BAKLAVAS XENIKOS

Even though Greek Baklava, or Baklavas Xenikos as it called in Karpathos, did not originate in Karpathos, it is widely baked by the Karpathian housewife and enjoyed by many in Karpathos.

INGREDIENTS

FILLING

500 gr. walnuts, coarsely chopped

60 gr. sugar

1 teaspoon cinnamon

PASTRY

500 gr. fyllo pastry

180 gr. unsalted butter, melted

SYRUP

230 gr. caster sugar

300 ml water

2 cinnamon sticks

2 teaspoons lemon juice

some lemon peel

2 tablespoons honey

IMPLEMENTATION

Mix all the filling ingredients in a bowl. Liberally butter the base and sides of an elongated or round baking dish. Measure the length of the fyllo against the baking dish roughly and, allowing 2 cm extra approximately for shrinkage, cut to length with a sharp knife. Brush each layer of fyllo with melted butter and spread over the base of the container as evenly as possible. Once you have used 5 layers of pastry, sprinkle a thin layer of filling all over the surface and add 3 more layers. Sprinkle a thin layer of filling and place 2 more sheets of fyllo on top. Sprinkle on all the remaining filling, spreading it evenly, and cover with 7-8 more layers of fyllo, brushing individually with butter. Fold any excess pastry on either of the sides over the filling and brush it with butter. Brush the top layer liberally with butter in order to get it crisp and golden. Trim any excess pastry with a small sharp knife, keeping in mind that it will also shrink. Cut the top layers of fyllo carefully, either diagonally into diamond shapes or straight, which will result in square or elongated pieces. Be careful not to cut right down to the base, but only the top layers. This is done in order to make cutting and lifting the pieces out, once it is cooked, much easier and efficient. Using the tips of four fingers, sprinkle drops of water all over the surface and cook it in a preheated oven to 375 degrees F / 190 degrees C, for 15 minutes; lower the heat to 350 degrees F/ 180 grades C and cook for a further 20 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the syrup. Place all the syrup ingredients, apart from the honey, in a saucepan and stir to dissolve the sugar. Simmer for 6-8 minutes; add the honey and simmer for a further 5 minutes until it thickens slightly. Let the baklava cool down then pour the hot but not boiling syrup slowly all over, through a strainer. Let it stand and absorb the syrup.

GOOD LUCK!

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