How to prepare Azerbaijani baklava at home

6

Updated: Dashuta

05/27/2014 Cooking time: 2 hours 0 minutes

It's hard to think of something more tasty and aromatic than this amazing Baku baklava! It will not leave you and your loved ones indifferent, especially if you prepare it with your own hands.

Step-by-step recipe with photos

There are many recipes for baklava, just like recipes for borscht, each housewife has her own. What unites them all is the multi-layered dessert and the filling of nuts and granulated sugar. This is a very tasty and quite high-calorie delicacy, despite the fact that it is very filling, you want to eat it again and again. Today we will prepare baklava in Azerbaijani style.

For Azerbaijani baklava we need ingredients, see photo

Knead the dough from flour, yeast, 100 grams of butter, a pinch of salt, milk and eggs. Cover it with film and leave to rest for an hour.

Meanwhile, prepare the filling. Lightly toast the nuts in a dry frying pan. Grind sugar (250 grams) in a blender, add nuts, cardamom and grind further so that the nuts are not completely crushed.

Divide the dough into 12-14 parts, make one part slightly larger than the rest, cover them with a towel or film.

Roll out the largest part with a diameter larger than the baking dish, about 2 mm thick.

We put it on the bottom of the mold, grease it with melted butter, then roll out the next part with a diameter the size of the mold, put it on the first layer, grease it with melted butter.

And sprinkle with some of the filling.

Then again layer, butter, filling.

Repeat until the last two layers remain. We simply grease the penultimate layer with oil, fold the edges of the bottom one over it and lay the final layer on top. Lubricate it with diluted yolk, water and saffron. We cut the baklava through several top layers into diamond shapes (not to the bottom!). This time I have squares :) Place halves of hazelnuts or walnuts on top, press them down a little so that the top layers are held together a little. Place in an oven preheated to 200 degrees to bake.

After 15 minutes of baking, open the oven and pour melted butter over the baklava. Reduce the temperature to 180 degrees and bake for another 20-25 minutes.

For syrup, mix 150 grams of sugar with 100 ml of water, boil, turn off, add honey, stir. Pour the syrup over the finished baklava and leave to soak for several hours. In some recipes, the syrup is prepared without honey, but I like it better with it, the aroma and taste are unique.

Azerbaijani baklava is ready. Delicious!

Bon appetit!

Classic is immortal

Classic Baku baklava consists of 10-12 thin layers of dough. It should be rolled out so thin that, by placing a newspaper on one side of it, you can easily read the printed text. “The thickness of the dough layer should not exceed 0.5, and in finished form - 1 millimeter. Rolling out such dough requires special skill,” explains Jeyran Askerova. According to culinary sources, the number of layers of dough in baklava has also undergone evolutionary changes over the years. At first there were three of them, then seven, eight, nine, now 10-12. Some researchers argue that the number of layers of dough increased in proportion to the increase in the number of strings of the Azerbaijani saz, a musical instrument played by folk singers-improvisers - ashugs. Perhaps this is so: after all, food and music often accompany each other.

Each layer is brushed with melted butter so that the finished baklava is soft and melts in your mouth. In this case, butter is often used, which is obtained from a fermented milk product - gatiga, by beating it by hand for a long time in a special ceramic container called “nekhre”. This oil stays fresh longer, which also affects the quality of baklava.

Required Ingredients

Azerbaijani baklava, the step-by-step recipe for which we will describe below, requires a fairly impressive amount of ingredients. In this case, you can take any honey, since it will have to be dissolved in water.

Test components:

• 250 g flour for kneading;
• 3 tablespoons of flour for preparing the dough;
• half a teaspoon of dry yeast;
• 1 teaspoon sugar;
• 50 g butter;
• 160-170 ml milk;
• yolk of one egg;
• ½ teaspoon salt.

Ingredients for filling:

• 500 g chopped walnuts;
• 400-500 g sugar;
• cardamom (to taste);
• 200 g butter (for soaking the layers).

Ingredients for honey glaze:

• 6 tablespoons of honey;
• 120 ml water;
• 200 g granulated sugar.

