Baklava Rolls
Baklava is a Middle Eastern specialty dessert. Baklava is made in many shapes I decided to make them in rolls. Instead of honey I used sugar to glaze and flavored with cardamom. Its a nice sugary snack that is popular among many people for its consistency, texture, taste and flavor.
Ingredients
- 6 sheets phyllo dough (one package weigh 1 pound and have 18 14 x 18 inches sheets)
- 1/2 cup clarified butter
- 1/2 cup ground almond
- 1/2 cup ground walnuts
- 1/4 cup coconut powder
- 1/2 tsp cardamom powder
- 1/3 cup sugar
For Syrup and Garnishing
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 tsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp pistachios sliced
For baking I am using 8x8 baking pan.
Instructions
For Filling
- Combine all the dry ingredients, ground almonds, walnuts, coconut, sugar, and cardamom.
Making the Pastry
- Preheat the oven 350 degree F.
- Work on a clean, dry, flat surface, Open the phyllo dough and take 1 sheet spread over the working surface and fold it making it double in length wise. Lightly brush the butter covering the whole sheet. You will be working with the short side.
- Leave about half inch of sheet across the short side and sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the filling from edge to edge evenly. Roll it like a jelly roll twice and brush lightly with butter, only the rolled part. Sprinkling again 2 tablespoons of the filling from edge to edge evenly.
- Roll it up carefully, after every roll brush it with butter, and place seam side down in the baking tray. Repeat the process until you finish rolling all six sheets.
- The pieces should fit snugly, but not squashed. With a very sharp knife, cut the roll into 3 equal pieces in length, total of 18 pieces. Lightly brush the butter over each piece.
- Bake the baklava for about 25 to 30 minutes until they are light golden brown in color.
Making Syrup and Finishing
- Boil the sugar and water together until syrup is 220 degrees on candy thermometer or ½ thread. Add the lemon juice and cardamom powder and turn off the heat. Lemon juice keeps the syrup from crystallizing.
- Carefully pour the hot (but not boiling) syrup evenly over all the baklava pieces. Sprinkle few pieces of the sliced pistachios over baklava. Allow the baklava to cool before serving. Enjoy!
Notes
Baklava is a Middle Eastern specialty. Baklava is made in many shapes I decided to make them in rolls. Instead of honey I used sugar to glaze and flavored with cardamom.
Baklava is made using phyllo dough; it is available in frozen section in supermarkets.
Be sure to thaw the phyllo dough using the instruction from the package, phyllo dough should be at room temperature before using. Do not open the package until you are ready to use. Unused sheets roll them in clear plastic wrap and refrigerate for next time but do need to be used within 3 to 4 days.
You will also enjoy Mango panna cotta, Mango Mousse
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
uma
March 23, 2018 at 6:03 amHello Manjula,
First of all i would like to thank you for sharing a wonderful recipes with us! i like all your recipes, especially Jain recipes those are very helpful to me in no onion & no garlic season.
Am an IT employee in daytime and in moon light am a blogger, i love cooking and want to share my recipes with my family members, colleagues, friends, etc. but this time i also want to share my recipes with you because your reviews means a lot to me.
Ashita Sachdeva
September 20, 2016 at 10:05 amFrom where can I get fillo sheets?
Manjula Jain
September 20, 2016 at 10:11 pmAshita Sachdeva, grocery stores in frozen section
Sana
September 19, 2016 at 11:52 pmHello mam,plz tell an alternative fr d phylo dough…also tell if anything home made cn b used???
sasi
April 6, 2016 at 3:17 pmHello Aunty
Can we buy coconut powder in store
Manjula Jain
April 6, 2016 at 11:03 pmsasi, yes it is readily available
prachi rane
July 7, 2015 at 3:04 pmPlz can help can I bake the balkavas in microwave as I dont have oven
Manjula Jain
July 8, 2015 at 11:11 pmprachi rane, I have never baked any thing in microwave
prachi rane
July 11, 2015 at 3:48 pmWhat I want to knw is can we make baklava in microwave
Manjula Jain
July 12, 2015 at 3:51 pmprachi rane, Microwave will not work for this recipe
Anu
September 8, 2012 at 11:53 amManjula Aunty ,
Thanks for the recipe .It is a bit time consuming to perpare but the result is worth the effort.
ginu
August 4, 2012 at 2:50 amin some place its spelled as filo sheets…. thanks for the recipe aunnty… love you…….
