Baklava and 200th Post

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Baklava and 200th Post
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Nine months of starting this blog and a two month break in between Now Serving has reached another milestone, the 200th post. Truly a labor of Love. Distractions galore since summer started – family visits galore and more in the offing – all good but the kids at home, time just vanishes and before i know it I am at the end of the day not having accomplished much towards my passion – my garden, my kiddos, and some new wonderful friendships, pool, Women’s 4 miler (yep I am trying to do that too) bunion issues (those are painful) summer school for my daughter, the pick-ups, dance which I still doing intermittently – see in how many ways a woman can be distracted?!
But its all good! It all good! I just have to discipline myself to blog twice a week like I’ve been doing – All the blogging marathons with Valli did me a world of good, by way of teaching me some discipline, really!
Anyway, I am sitting last week starting at my checkerboard cake pan and thinking, Aha – I’ll make a sweet & savory cake with the zucchinis out of my garden and beets –I made the cake alright and it was quite yummy – but the moment they got cooked the colors blended and there went my idea of this white and pink cake L  But I am not a giver upper! I still needed a good idea for my 200th post – it had to be sweet.
My husband comes home on Friday and tells me that one of his post-docs made some baklava and it was terrific, but it took the person 2 ½ hours to make it – A weekend project that would also be a good milestone recipe – I said and headed straight on to whole foods to get me some honey (I love their clover honey and now their orange blossom honey) We were getting together for a cookout  on July 4th with some good friends, and I made some of the sweet potato bakes which I’ve blogged recently except this time with a pesto sauce I cannot wait to blog and a new spicy peanut paste, which too i will be blogging over this week. I also made some Paneer Manchurian which was a super hit also to be blogged – But I think the Baklava was very well enjoyed by my friends and family.
I also picked up some interesting recipes from my friend which I will be experimenting and Indianizing in the next couple of weeks… It rained like the dickens, but our host cooked on his grill, while my little one skipped around the rocks splashing in the rain in her swimsuit, holding on to her “belle” doll! For a brief moment, I thought this is what living in Kerala might be…
One last word – the BIGGEST thanks to all my wonderful blog followers, friends and fellow bloggers who visit my blog and leave wonderfully encouraging comments – You really do make my day and give me the daily shot in the arm to pursue this wonderful passion. LOVE You and please do keep coming and visiting …
Baklava
Rambling ceases now
Now for the recipe – takes no more than 1 hour
Ingredients
18 half sheets of phyllo dough
1 lb of nuts – I used equal proportions of almonds and cashews
½ cup of melted butter + 2 tbsp
1 tsp ground cardamom
Pistachios for garnishing
baklava3
For the Syrup
¾ cup of honey
¾ cup of white sugar
1 tsp rose water/ rose essence
Preparation
Set oven to 350
Melt the butter
Crush/chop the nuts and ground cardamom and mix the two together and keep
Take a 8-9 inch pan (I used my Pyrex) and coat with butter
Place 2 phyllo sheets at a time and and brush with butter- and repeat process until you have stacked 8 sheets.
Now use half the nuts and spread it over the layers.
Place 2 more sheets over that and butter them and add the rest of the nuts
Over this, place 8 more sheets, brushing with butter every 2 layers (exactly like you did for the bottom layers)
Cut into squares/ diamonds
Now Bake for 40 -50 minutes (depends on your oven efficiency) or until the top is nice and brown
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Preparing the Syrup
While that’s baking, get yourself a deep dish pan
Mix 1 cup of water with the ¾ cup of sugar and boil until all the sugar has melted and you got a clear liquid.
Now add the honey and rose essence and allow it to simmer for 20 minutes on very low heat.
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Remove baklava from oven and immediately pour syrup over the bake – you will hear a crackle/sizzle J – Allow the syrup to soak in for a couple of hours before serving.
 It was indeed a sweet way to get to 200!
Don’t know if you read a post a while ago when I’d expressed a desire to make this and talked about the local restaurant which made the best baklavas, well now I can tell him to take a hike coz I can make these anytime I desire (lolz)
Love and cheers,
Priya
Skills

Posted on

July 5, 2011

88 Comments

  1. S.Menaga on July 5, 2011 at 4:50 pm

    congrats on ur 2nd century& wish u many more……yumm desserts!!

    Reply
  2. Archana on July 5, 2011 at 4:57 pm

    Congrats Priya on your 200th post. Delicious one at that. Love you and your blog.