Ingredients for smearing and decorating:

• yolk of one egg;
• ½ teaspoon of saffron;
• 80 ml water;
• nuts for decoration.

Components for filling:

• 100 g butter.

There are recipes for baklava in Azerbaijani style and with other compositions and proportions. For example, some chefs recommend adding ground cloves, nutmeg or vanilla to the filling.

Honey baklava

Honey baklava is a recipe that gives the delicacy a rich taste and aroma. Traditionally, honey is melted into sugar syrup and serves not only as an additional sweet element, but also affects thickness. In the modern version, it is combined with water, thereby preserving the beneficial properties of the product and reducing cooking time.

Ingredients:

• yeast dough - 900 g;
• nuts - 300 g;
• sugar - 200 g;
• butter - 100 g;
• honey - 30 g.

Preparation

1. Divide the mass into 4 parts, roll into snails and cool for about an hour.
2. Roll the snails into layers, and chop the nuts and sweetener.
3. Lay out the first layer and sprinkle with some of the filling. Repeat the process twice, then cover with the last one and cut into pieces.
4. Bake at 200 degrees for half an hour, soaking in melted butter.
5. Baklava, whose recipe is hundreds of years old, offers impregnation options: dilute honey with water and pour over the delicacy.

How to cook Baku baklava

Based on the step-by-step recipe with photos, let's get down to business. We prepare all the components.

We prepare all the ingredients for making baklava

1. In a separate bowl, beat ½ tbsp. water, 2 eggs and butter. Mix the products for at least 3 minutes.

Mix water, oil and eggs

1. We dilute yeast in half a glass of water.

Breeding yeast

1. Mix them with a mixture of oil, eggs and water.

Combine yeast with oil, water and eggs

1. Carefully and leisurely pour flour into the total mass. From all this we make a dough, rubbing it with a spoon for a quarter of an hour. In total, you will need about 650 g of flour, and the rest is needed for rolling.

Add flour gradually and knead the dough

1. For 1.5 hours, remove the dough to “rest” and stand. The room should be approximately +25 degrees. Cover the mixture with a napkin or cloth to prevent a hard crust from forming.

Cover the dough and let it rest

1. Make the filling by breaking the nuts with a knife.

Making the nut filling

1. We grind cardamom, add cinnamon, add nuts and sugar. Stir until smooth.

Mix nuts, cardamom, sugar and cinnamon

1. Divide the risen dough into 2 equal portions. We cut each of them into 12 more pieces.

Divide the dough into 2 pieces, and then each of them into 12 more pieces.

On a note! Of the resulting blanks, 2 parts should be twice as large as the others.

1. Take 2 molds and grease them with oil. Sprinkle some flour on the table and roll out 1 of the larger pieces to a thickness of 1 mm.

Grease baking pans with butter and roll out the dough

1. We transfer the layer into the mold and cover it with the filling. The thickness of the sweet layer should be at least 3 mm.

Place the filling on the dough

1. Again, sprinkle the table with flour and roll out a small part. The thickness of the layer should be 1\2 mm.

Roll out a small piece of dough

1. Cover the filling with this layer. We pinch the edges, then spread the nut mixture again. On a table dusted with flour, roll out other dough pieces. Each of them is pinched at the edge and closed with filling.

Put the filling on the dough

1. When all the layers have been collected, roll out the second large piece.

Roll out the second large piece of dough

1. He closes the dish, and the edges of the future dessert are pinched. The workpiece needs about 10 minutes for it to fit.

Cooking delicious Baku baklava

1. The baklava is cut into diamonds right in the form. A piece of walnut is placed in the center of each. In the meantime, you need to heat the oven to 210 degrees.

Add walnuts to baklava

1. Beat the yolk in a separate bowl.

Beat the egg yolk

1. Grease the dish with egg and place in the oven.

Brush the dish with egg and bake in the oven

1. Melt the butter, and 12 minutes after the start of baking, brush the dessert with it. We put it back in the oven. For the first 5 minutes we keep the heat at maximum, and then reduce it to 180 degrees. We keep the sweetness in this mode for another 15-25 minutes.

