Recipe: Matthew’s Cocoa Nib Sesame Baklava
YIELD ~18 Servings of Delicious Baklava
Recipe Credit to Binging with Babish, whose baklava I adjusted to fit our peanut/tree nut free environment! Check out his page on basicswithbabish.co!
I find cooking tasty food to be a wonderful way to connect with folks! Once I moved to Raleigh, I found myself working with a more diverse group of people including two recent immigrants from Egypt. When I began bringing food into work to share, I wanted to give them something special to remind them of home. Baklava seemed to be the perfect choice and quickly became one of my favorite desserts. When I started working at Videri Chocolate Factory, I wanted to share my love for baklava. In order to accommodate my coworkers with peanut/tree nut allergies, I began substituting cocoa nibs to retain the delightful textures I’d come to love. My partner and I enjoyed it so much it’s now become by go-to baklava recipe.
Baklava INGREDIENTS:
8 oz Videri Cocoa Nibs
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp white sugar
1 cup unsalted butter, melted
1/2 lb phyllo dough
Syrup Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup water
1 lemon, sliced
2 cinnamon sticks
INSTRUCTIONS:
Syrup Method:
Combine granulated sugar, honey, water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer until thickened and reduced, about 12 minutes.
Once homogenous, kill the heat and add 1 sliced lemon and 2 cinnamon sticks.
Set aside at room temperature until ready to use. (The syrup should be at room temperature and still pourable when ready to use; if cooled too much, reheat slightly.
Cocoa Nib Sesame Assembly and Baking:
Process cocoa nibs, sesame, cinnamon, and white sugar in a food processor for 1 minute. Set aside.
Brush the bottom and sides of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with some of the melted butter. Any pan size above 8-by-8-inch works, the phyllo dough will just need to be trimmed to that size.
Place a layer of phyllo in the bottom of the dish, and brush the top with butter. Add another layer, brushing the top with butter, and then another layer, brushing the top with butter until you have a stack 3 sheets high. Spread 1/3 of the filling evenly over the phyllo.
Layer and butter another 3 sheets in the same way. Spread another 1/3 of the filling over it. Layer and butter another 3 sheets in the same way and spread with the final third of the filling, so that you wind up with 3 nut layers.
Top the final nut layer with the remaining 6 filo sheets, buttering every other one as above. Finally, brush the top layer of filo with butter. Place in the fridge for 1 hour.
Preheat oven to 350°F.
With a sharp knife, cut through all the layers down to the bottom of the dish, making 16 to 18 diamonds or 1 1/2-inch square sections. Place in the oven and bake for 45 minutes.
While still warm, pour the syrup in between the cuts and around the edges of the sections, taking care to avoid the top or else it will get soggy. Set aside at room temperature until completely cool.
To serve, lift out the pieces as outlined. Serve right away or cover and store at room temperature for up to 5 days.
Tips:
Baklava is not a difficult dish, but it is time consuming. Phyllo dough takes around 10 hours to fully thaw. After your baklava has been baked and you’ve added the syrup, it needs to rest for about four hours until it has cooled to room temperature. Baklava holds well at room temperature for up to 5 days.
If you are using a smaller pan, you’ll need a smaller amount of the Cocoa Nib filling. Sprinkle the filling until you can no longer clearly see the phyllo dough beneath. You can do more than 3 layers of filling if you have extra sheets of Phyllo dough left over.
For allergen concerns, the sesame is entirely optional. I find it adds some stronger nutty flavors, but Cocoa Nib Baklava is delicious without.
Don’t be afraid to experiment! For my next baklava, I’ll be adding pomegranate to the syrup to add some tart flavors. I’ve made baklava with the 6 consecutive layers of dough on the bottom, and I’ve made it with as many as 5 layers of filling. You can make mistakes with this dish and still end up with a sticky sweet delicious treat!