    Lovely bakalva looks like too much of hard work but looks delicious.

    Reply
  3. Krishnaveni on July 5, 2011 at 5:01 pm

    congrats on your 200th post, baklava looks superb

    Reply
  4. yummychunklet on July 5, 2011 at 5:01 pm

    What a sweet looking dessert! Congrats on your 200th post!

    Reply
  5. Deeksha on July 5, 2011 at 5:13 pm

    Hearty congratulations on your milestone. Keep rocking!
    perfect looking dish for the occasion! sounds delicious!

    Reply
  6. soujanya on July 5, 2011 at 5:19 pm

    Hearty congrats for ur 200th post…Wish u gud luck…
    U r doing a grt work..keep going..
    Coming to Baklava…very new i never heard about it..veryyy tempting to make and eat..:)

    Reply
  7. Vimitha Anand on July 5, 2011 at 5:21 pm

    looks so inviting and yummy… Congrats on ur 200th post dear…

    Reply
  8. Santosh Bangar on July 5, 2011 at 5:27 pm

    this is new to mw but looks delish and inviting

    Reply
  9. Santosh Bangar on July 5, 2011 at 5:27 pm

    this is new to mw but looks delish and inviting

    Reply
  10. Santosh Bangar on July 5, 2011 at 5:27 pm

    this is new to mw but looks delish and inviting

    Reply
  11. Biny Anoop on July 5, 2011 at 5:44 pm

    wow fab dear…adore the effort u have put in….gr8 going keep it up…bakhlava looking tempting and sinfully delicious

    Reply
  12. Priya on July 5, 2011 at 5:46 pm

    Congrats on ur 200th post Priya,keep rocking gal..Baklava looks super delicious and irresistible..

    Reply
  14. Shanavi on July 5, 2011 at 5:57 pm

    Oh priya..Am literally drooling here and I forgot to wish u for reaching 200th post, see, what ur baklava has made me ?! Congrats priya.. and all the best for the rest of the journey..

    Reply
  15. Shireen Sequeira on July 5, 2011 at 6:18 pm

    Congrats on the 200th post!! It is indeed a sweet way to get to 200 as you said!! I cant wait to taste it as soon as I try it (which Iam planning to do over the weekend hopefully)!

    Reply
  16. Amritha Kalyani on July 5, 2011 at 6:41 pm

    Looks so delicious. I love bakalava. Congrats on ur 200th post and wish you many more to go….

    Reply
  17. Reshmi Mahesh on July 5, 2011 at 6:47 pm

    Congrats on 200th post dear…A delicious sweet to celebrate with…

    Reply
  18. Swathi on July 5, 2011 at 7:25 pm

    congrats on your 200th post. baklava looks delicious my favorite dessert.

    Reply
  19. Priya (Yallapantula) Mitharwal on July 5, 2011 at 7:57 pm

    wow, I have to bookmark it, looks superb and congrats girl for completing 200 posts. Love your blog and you keep rocking :)

    Reply
  20. divya on July 5, 2011 at 8:05 pm

    Congrats on ur 200th post Priya,keep rocking dear..Baklava looks super delicious and irresistible..

    Reply
  21. Mamatkamal on July 5, 2011 at 8:06 pm

    I love baklava, so delicious!
    Cheers

    Reply
  22. Harini on July 5, 2011 at 8:13 pm

    Congrats Priya! Baklava is irresistible. I am just postponing this project for fear of gobbling the entire batch :)

    Reply
  23. DD on July 5, 2011 at 8:26 pm

    congrats on your 200th post!!!
    they looks delicious!!!!yeah you many never order baklava in a restaurant now!!!

    Reply
  24. julie on July 5, 2011 at 8:48 pm

    congrats on your 200th post..wishing to see many more hundreds of recipes..
    Baklava looks superb..will try this out..

    Reply
  26. anthony stemke on July 5, 2011 at 11:02 pm

    Ah, baclava what a wonderful, sweet dessert.

    Reply
  27. muppy on July 5, 2011 at 11:07 pm

    mmmm delish, congrats on your 200!!!

    Reply
  28. Priya Sreeram on July 6, 2011 at 12:18 am

    oh my 200 posts in 9 months- wow; u know i just compkleted a year and still 3 short of 175 ( so many posts in drafts -gee now u know am lazy !!) anyways baklavas look superb and can'rt wait for your upcoming posts v!