Brush the treat with melted butter and bake again

1. We drown the honey and grease the hot dessert with it directly in the mold. Pour honey into the cut line. Then put the sweetness in the hot oven for another 3 minutes.

Delicious Baku baklava is ready

1. All that remains is to take out the dessert and cool it a little.

Turkish baklava

Turkish baklava is a recipe that showcases an original and unconventional look. A sweet rolled into a roll is simple, convenient, and delicious. The technique invented by Turkish housewives not only simplifies cooking, but also allows you to stock up on delicacies for a long time; when served this way, the dish remains fresh and juicy for several days.

Ingredients:

• flour - 500 g;
• milk - 200 ml;
• butter - 150 g;
• egg - 1 pc.;
• nuts - 300 g;
• powdered sugar - 300 g;
• cinnamon - 1/2 teaspoon;
• sugar - 180 g;
• water - 200 ml;
• yolk - 1 pc.

Preparation

1. Knead the first four ingredients for about 10 minutes.
2. Prepare the sweet syrup for the baklava by boiling the sweetener until thick.
3. Divide the base and roll it out.
4. Mix the filling from chopped nuts and powder, spread into layers and roll into rolls, brushing with yolk.
5. Bake for an hour at 160, then pour in the sweet mixture.

How to cook Baku Baklava

So, the dough: heat the milk and pour dry yeast into it, add a tablespoon of flour and sugar, mix. Now we add a beaten egg, 100 grams of melted butter to this mixture and begin to gradually add flour. We need to knead a fairly stiff, elastic dough. Then we cover it with a napkin and put it in a warm place for half an hour. After the time has passed, we divide the dough into 2 parts (into 2 baking dishes), we divide one part into 2 large balls and 10 small ones.

Now for the filling, for this we chop the nuts and mix them with sugar, nutmeg and cardamom. Next, we take one of the large balls, roll it into a thin layer, then line it with a mold greased with melted butter, we should have dough sides. Pour the filling on top (3-4 tablespoons), then we should roll out one of the small dough balls and place it on top of the filling.

Then comes the filling again, another layer of dough, and so on until all the small balls of dough are gone. At the end, we roll out the second large ball and cover all the previous layers with it, pressing on all sides. Now carefully cut the baklava into diamonds and decorate each diamond with a nut.

Mix saffron and egg yolks pre-soaked in boiling water and brush the surface of the baklava with the mixture. We do the same with the second half of our test. Next, place the molds in an oven preheated to 180 degrees for 15 minutes.

After 15 minutes, take out the baklava and pour a glass of melted butter over it, then put it back in the oven for 25-30 minutes.

While the baklava is preparing, we melt the honey in a saucepan. After the time has passed, take out the baklava and fill it with honey, put it in the oven for another 5 minutes. When the baklava is ready, take it out and wait until it cools a little. Now you can eat. Enjoy your meal!

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Traditions - old and new

During the engagement, the amount of baklava that is brought to the bride’s house increases significantly: from 101, depending on the financial capabilities of a particular family. It is unlikely that anyone will say exactly what this particular amount of baklava is connected with, but tradition is tradition and they try to adhere to it.

As for the origin of the word “baklava” itself, according to the general director of the National Culinary Center Tahir Amiraslanov, it may also be associated with the word “okhlov”, which in Azerbaijan is used to call a special rolling pin used for rolling out thin dough. This is the main tool for making baklava. The Turks, for whom baklava is also the main sweet, call such a rolling pin “okhlova.”

