Baklava

This is a really great recipe!!!!

Baklava

Recipe submitted by: Donna Townsend on http://christmas.allrecipes.com/az/Baklava.asp
but Recipe Adapted by Jeanne and Kathy

The phyllo dough for this recipe is found in the freezer section of most grocery stores. Add a little lemon zest to the sugar sauce, if desired." Recipe yields about 24-30 diamonds.

INGREDIENTS:

1 roll of phyllo dough (8 oz) ( A package of a 16 ounce phyllo dough has two rolls)
1/2 pound chopped nuts (walnuts, pistachios, etc) (approximately 1 cup)
1/2 cup butter melted ( Use more butter if necessary. Realistically, you will end up using 1 cup butter,melted...LOL)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (add extra if you like..We did 1 teaspoon)
1/4 cup honey

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F(175 degrees C).

Butter the bottoms and sides of a 9x13 inch pan.

Chop nuts and toss with cinnamon. Set aside.

Unroll phyllo dough. Place two sheets of dough in pan, butter thoroughly.
Repeat placing two sheets of dough and buttering it thorougly 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.
Do this until you have 3 layers of nut mixture
After the last nut mixture, place two sheeps of dough on top and butter thoroughly. Repeat until you have 6-8 layers

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 25-30 minutes or until baklava is golden and crisp.

Make sauce while baklava is baking. Boil sugar and water until sugar is melted. Add vanilla and honey. Simmer for about 20 minutes.

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.