    Reply
  29. sonu on July 6, 2011 at 1:17 am

    congrats priya ! baklava looks super delicious and mouthwatering :PP

    Reply
  31. Priti on July 6, 2011 at 2:02 am

    Congrats n wish you many more ….and this looks yum ….just so perfect

    Reply
  32. lena on July 6, 2011 at 2:30 am

    hi priya, i've seen baklavas in books but my first time seeing them in filo sheets, this must be yummy! Congrats on your 200th post too!

    Reply
  38. Varshini Sudharsan on July 6, 2011 at 5:18 am

    wow 9months and 200 post…thats a super duper thing…Congrats…keep growing…:)

    Reply
  39. Prathibha on July 6, 2011 at 5:37 am

    I m drroling drooling drolling..looks yumm

    Reply
  40. Prathibha on July 6, 2011 at 5:37 am

    I m drroling drooling drolling..looks yumm

    Reply
  41. Sutapa on July 6, 2011 at 5:49 am

    Congrats on your 200th post!
    Delicious baklava…I am drooling!!

    Reply
  43. Chandrani Banerjee on July 6, 2011 at 5:53 am

    Congrats for ur 200 post. Wishing U give many more interesting posts. Baklava looks awesome.

    Reply
  44. Raksha on July 6, 2011 at 6:37 am

    Congrats dear. The dish looks great. u r really a multi-talented women :)

    Reply
  46. SinFoodie on July 6, 2011 at 7:27 am

    Congratulations on your double century. It is an incredible achievement in only 9 months!! Way to go!

    Reply
  47. schmetterlingwords on July 6, 2011 at 8:49 am

    Hearty Congratulations dear… A very sweet way for the milestone… It is not just numbers that makes it special. I think, it is the passion that you put into each and every post that makes it very innovative and special. Keep going dear :-) Best wishes !!

    Reply
  48. Kaveri on July 6, 2011 at 9:01 am

    Congrats on your 200th post….Baklava looks yum…

    Reply
  49. Shobha on July 6, 2011 at 9:47 am

    Congrats!
    Amazing that you have completed 200 posts in this short time..
    Well done…keep rocking.

    Reply
  50. Shobha on July 6, 2011 at 9:47 am

    Congrats!
    Amazing that you have completed 200 posts in this short time..
    Well done…keep rocking.

    Reply
  51. RAKS KITCHEN on July 6, 2011 at 10:39 am

    Congrats on ur 200 th post priya,way to go! Nice looking baklava!

    Reply
  52. Ramya on July 6, 2011 at 11:15 am

    Congrats on the 200th post:-) Baklava looks soo yummy..We made this for this months Daring bakers challenge:-)

    Reply
  53. Taste Junction on July 6, 2011 at 12:43 pm

    Congrats on acheiving this milestone…kp rocking & posting such tasty treats :)

    Reply
  54. Shawn on July 6, 2011 at 1:08 pm

    Congratulations & Best Wishes for your continued enjoyment and success!

    The baklava looks divine…I'd love to make it soon :)

    Reply
  55. Suja on July 6, 2011 at 3:09 pm

    Congrats dear,keep rocking..looks divine,drooling..

    Reply
  56. Caterina on July 6, 2011 at 3:37 pm

    Absolutely LOVED the Baklava. I found that even after I ate about half of the dish (by myself) I never got tired of it. After everything was gone I still wanted more! I guess I'll just have to save this recipe for when I get back to college and make it in my new apartment. (And maybe this way I won't feel so ashamed for eating the whole dish in one sitting!) Thank you for making this wonderful dessert, I clearly enjoyed it :)

    Love,
    Caterina

    Reply
  57. flavia on July 6, 2011 at 3:49 pm

    Loved this baklava! Cardamom and rose water are perfect! Please make it again!!!

    Reply
  58. Sadhana Valentina on July 6, 2011 at 4:28 pm

    A very nice recipe dear…. Congrats on ur 200th post!!! Keep rocking!!

    Reply
  59. DG on July 6, 2011 at 5:18 pm

    Congrats on your 200th post.. the baklava looks yummy :)

    Reply
  61. Samyuktha on July 6, 2011 at 7:31 pm

    YAY for 200th post ma!! that baklava was the best i've ever tasted!!! beats Bashir's by a lot!! Congratulations on an amazing second century :) <3 <3 <3 <3

    Reply
  62. Veronica's Kitchen on July 6, 2011 at 10:52 pm

    You've a great job indianizing the baklava, love the nuts you put onto it. Congrat on your 200th blog, hard work but truly earned the effort!

