Every Sunday I join a Sunday Afternoon Baking club to take on a challenge. This Sunday's challenge was - Baklava!
My recipe was to combine baklava and kataïfi into these beautiful bracelets stuffed with sweet nuts and spiced apricot topped with buttered kataïfi that turns golden and crunchy.
Read on for the recipe...
Baklava and kataïfi are popular desserts in Greece and the Middle East. Baklava is constructed using phyllo dough, syrup and nuts. Whereas, kataïfi is made from shredded phyllo dough rolled around a sweet nutty filling.
In this recipe, I’ve combined the two pastries into a bracelet. The phyllo pastry is brushed in butter before being shaped around a wooden spoon handle and filled with a delicious nut and apricot filling.
I’ve used pistachios for their colour and pecans, but you could use any nut combination.
I prefer to use ghee (clarified butter) over butter as it has a higher heat point, perfect for crisping up these Greek-inspired desserts.
These delicious little crunchy treats are perfect for your coffee break or for meeting up with friends.
Using Kataïfi dough
Like phyllo, the dough is incredibly fragile.
It is basically shredded phyllo dough that looks a bit like shredded wheat.
Make sure you defrost it slowly in the fridge and when you are ready to use it keep it under some cling film to prevent it from drying out or a damp dishcloth.
Once cooked they turn golden brown.
Baklava Kataïfi Bracelet Recipe
Ingredients:
500g phyllo pastry
150g ghee (melted)
75g shelled pistachios
75g pecans
75g poached spiced apricots
For the syrup
150g caster sugar
75ml water
1tsp orange flower water
For the pastry
Pre-made Kataifi pastry
Pre-made Phyllo pastry (which can be shredded for the topping if Kataifi is unavailable)
Method
………………
Gather your ingredients. Preheat oven to 180C.
Roughly chop the nuts and set them to one side.
In a saucepan, combine the caster sugar and water, heat gently until it is dissolved and bring to the boil then simmer until it becomes syrupy.
Add in the orange flower water and simmer for a further minute.
Now add the nut mixture to the syrup and leave to one side to cool slightly.
Roll out your phyllo pastry brush lightly with ghee, then wrap around the end of a wooden spoon leaving a 2-3cm overhang.
Push each end together to crimp the pastry in the middle of the spoon, carefully slide off. ( lightly oiling the spoon handle will help)
Now shape the pastry into bracelets folding any overhang into the centre
Brush with the melted ghee very liberally, place onto a lined baking sheet.
Fill with your nut and syrup mixture and top with a spiced poached apricot.
Finally, top with the kataifi pastry that has been lightly tossed in the melted ghee and brush with a little extra.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.
Serve with creamy yoghurt, a drizzle of any remaining syrup and a sprinkle of chopped pistachios and edible flowers, you couldn’t but impress your guests with these beautiful Baklavas.
If you try this let me know how you get on in the comments, or why not pin this recipe for making a little something...special on the weekend.
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