Baku Baklava recipe

Prepare a dough from a small amount of warm milk, flour and yeast. Place in a warm place to rise. Melt the butter, add the remaining milk, cool to room temperature. Take 0.5 kg of flour, make a well, pour in the dough, then the butter mixture, start kneading the dough, gradually adding flour. Be careful with the flour, don’t overdo it. The dough should be soft and not stick to your hands. put the dough aside for 1-1.5 hours in a warm place. Actually, according to the rules, the recipe also contains an egg, but two years ago, when we had a high probability of contracting chicken flu, we made it without eggs. We liked it and have been making it without eggs ever since. We prepare the filling in advance. Roast (dry) nuts and peel. Once fried, they are very easy to clean. As I already indicated in the recipe, you can use any nuts, not just walnuts. You can mix walnuts and hazelnuts in a 1:1 ratio. This is not for everyone. After the nuts have been roasted and peeled, they must be ground, but not very finely. Mix with granulated sugar, add cardamom. There shouldn't be too much cardamom for flavor. Divide the dough into 12-15 balls. Grease a large cast iron skillet (you can bake on a baking sheet, but I prefer a cast iron skillet). Roll out the dough one at a time thinly. The first layer should be slightly thicker than the rest. Carefully place in the pan, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with filling. And so on, roll out and lay out layers one by one. Grease each one with butter and sprinkle with filling.

The last layer should also be a little thicker. Use it to carefully cover the baklava so that nothing spills out around the edges. Then use a knife to cut the baklava into equal diamond shapes (sometimes I even measure with a ruler). Press half a walnut into the middle of each baklava. Then brush with beaten egg yolk and place in a preheated oven at 200. After 10-15 minutes, the edges of the cuts will rise a little and move apart. Take out the baklava, cut the baklava again and pour it with pre-melted butter (several spoons). And take it out again about 10 minutes before it’s ready and pour in the syrup (dissolve 1 cup of sugar in 1 cup of water).

After the baklava is ready, cool it in the same frying pan and remove it. If you can get it whole, good. And if not, then it’s okay - cut it right in the pan. That's exactly what I did.

Baklava as a national brand

Baklava has been prepared in Azerbaijan since time immemorial. It is mentioned in the works of the great Azerbaijani poet and thinker Nizami Ganjavi, who lived and worked in the 12th century. At first, baklava was baked only on the eve of Novruz, the holiday of the spring equinox, and had more of a ritual significance. This tradition has been preserved today - not a single Nowruz feast can be imagined without baklava, which, according to one version, symbolizes a star, and according to another, a tongue of flame. Nowadays, baklava is prepared at any time of the year - on other holidays, for family celebrations.

Over the years, new traditions associated with this sweet have appeared. For example, when going to matchmaking, elders from the groom’s family must take 21 baklavas to the house of his chosen one (along with another traditional delicacy - shekerbura, which is a pie stuffed with nuts, granulated sugar, spices and decorated with ornaments using special tweezers - makkash).

Features of Azerbaijani baklava

Azerbaijani cuisine is known all over the world for its delicious sweets, but perhaps baklava enjoys the greatest popularity and well-deserved love. This honey-nut pastry is very often prepared for Novruz (spring equinox, a symbol of nature’s renewal), and for wedding celebrations. However, a holiday is not a necessary reason to enjoy a fragrant culinary masterpiece.

There are a great many recipes for making baklava in Azerbaijani style. Many people are familiar with the Baku (which is what we will talk about next) and Ganja (made over charcoal) varieties of oriental sweets. It is also popular, but only very experienced housewives would risk cooking it.

But all these types of Azerbaijani delicacies have similar features: multi-layered, nut-sugar filling, honey sauce and deep oiling. It is these components that distinguish oriental baklava - a delight for adults and children.

However, it should be understood that Azerbaijani baklava is a high-calorie delicacy. Therefore, it is not suitable for daily or even weekly use. But for any holiday or celebration it is quite possible to pamper yourself and your household.

Baklava without yeast recipe

Baking it is not that difficult. Especially if you use this adapted recipe. It does not contain the subtle delights that are inherent in the historical classic recipe, but at the same time, all the taste features of this unusual and unusual sweet pastry for Russia are preserved. Be sure to try it and add it to your culinary treasure chest!