MOUMITA HORE
April 4, 2012 at 4:23 pmHello Aunty,
Thanks for such a nice recipe….but i have one query that as in US we get phyllo dough , but in india it’s not present everywhere…so how to replace the phyllo.Eagerly waiting for your reply..as it’s a very favourite dessert of our family.
Julia
January 21, 2012 at 1:40 pmLove this recipe! It is now one of our go-to recipes for dinner parties and the like. My husband and I made several batches last year using black walnuts from trees in our yard. It was a hit with everybody 🙂
@Myrna Chang: In my experience with this recipe and others, testing syrup for thickness and color usually works better than a thermometer. If your syrup is sufficiently thick, you shouldn’t have a problem with the dough getting too wet. If you live in a humid area though, you might want to consider using a bit less water in the syrup since the baklava will probably absorb water from the air as it cools. Good luck!!
myrna chang
January 10, 2012 at 7:06 amhello aunty, we have made the baklava the problem we encounter is after putting the sugar syrup down the lower sheets becomes a mess not intact so find not exciting to eat due to the wetness of the dough. thru the picture of your baklava rolls seems intact & dry. please reply i really love the taste of baklava…thanks
Riti
November 10, 2011 at 11:10 amcan i make them in advance around 3-4 days before the party?
Manjula Jain
November 10, 2011 at 10:26 pmRiti,
You can keep Baklava for 1 week or more.
sabitha
December 18, 2011 at 5:44 amIf I am making these before 3 days, should I refridgerate them?
Manjula Jain
December 18, 2011 at 6:44 pmSabitha,
Baklava you don’t need to refrigerate.
sandeep rai
October 22, 2011 at 2:29 pmHello Sat Sri Akal auntie ji
I just have question i dont have the same size pan that you are using can i use bigger pan for this recipe ?
Viji
October 20, 2011 at 9:40 amHi aunty,
Can u pls tell me from which shop I can get phyllo sheets in US
Thanks
Manjula Jain
October 20, 2011 at 2:35 pmViji,
All most all the grocery store carries the phyllo dough in frozen section where they keep pastry shells. If you don’t find them there Mediterranean stores carry them.
Viji
October 23, 2011 at 5:37 pmThanks aunty. I got it.
Deepa
October 18, 2011 at 4:56 pmI tried and it turned out to be a big hit at home and my friends , Thankyou Aunty,
this will be my Diwali sweet this yr, wishing you a Very Happy Diwali…….
Shweta Agrawal
October 5, 2011 at 4:55 amHello Aunty,
Love all your recipes and mostly because they are Jain recipes with no onion n no garlic. Thanks for such a wonderful website. Its really very helpful for me.
I am planning of making Baklawa , just wanted to know for how many days will it last for ?? As I am going to take this to India and will atleast take 4-5 days to eat it after I make it. Will it last for 1 week atleast. Please reply at your earliest.
Many Many Thanks
Shweta Agrawal
Manjula Jain
October 5, 2011 at 7:38 amShweta,
Baklawa you can keep for about 2 weeks, have a nice trip.
Shweta Agrawal
October 6, 2011 at 3:28 amThank you so much for the prompt response aunty.
Will give you feedback , how my mom in law reacts on this … as I think this is new sweet for India.
Regards
Shweta 🙂
Liane
August 11, 2011 at 3:28 amVani,
Make sure to heat the honey first before pouring it on the baklava. You are supposed to pour the sugar syrup over the baklava while it’s hot so you should do the same with the honey. If the honey is not heated before hand, it may be too thick and it won’t spread properly over it.
vani
August 9, 2011 at 3:56 pmcan we use honey on top of it instead of sugar syrup. pls let me know.thanks in advance.
Manjula Jain
August 9, 2011 at 4:03 pmVani,
Yes you can use honey.
vani
August 10, 2011 at 12:24 pmu have metioned to me that i can use honey. if using honey when is the right time to put it.. pls let me know.
Liane
August 11, 2011 at 3:23 amVani, if you are using honey in place of sugar syrup in this recipe – you would use it at the same time as if you were using the sugar syrup. You are only substituting ingredients.
Jolly
July 19, 2011 at 11:50 amHi auntiji,
This is such a great recipe. I wanted to make this for our Mandir’s annakut and one of the things is we can not use store bought phyllo. Is there any way we can make that at home? Please advice. Thank you & god bless you.
Rekha
July 15, 2011 at 1:22 pmManjula ji,
I made this recipe today and it came out really good…. thanks a lot… ur recipes are teaching me to cook delicious foods..!!!
