Baklava (Filo & Walnut Pastry in Syrup)

Make the syrup first so it can cool completely: boil the sugar, water and lemon juice, then simmer 12–15 minutes until slightly syrupy. Leave it to go cold.

💡 Cold syrup onto hot pastry is the rule for a crisp baklava — hot-on-hot goes soggy every time.

Chop the nuts finely, not to dust, and mix with the spoon of sugar and the cinnamon.

Melt the butter and keep it warm and liquid; brush a baking tin with a little of it.

Lay in a sheet of filo, brush it all over with butter, and repeat until you have stacked about half the sheets, buttering every single one.

💡 Butter every layer — a dry sheet bakes pale and papery instead of crisp and golden.

Spread the nut mixture evenly over the stacked sheets.

Continue layering and buttering the remaining filo sheets on top, buttering every one.

Brush the top generously with butter.

With a sharp knife, cut all the way through into diamonds or squares before baking.

💡 Cut before baking, never after — slicing baked baklava shatters it into crumbs.

Bake at 170°C for 40–45 minutes until deep golden and crisp right through.

Take it straight from the oven and immediately ladle the cold syrup evenly over the hot pastry — it will hiss and crackle.

Leave the baklava to stand at least 4 hours, or overnight, so it drinks up the syrup and sets.

Lift out along the cut lines and serve at room temperature, with a little ground pistachio on top if you like.