    Reply
  63. Mary on July 6, 2011 at 11:25 pm

    Congratulations on reaching a milestone many bloggers never see. You've created a lovely spot for all your readers to visit and I really enjoy the time I spend here. I hope you have a great day. Blessings…Mary

    Reply
  64. Now Serving on July 7, 2011 at 1:08 am

    Thank you all lovely people! @veronica, it was not indianized at all unless you are referring to the cardamom :) Actually I was told that rose essence is often used in Turkey, the land of Baklavas :)

    Reply
  65. Baker Street on July 7, 2011 at 1:42 am

    Happy 200 posts Priya!! The baklava looks delicious!

    Reply
  66. michelangelo in the kitchen on July 7, 2011 at 1:53 am

    What a delight it would be if I am served this delicious looking baclava! Love your combination of almond, cashew and pistachio. A must try recipe for me. This is the icing on your 200th post! Simply exquisite i have to say!

    Reply
  67. Amy on July 7, 2011 at 2:59 am

    Congrats on your 200th post! This baklava looks absolutely amazing! I would love some right now!

    Reply
  68. Sukanya Ramkumar on July 7, 2011 at 3:33 am

    Congrats dear….. Baklava looks perfect… Nice recipe… YUM!

    Reply
  70. Elisabeth on July 7, 2011 at 4:03 am

    Congratulations on your 200th post!
    I'm drooling over your gorgeous baklava, that is so time consuming, but worth every minute of it.
    Love to have a piece right now:DDD

    Reply
  72. Carol on July 7, 2011 at 4:34 am

    Congrats on your 200th! And what a delicious post it is, the baklava looks fantastic.

    Reply
  75. Richa on July 7, 2011 at 8:37 am

    Congrats Priya. :-)

    Even I did my 200th post recently. Its a nice feeling. :-)

    Keep going!

    Reply
  76. Nami @ Just One Cookbook on July 7, 2011 at 9:14 am

    Congratulations on your big milestone! 200th! That's amazing! Your Baklava looks delicious too! Great recipe to celebrate this occasion!

    Reply
  77. Suman Singh on July 7, 2011 at 11:29 am

    Congratulation on your 200th post! Wish you many more such milestone ahead!! Keep blogging!
    Baklava looks delicious and perefct to celebrate the occasion!

    Reply
  78. Lizzy on July 7, 2011 at 12:02 pm

    Congratulations on post #200…you picked a winner to share for it!! I love baklava and yours looks amazing~

    Reply
  79. Prathima Shivraj on July 7, 2011 at 1:25 pm

    Congrats on your 200th post Priya, baklava looks absolutely delicious, looks inviting.

    Reply
  80. Dulce Dough on July 7, 2011 at 3:49 pm

    Congratulations on your 200th post! I love baklava and it has been way too long since I have had some! Your looks so delicious!

    Reply
  81. miri goes phishing! on July 7, 2011 at 4:02 pm

    hearty congrats on the 200th post…love the snaps…they look so perfect n' yummy…:)

    Reply
  82. Laxmi on July 7, 2011 at 4:10 pm

    congrats on ur 200th recipe.. wish u many more success.

    Reply
  83. Indie.Tea on July 7, 2011 at 5:20 pm

    Congrats on your 200th post!
    And the bakalava sounds delicious.

    Reply
  84. briarrose on July 7, 2011 at 5:28 pm

    Congrats on 200! What a way to celebrate.

    Reply
  85. Ranjini and on July 7, 2011 at 5:38 pm

    We could use some baklava therapy right about now..it looks fabulous! And congratulations!

    Reply
  86. kothiyavunu.com on July 7, 2011 at 6:26 pm

    Congrats!! An awesome recipe to mark 200 post..Wish you many more celebration like this..bakalava looks so delicious!

    Reply
  87. Raji on July 8, 2011 at 4:29 am

    Congrats on your 200th post Priya..baklava is my fav..can't have enough of it ever…but never made it myself as we get it readily here. Have been just so busy packing for holidays so couldn't drop in before here…keep up the spirit dear.

    Reply
  88. Seema on September 30, 2011 at 12:01 am

    awesome recipe…tempting baklava..Congrats Priya.

    Reply

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