sugar plums! I'm jus' sayin'...

Peppermint Swirl Marshmallows


Makes sixteen 2-inch squares

* Vegetable-oil cooking spray
* 2 cups sugar
* 1 tablespoon light corn syrup
* 4 packages (1/4 ounce each) unflavored gelatin
* 3/4 teaspoon peppermint extract
* 2 large egg whites
* 2 teaspoons red food coloring

Directions

1. Coat an 8-inch square pan with cooking spray; line bottom with parchment paper. Coat the parchment with cooking spray, and set pan aside. Put sugar, corn syrup, and 3/4 cup water in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until sugar is dissolved. Stop stirring; let mixture come to a boil. Raise heat to medium-high; cook until mixture registers 260 degrees on a candy thermometer.

2. Meanwhile, sprinkle gelatin over 3/4 cup water in a heatproof bowl; let stand 5 minutes to soften. Set the bowl with the gelatin mixture over a pan of simmering water; whisk constantly until gelatin is dissolved. Remove from heat, and stir in extract; set aside.

3. Beat egg whites in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Whisk gelatin mixture into sugar mixture; with mixer running, gradually add to egg whites. Mix on high speed until very thick, 12 to 15 minutes.

4. Pour mixture into lined pan. Working quickly, drop dots of red food coloring across surface of marshmallow. Using a toothpick, swirl food coloring into marshmallow to create a marbled effect. Let marshmallow stand, uncovered, at room temperature until firm, at least 3 hours or overnight. Cut into squares.