Neela
June 3, 2011 at 2:35 amAunty whether these baklava rolls can be baked in microwave please advise. thanks
Neela
gita
May 3, 2011 at 11:11 amMajula ji, love your recipes .you make everything very easy even for unseasoned cooks like me
priti
May 1, 2011 at 3:24 pmHi,
I like this very much. If my daughter has dryfruit allergy what should I add?
She cannot eat almond and walnut both which you are using. Help me.
Thanks
Priti
Manjula Jain
May 1, 2011 at 10:34 pmPriti,
Some times I make Baklava using the coconut burfi I crumble the burfi and use it as a filling for Baklava.
Liane
February 12, 2011 at 12:43 pmHi Shwets,
I’m not sure why you didn’t see the experation date on the package because there should be one – did you get it from an Indian grocery store or an American one?
I can give you my experience though once the package is opened It needs to be tightly covered or it dries out quickly. I had unthawed my package in the refrigerator and let it sit there for a couple of weeks by accident – just got busy and didn’t bother making it.. but when I opened it – it had already started to dry out. Once the plastic package inside has been open too – it will dry out quickly if you don’t use it all up.
Here is a good pointer or thought for people with left over phyllo dough – you can brush the layers/sheets with butter, stack them up on top of each other and bake them according to directions. Then on top of that, you can take a package of creamcheese, beat it with some powdered sugar and some thawed coolwhip to make a spread – spread that on top of the phyllo and then arrange fresh fruits in rows… I like to use strawberries, kiwis, raspberries, blackberries, mandarin orange segments,blueberries.. it looks very pretty and makes a nice dessert for guests. THIS ALSO WORKS WONDERS WITH PUFF PASTRY SHEETS – IT IS ACTUALLY NICER WITH THE PUFF SHEETS.
Another idea with the phyllo is to butter several sheets, stack them and then cut them into pieces that will fit inside of a mini muffin tin – bake them until they are brown and then fill them with different fillings – sweet or savory. If anyone is intersted – let me know and I can give some more ideas.. I have lots of good appetizers…
Either that – or Manjula auntie could do a contest with appetizers… : )
Shwets
February 11, 2011 at 12:50 pmHello Aunty,
Nice recipe…Just wanted to know how long can we refrigeraste this phyllo sheet..Have brought a packet sometime back but dont see the expiration date…Any idea on the sheif life of these sheets
sj
December 23, 2010 at 12:56 pmHello!
Aunty
what is the alteration for phyllo and no eggs in baklawa in india?
thanxs
sj
Rupa
December 8, 2010 at 9:02 pmHello Aunty,
Do you have a print icon to your recipes ?
I dont seem to find it if its there.
Thanks
– Rupa
Priyanak
November 30, 2010 at 3:09 pmThanks for the recipe..it looks great..how long and how can we store this?
please advice.
Thanks
Arpi Shah
November 24, 2010 at 10:17 amHello Aunty!
Your baklava receipe is really very nice. Thanks for all your recipes and cooking tips…..
When first time i made baklava it was really fantastic but it was just trial so my husband said that when guest will visit next time our place make baklava for everyone. So again i made baklava and i am in problem right now.
As much syrup left on bottom baklava came out soggy next day. So what shall i do with that. Please help me. I am expecting guest this saturday….. I already made 120 baklava and it came out soggy and its no more crunchy.
Please help me aunty.
Waiting for your reply
Thanks
Arpi Shah
Manjula Jain
November 24, 2010 at 11:38 amArpi,
I think syrup should have been cooked little more but any way now transfer the Baklava on different lightly greased baking tray and bake it for about 10 minutes on 225 degree F. First try few of the Baklavas, another option roll then in coconut powder Baklava will be still soft but give a nice twist to it.
Good Luck \Let us know the results.
Rita Sharma
September 13, 2010 at 8:55 amDear Manjula Aunty the Baklavas came out fantastically cool. Almost like the ones sold in Turkey. Thanks for sharing your cooking passion with us. ALSO GREAT TIPS POSTED ON FREEZING FOOD.
Liane Albert
September 10, 2010 at 6:25 amJaya,
Hi, I see that you post on here a lot just like me! Just curious if you are here in the states and if you are on facebook or anything like that. I’d like to chat with you sometime – you can reach me at lianealbert@gmail.com or lianealbert@extfservices.com I’ve sent some recipes to Manjula that she’s used in the past and would like to send them to you as well. Write to me if you’d like to correspond aside from here and I’d add you on facebook if you are there. I’ve wound up becoming friends with others on here as well and it would be great to add as well. My ID on facebook is Liane Albert. Hope to hear from you soon.