Azerbaijani baklava recipe, Baku baklava without yeast

Flour - 4 cups Eggs - 4 pieces Fat sour cream - 350 grams Butter - 300 grams Sugar - 2.5 cups Honey - 2 tablespoons Soda - 1 teaspoon Walnuts or almonds or hazelnuts, peeled and ground (not into fine flour, so that small pieces remain) - 2 cups Nuts for decoration - a little

Preparation

Baku baklava from the Aliyevs

Azerbaijani baklava recipe

To prepare this oriental sweet at home, you must strictly follow the recipe. In this case, the entire sequence of actions can be divided into two parts: preparation of the main elements of the dish and its “assembly”.

First of all, prepare a saffron infusion for lubrication. To do this, pour boiling water over the aromatic powder, cover with a saucer and let it brew. Then they move on to the dough. Yeast is diluted in 120 ml of warm milk, sugar and a small amount of flour are poured into the same container. After mixing, leave the bowl with the dough for half an hour until it triples in volume.

Then they move directly to the test. Melt the butter, pour in the remaining milk, cool slightly. Sifted flour (150 g) with salt is poured into a separate container, after which a “well” is made in the mixture, into which the yolk, dough and milk-butter mixture are poured. Knead the dough.

Slowly pour the remaining flour into the bowl, while monitoring the structure of the dough. It should be quite soft. If the mixture sticks to your palms, add some more flour. The container with the finished dough is covered with film and sent for a 60-minute “rest”.

Now you can move on to the filling. Walnut kernels are ground in a meat grinder (they are sometimes fried in a frying pan), granulated sugar and cardamom are added to them. The amount of seasoning is determined by taste, but the appropriate aroma must be present. In a separate bowl, melt the butter necessary to lubricate the layers.

Also, honey, granulated sugar and boiled water are mixed in a separate bowl. Send to low heat and, stirring occasionally, prepare honey syrup. We will need it for pouring almost finished sweets.

The recipe for making sweets does not end there. The rested dough is divided into 14 equal small balls. Four koloboks are connected in pairs to make 10 small and 2 large balls. The latter will be needed to start and finish the dish.

Assembling the baklava begins by rolling out one of the large balls. It is placed on an oiled pan, and the edges can be left hanging outside the pan. A small amount of nut-sugar filling is distributed on top.

Then they roll out a small ball very thin and place it on top of the layer. Coat with melted butter and sprinkle with filling. Repeat this step with all the small koloboks, trying to ensure that there is enough nut-sugar mixture and butter for all layers.

The last layer is not rolled out very thin so that it does not burst during baking, but forms a fairly dense crust. Cover the baklava with it and bend the edges inward to form a solid piece. Afterwards the sweetness is cut into small rhombuses.

The yolk is mixed with saffron water and the entire top layer of baked goods is coated with this mixture. You need to put half a walnut on all the diamonds, after which melted butter is poured on top of the dish. The baking sheet is placed in the oven and baked for 20 minutes at 180 degrees.

As soon as the baked goods are browned, take them out and pour honey syrup over them, trying to get into each diamond along the contour. The baked goods are returned to the oven and left there for 10 minutes. Fragrant Azerbaijani-style baklava is ready!

https://youtube.com/watch?v=RdJ4xBgI4RQ%3Ffeature%3Doembed

Thus, Azerbaijani baklava requires attentiveness, concentration on the process and love for culinary “feats” from the hostess. However, having tried this sweetness once, you will probably want to enjoy the honey taste and spicy aroma of the East again.

Dec 21, 2017 Tatyana

Description of preparation:

Probably each of you has tried this delicious oriental sweet at least once in your life.
So, having tried it once, I was inspired by the idea of ​​​​cooking it myself. From one of my friends, a resident of Azerbaijan, I learned this recipe for making Baku baklava, and now I hasten to share it with you. At first glance, it may seem that everything here is incredibly difficult, but in fact it is not so, the main thing is to be patient. And if you are determined to please yourself and your loved ones with this delicacy, now I will tell you how to prepare Baku baklava. Purpose: For lunch / For afternoon tea / For a festive table / Festive lunch Main ingredient: Dough / Puff pastry Dish: Baking / Desserts / Baklava Geography of cuisine: Azerbaijani / Caucasian