Paklava

Paklava, anyone?

Armenian recipe preparations tend to be time consuming. Never wanting to spend any more time in the kitchen than necessary, short-cuts had to be created for some of our family favorites. (My day job was as a High School Culinary teacher. I was in kitchens all day long!)

Without a doubt, the most popular Armenian dessert is Paklava (Baklava to non-Armenians). Flaky, buttery layers of Phyllo dough, with a center layer of chopped nuts & cinnamon, then drizzled with a simple syrup, Mmmmmmmmm!

Love it, but this takes too long, so here’s what I do…

Instead of using Phyllo dough sheets, I purchase bite-sized, pre-made Phyllo cups (15 count per box) in the freezer section of my local grocery store. What a time-saver! This works in other recipes, too.

Mini-Paklava
Yield: 30

2 - 15 count pkgs. Pre-made Phyllo cups

Filling Ingredients:
2 cups finely chopped nuts (walnuts or pistachios)
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
Procedure:
Mix them together and set aside.

Simple Syrup:
2 cups sugar
1 cup water
A drop of lemon juice
Procedure:
Heat the sugar & water in a saucepan, until sugar is dissolved, then add lemon juice. Cool until ready to use.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Place each phyllo cup place on a baking sheet.
3. Put a teaspoon or so of nut filling in each cup.
4. Bake for 10-15 minutes.
5. Remove from oven. While still hot, drizzle some of the simple syrup over each cup.
6. Serve warm or at room temperature. (Note: for a neater presentation, place each phyllo cup in a mini cupcake paper liner.)