Jaya
September 10, 2010 at 6:01 pmHi Liane, thanks for the nice note. I am here in the states, but I don’t have Facebook or any other social site (much to the relief of my kids – lol). I’m in transition getting a new email set up so I’ll let you know when I know. Or maybe one day, I’ll cave in and create a Facebook profile! 🙂
Lakshmi
September 9, 2010 at 3:33 pmHello aunty ji,
Shall I use pastry sheets instead of phyllo dough sheets?
thanks.
Manjula Jain
September 9, 2010 at 3:40 pmLakshmi,
For baklava you need to use phyllo dough sheets, they are easy to work with if you follow the directions on the phyllo dough box sheet. It is important to though them right way.
mhesh saugar
November 24, 2010 at 1:00 amJSK Manjulaji,
here in pune (india) we do not get phyllo sheets so what do you suggest I use instead of Phyllo or any instructions on how to make phyllo or something similar?
Jaya
September 9, 2010 at 3:46 pmLakshmi, pastry sheets will puff up when they bake, phyllo will not. If pasty sheets are all you have, you could use them. Just know that they will puff up and look different from traditional baklava, but they should still taste good.
shan
September 9, 2010 at 6:53 amUrgent help aunty….going to have guest today evening, i wanted to try this yummy recipe. Pls tell me how to seperate the layers from the sheet…..pls urgent….help me.
I tried seperating Puff pastry long back, it was flop and the dough got spoilt.
Roshi
August 31, 2010 at 5:12 pmHi Aunty,
This recipe of urs is jst awesome! coz we r really fond of baklavas and now making them at home satisfy our palettes. However i tried it before also, but they did not come out so well though the taste was fantastic as i hv added some rose water also in the mixture it gives a more M-E touch to it.
Thanks and Regards
Aruna
November 27, 2010 at 7:17 pmHi Aunty,
Very nice recipe. I tried it tody and it came out really well. Thank’s for all the wonderful recipes and hard work.
Thank’s
daksha
August 29, 2010 at 5:28 pmhi manjulaji
l always follow your recipes,where to get fiolo sheet in india?
thanks
a
August 29, 2010 at 4:17 pmh
a
August 29, 2010 at 4:17 pmaunty
i like ur recipes
i just don;t get the logic behind eating sweets with tea.
sadia
August 25, 2010 at 5:27 amhi aunty i try ur several recipies and all r very nice thx 4 such good recipies
Tanvi
August 23, 2010 at 2:27 pmOh aunty..I was looking for this recipe for such a long time.Thanks so much.Will make these at home now.I find the taste of baklava very similar to balushahi and i just love these!
Fatima
August 23, 2010 at 12:12 pmHi Liane & Jaya,
Liane, thanks so much for your reply and concern! you are absolutely right I too don’t think there is a substitute, but I had wishful thinking! I will keep on searching though maybe one day something will come up to make up for the cravings I have for recipes using phyllo leaves :), and, thank you for the banana chocolate empanada recipe. I will make both recipes for my husband! Have a great day.
Jaya, thanks a lot for you help! I will check health food stores through the internet as I live overseas in “Jordan”, maybe there is something similar “I hope”. Have a great day too.
Liane Albert
August 23, 2010 at 7:39 amHi Manjula,
I hope that all is well with you in San Diego and that you are enjoying the end of your summer. I also wanted to tell you that although I’ve posted on here often, I’ve never taken the time myself to thank you for all of the recipes and ideas that you provide to your FANS!! You have many of them all over the globe and there are times that I am sure all of us would just love to be able to pick up the phone and chat with you like a friend. You are an amazing lady and I hope that you won’t take offensive when I tell you that when many ladies could be off enjoying their retirement years – you take on this huge undertaking of maintaining this site. It must consume a lot of your time so it truly must come from your heart!
I do have one recipe that I would love to share with you and all of your readers – it’s called chocolate banana empanadas and it’s made with phyllo – I got it from a Mexican cookbook and after making some minor adjustments to it… Here it is – my version of chocolate banana empanadas.
