Baklava is one of those desserts that looks as if it should be complicated to make but is supremely easy as long as you use shop-bought phyllo pastry. Once you’ve prepared the syrup and ground the nuts, this vegan baklava is really just a matter of assembly, lasagne-style.
There are countless versions of baklava from all around the Eastern Mediterranean, ranging back over hundreds or even thousands of years. This vegan recipe is a fusion of the traditional with the new, including those stalwarts of contemporary vegan baking – coconut oil and maple syrup – alongside classic ingredients.
The primary flavours are firmly traditional, in the form of pistachios, walnuts, cinnamon, cardamom and orange. You could add a dash of orange flower water to the syrup once it’s removed from the heat for a distinctive floral flavour, but it’s not essential.
If all that sounds a bit Christmassy for January, baklava is actually a truly ubiquitous dessert, associated with all sorts of special days and events, religious or otherwise. You could, for example, make it to ward off the blues on 18th January, which is supposed to be the most depressing day of the year – that’s an occasion that calls for dessert if ever there was one!
vegan baklava…
ingredients
- around 200 g phyllo pastry
- 50 g coconut oil
- 50 g vegan margarine
for the filling
- 200 g pistachios (shelled, unsalted)
- 160 g walnuts
- 70 g maple syrup
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- crushed/ground seeds from around 8 cardamon pods
- zest of an orange plus 1 tbsp juice
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
for the syrup
- 100 g caster sugar
- 60 g maple syrup
- 1 tbsp fresh orange juice
- 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- a pinch of ground cloves
- optional – 1 tsp orange flower water, or to taste
method
- Set the oven to 180°C/360°F. You will need an 8″ square or similar sized baking tin. (You can cut the pastry to any size.)
- Grind the nuts in a processor until they are a mix of finely ground and slightly larger pieces (up to perhaps 2 mm across).
- Add the other filling ingredients and mix until well combined. Set aside.
- Melt the oil and margarine together in a small dish, for brushing the pastry.
- You will need eighteen layers of phyllo (three sets of six layers, so cut the sheets to fit the pan you are using. You might need to join together some off-cuts. These can be the middle set so you won’t see any joins.
- Brush the base and sides of the pan with the melted oil. Lay in one sheet of phyllo. Brush it with oil, then add another layer, and so on until you have a six layers of phyllo, each brushed with oil.
- Spoon half of the nut mixture on top and spread gently with a fork until it evenly covers the pastry, right up to the edges.
- Then layer in the next six sheets of phyllo, brushing each one as before (remember to use any smaller pieces on this middle layer where breaks won’t be seen).
- Spoon in the second half of the nut mixture, as before, and spread evenly before layering on the final six sheets of pastry, brushing each as you go.
- Brush any excess oil over the top before cutting across the whole tray with a sharp, flat knife to create squares or diamond shapes. Do this gently, so as not to tear the phyllo, pressing through to the base, rather than ‘sawing’.
- Bake for around 45 minutes until is is crisp and deep gold in colour, reducing the temperature to 150°C/300°F after the first 15 minutes.
- While the baklava is baking (or before, if it suits) prepare the syrup by placing all the ingredients in a small pan with 120 ml of water. (If you are using orange flower water, add this later when you remove the syrup from the heat.)
- Gently simmer the syrup until it reduces a little, to a consistency similar to maple syrup.
- While the baklava is hot, pour the syrup over the top, allowing it to soak into all the cuts and corners.
- Leave the baklava to cool completely before removing from the pan. It will store well for several days in an airtight container.
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