Pie and Pastry Bible (103 page)

To brush fillo with melted butter, start around the edges, where it will dry out the most quickly, and then dapple it lightly all over.

If a fillo sheet tears, patch it by brushing it with a little of the butter and overlapping the tear with a small piece of dough.

To cut fillo, use a ruler and a sharp knife.

After assembling a fillo pastry, brush it with butter to prevent it from drying.

Filled fillo pastries can be assembled 1 day ahead and refrigerated, or frozen for longer storage.

To store filled fillo refrigerated, cover it loosely with foil. To freeze it, place the pastries on baking sheets and freeze until frozen hard. Then transfer them to a freezer-weight storage bag or other container.

Bake filled fillo at 375°F., in the upper part of the oven, until golden but not brown. If frozen, bake without thawing, to prevent sogginess.

PISTACHIO BAKLAVA

I
s there anyone who hasn’t tasted this Greek sweet, available in every Greek diner throughout the country? For many of us, these crisp pastry diamonds layered with honeyed nuts were our first introduction to fillo.

Baklava prepared with walnuts, almonds, or a combination of the two is the most commonly available, but a pure pistachio version is my preference. Don’t compromise on the quality of the pistachio nuts. Use only fresh, bright green unsalted pistachio nuts.

OVEN TEMPERATURE: 300°F.• BAKING TIME: 30 MINUTES MAKES: THIRTY-EIGHT 2½-INCH DIAMONDS
INGREDIENTS	MEASURE	WEIGHT
	VOLUME	OUNCES	GRAMS
*If you cannot use the best-quality blanched pistachio nuts, such as the bright green Sicilian variety (see page 642b), it is preferable to use almonds or walnuts. Blanched sliced almonds or lightly toasted walnuts, skins removed (page 641), can be substituted.
unsalted butter, clarified (see page 629)	12 tablespoons (4.5 ounce)	6 ounces	200 grams
blanched pistachio nuts*	1½ generous cups	8 ounces	228 grams
sugar	¼ cup	1.75 ounces	50 grams
ground cinnamon	½ teaspoon	•	•
fillo, preferably fresh (see page 365)	12 sheets	8 ounces	227 grams
Syrup sugar	(1 cups) 1 cup	• 7 ounces	• 200 grams
water	½ liquid cup	4 ounces	118 grams
mild, light honey	6 tablespoons	4.5 ounces	128 grams
Lyle’s Golden Syrup (refiner’s syrup) or fight corn syrup	1 tablespoon	0.75 ounce	21 grams
freshly squeezed lemon juice	1 tablespoon	0.5 ounce	16 grams

EQUIPMENT

A quarter-size sheet pan (9 inches by 12 inches, measured at the top), buttered
^*

Preheat the oven to 300°F. at least 15 minutes before baking. Set an oven rack at the middle level before preheating.

If the clarified butter has solidified, heat it so that it is liquid, but allow it to cool to lukewarm or room temperature.

In a food processor with the metal blade, pulse the nuts until the largest pieces are no larger than small peas and the remainder are in fine pieces (or chop by hand). Reserve 1 tablespoon for decoration. Add the sugar and cinnamon and pulse 2 or 3 times to combine them well. Empty the mixture into a bowl.

With a pastry brush or feather, lightly coat the bottom of the sheet pan with some of the clarified butter.

Place the fillo between 2 sheets of plastic wrap, preferably Saran, and cover it with a damp dish towel. Keep it well covered, re-covering it each time you remove a sheet, to prevent it from drying. Remove 1 sheet and place it on the work surface. Brush it with about 1 teaspoon of clarified butter and fold it crosswise in half so that it fits into the pan. Quickly brush it with another 1 teaspoon of clarified butter, starting at the perimeter and then dabbing it in the center. Do not attempt to coat the entire sheet evenly, as too much butter will result in a greasy texture. Lay a total of 4 folded sheets in the pan, brushing each with about 2 teaspoons of butter.

Sprinkle half the nut mixture evenly over the fillo and add 2 more folded sheets of fillo, buttering it in the same manner as before. Sprinkle the remaining nut mixture over the fillo and then add 6 more folded sheets of fillo, buttering as before.

With a sharp knife, score a diamond pattern in the fillo, going through only the upper layer so that the baklava will hold together well while baking. (Start at one corner and make a cut all the way across to the opposite corner. Continue making parallel cuts 1
inches apart, 3 on either side of the first cut, for a total of 7 cuts. Then start at another corner and repeat.