Chocolate Banana Empanadas
*about 12 sheets of phyllo pastry – cut them in half lengthwise
*melted butter for brushing
* two bananas – not too under-ripe or not too ripe either – but in between
*1-2 teaspoons sugar
*juice of 1/4th lemon
*1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
*1/4 cup of sweetened shredded coconut (found in baking section of
american grocery stores)
preheat the oven to 375 F.
Peel and dice the bananas and place in a bowl. Add the sugar and lemon juice – stirring to combine. Stir in the chocolate chips and coconut.
Cut the phyllo sheets in half lengthwise ( the long way ) keeping unused portions under a damp cloth to prevent drying out.
Take three to four sheets together at one time – brushing only the outter top side and bottomside of the three sheets. **** I use more than one sheet at a time because phyllo is so thin… that working with just one sheet and such a heavy filling causes it to break. Working with a thickness of sheets not only prevents this but gives some texture as well. Place them vertically in front of you.
Place two teaspoons of the banana chocolate filling in bottom right corner of the dough – then fold over into a triangle shape to enclose the filling- Continue to fold over into a triange shape until the phyllo is completely wrapped around the filling – so that when done you have a completely enclosed “triangle” If you have any bit left over at the end / edge – you can trim it off with a pair of kitchen scissors. (YOU MIGHT WANT TO PRACTICE THE FOLDING TECHNIQUE ON A PIECE OF PAPER FIRST SO THAT YOU CAN PRACTICE THE FOLDING PART AND DON’T RUIN YOUR PHYLLO)
Place the completed empanada on a lightly greased cookie sheet – use spray PAM or any other spray oil.
Continue the process with the remaining phyllo and filling – folding the empanadas and working quickly so that your phyllo sheets don’t dry out on you. Dust the empanadas with confectioners sugar.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes or just until light golden. Remove from the oven. These are nice served hot while the chocolate has melted but warn people the filling is extremely HOT. However, if you have any left overs, I enjoyed them once they had cooled down. Store any leftovers in an airtight container. If they are not going to be used within the same day – store them in the refrigerator.
Manjula Jain
August 23, 2010 at 10:16 amLiane Albert,
Thank you, I am enjoying my retirement years and fans like yourself keep me young. I am going to try this recipe looks good.
Thank you again
Manjula
Liane Albert
August 30, 2010 at 4:45 amHi Manjula,
I see recipes like this and think “Oh, I bet Manjula will like this” because it seems that you really especially enjoy trying recipes outside the realm of Indian cooking. The banana chocolate empanada is especially great – like I said, especially good eaten while still warm with a scoop of coconut icecream… it very much reminds me of a dessert thai banana roll we’ve had before. I’m not sure if you get Kroger supermarkets where you are in San Diego or if they have a spin off chain out there but if you can get it the “private selection” brand (which is their own brand) is especially excellent and tastes like you’re eatting thai coconut icecream. SO YUMMY!
Liane Albert
August 23, 2010 at 6:56 amHi Fatima & Manjula,
Fatima, I’m not sure that anything else other than phyllo will work for this recipe as it’s the phyllo that sort of makes it what it is. You might find some other alternative out there but I myself am not sure of what it would be. I’m sorry that you’re gluten free but I am sure that if you do find an alternative – the filling will make it equally as tasty.
Manjula – another thing I’ve found personally when making baklava – I had just made some recently when I saw the post – is pouring the liquid very slowly over it so it’s allowed to absorb instead of pouring it quickly – it just pools to the side. One more tip that readers might find helpful is keeping the unused phyllo covered with a damp cloth while you are using it. It helps to keep it from drying out. It has to be just damp though because anything more than that will make it wet and uneasy to use.
You are so right about using it within the few days of opening it. The first time I made something with phyllo I had kept it unthawed in the refrigerator without having used it for several weeks… by the time I had taken it out and opened it.. it had already started to dry out.
Fatima
August 22, 2010 at 12:05 pmThanks so much Manjula for all your delicious recipes! your instructions are so easy to follow, and your recipes are fool proof! The Baklava seems so easy and delicious!
I am gluten free, so do you think there is a substitue for the phyllo sheets?
thanks so much again.
Jaya
August 23, 2010 at 8:05 amFatima, check with a natural foods or health foods store. They often will have gluten free ingredients. i don’t know if gluten free philo dough is available, but if it is these are the kinds of stores that would have it.
Adelina
August 22, 2010 at 11:25 amWhat a great explanation on the making of this delicacy. I was always shy to try it, now that gives me so much confidence- thanks so much, Manjula Ji!