Baklava at Home — Layers, Walnuts, and Honey

Baklava is patience turned into dessert. Dozens of sheets of paper-thin phyllo, each brushed with butter, packed with a layer of ground walnuts, baked until deep gold, then drowned the moment it leaves the oven in a honey-lemon syrup that soaks all the way down. It's the centerpiece of every holiday table from Sarajevo to Istanbul — and yes, you can make it at home.

What you'll need

• Thin phyllo / jufka sheets — the proper baklava base. Jami jufka, Saraj fillo, or the ETNO sheets labeled “za pitu i baklavu.”
• Good unsalted butter — European butter (Isigny AOP, Lurpak) for brushing every layer; clarify it for the cleanest crackle.
• Honey — for the syrup; a wildflower or thyme honey adds real depth.
• Walnuts, sugar, and a squeeze of lemon for the syrup (bring your own — see note below).

How to make it

1. Butter a pan and lay down 8–10 buttered phyllo sheets.
2. Scatter a layer of ground walnuts; add a few more buttered sheets; repeat to build the stack, finishing with a thick cap of phyllo.
3. With a sharp knife, cut all the way through into diamonds before baking.
4. Bake at 160–170°C / 325–340°F until deep golden and crisp, about 45–60 minutes.
5. Meanwhile simmer honey, sugar, water, and lemon into a light syrup.
6. The instant the baklava comes out, pour the syrup evenly over the hot pastry. Let it drink overnight before serving.

Tip: hot pastry, room-temp syrup (or vice-versa) — never both hot — keeps the layers crisp instead of soggy.

Shop the Recipe → Baklava

We carry the phyllo, butter & honey. Walnuts & sugar coming soon to the shelf — ask in-store at San Jose / Alhambra.