Phyllo Extravaganza!

Oh yes, oh yes!  Baklava, Kataifi, and then some.  I'm keeping the fabulous desserts of Greece and Turkey alive in America, right in my very own kitchen.  With the scents of honey, pistachio, and walnuts wafting from my oven (and a smorgasbord of leftovers across my countertops), I don't regret one second of the many hours it took to make this pastry feast.

I made a traditional Turkish pistachio baklava, Fistikli durum (a pistachio-paste pastry roll), a sesame-molasses roll, Tel Kadayif (a kataifi and walnut cake), and kataifi miniatures.  All the pastries ended up smothered in Kaymak, a traditional Turkish milk cream.  As far as the traditional baklava goes, I already gave you a recipe here, and I didn't make many changes, save for an addition of about 1 tbsp. rosewater to the syrup and a post-bake dusting of pistachios.  

 

For all the others, the recipes are about to follow.  (*Four* recipes are contained within this blog post.  I couldn't help myself.)

And what song could match up with the sugary saturation and sensory overload of this phyllo feast?  None other than the Beatles' "Savoy Truffle," a delicious White Album delight.   

Fistikli Durum:

The paste and pastry:

--2 c. roasted pistachios

--4 c. whole milk (although any would do)

--1/2 c. white sugar

--1 tbsp. cardamom

--1 tsp. cinnamon

--1 tsp. allspice

--1 package phyllo dough

--1 stick unsalted butter, melted

The syrup:

--1 c. water

--1 c. white sugar

--1 c. honey

Before beginning your phyllo work, de-thaw your packaged dough according to the instructions on the box (typically, you'll need to plan a day ahead).  For instructions on working with the phyllo, see my previous Baklava post.

For this specific recipe, you'll need to plan at least two days ahead . . . .

In a large bowl, soak the pistachios in the whole milk for 24-48 hours, or until the pistachios have soaked up all the milk (to the naked eye).  Strain the pistachios, and *save* the remaining milk (you're going to use it for your Kaymak!)  In a food processor, combine soaked pistachios, sugar, and spices.  Pulse until a paste has formed.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Spoon the paste into a row, length-wise, on one piece of phyllo.  Brush melted butter on the rest of the dough surface.

Carefully roll the dough and place in buttered 18" buttered jelly roll pan (in Athens and Istanbul, you'll see these large trays in bakeries, beautifully filled with baklava and other phyllo pastries).  Continue to make these rolls until you've filled the cake pan.  Then slice the rolls so that you have individual pieces (if you don't slice (or "score") the phyllo before you put it in the oven, you will not be able to cut it afterward.

Bake for approximately 25 minutes or until just golden-colored on top.  Remove and allow to cool for a few minutes.

In a saucepan, make your syrup.  Heat the water, sugar, and honey until the sugar has dissolved.  Pour over your pistachio rolls, and allow them to sit for at least 8 hours.

Sesame-Molasses Roll:

The filling and pastry:

--1 c. walnuts

--1/4 c. tahini

--1/4 c. pomegranate molasses (this is a specialty item you'll have to look for at Middle Eastern groceries or buy through special order, but in a pinch, you could also make this yourself by blending molasses and pomegranate juice, 3 parts molasses to 1 part pomegranate juice)

--1 tbsp. cinnamon

--1 tbsp. orange zest

--1/2 c. white sugar

--2 packages phyllo dough

--dash of black sesame seeds

--dash of white sesame seeds (both my black and white sesame seeds came straight from the Spice Bazaar in Istanbul)

--1 c. unsalted butter, melted

The syrup:

--1 c. water

--1 c. white sugar

--1/2 c. honey

--2 tbsp. orange blossom water (the taste of orange--both in the orange zest above and the orange blossom water here--nicely complements the sesame flavor)

In a food processor, pulse the walnuts, tahini, pomegranate molasses, cinnamon, sugar, and orange zest until you've got a thick-ish paste that has the consistency of a tootsie roll(!)  Lay out the phyllo dough, and roll out a very long and thin strip of your paste--it should have an approximately 1/8" diameter or smaller.  Place it horizontally on the phyllo dough, and brush butter on the remaining dough sheet.  Now roll up the phyllo dough so that the paste is at the center.  Next, brush another sheet of phyllo with butter, and roll your already-rolled piece (with the paste at the center) again.  Repeat 8 times per roll (this will give you a lot of pastry dough around the center paste).  

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Place the finished roll in a buttered 13"x 9" cake pan.  Repeat steps until the pan is filled with rolls.  Cut/score the rolls so that you have individual pieces (again, you'll need to do this *before* baking).  Bake for approx. 25 minutes, or until phyllo is slightly golden-colored on top.  Remove from oven an allow to cool for 10-15 minutes.

While the pastries are cooling, make the syrup.  Combine all syrup ingredients in a small saucepan and heat over medium heat until the sugar has completely dissolved.  Pour over pastry rolls and allow to sit for at least 8 hours.  Sprinkle with black and white sesame seeds.

Tel Kataifi:

The cake:

--1 package kataifi pastry dough (as with traditional phyllo sheets, you'll need to de-thaw this in advance)

--1/2 c. walnuts

--1/2 c. pistachios

--1 tsp. cinnamon

--1 tsp. cardamom

--1 tsp. allspice

--1 tsp. cloves

--1/2 c. brown sugar

--1 stick unsalted butter, melted

The syrup:

--1 c. water

--1 c. white sugar

--1 c. honey

--1 tsp. rosewater

--1 tsp. orange blossom water

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

First, divide your kataifi dough into thirds (this is a bit hard to work with, and it's constantly breaking and drying out).  It will come in a very long bunch that has been folded into thirds or fourths.  Unfold the dough (it will look like a large bunch of uncooked vermicelli pasta), and using kitchen shears, cut it into three chunks.  Cover with a damp cloth so that it doesn't dry out.  

In a food processor, combine the walnuts, pistachios, cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, cloves, and brown sugar until all ingredients are combined and the nuts are chopped (but not powdered).  Divide the mixture into thirds.  In a buttered 13" x 9" baking dish, spread 1/3 of the nut mixture on the bottom of the pan.  Take the first chunk of kataifi, untangle it, and spread in bunches over the top of the nut mixture.  (The kataifi does *not* have to be in any neat form--just place it evenly, in knots and small bundles, across the top of the mixture.)  Brush butter onto the top of the kataifi, add another layer of the nut mixture, and then repeat once more so that you have three layers of the nut mixture and the kataifi (ending with the kataifi on top).  

Brush butter onto the top kataifi layer and bake for 25-30 minutes.  Don't let the kataifi burn--as soon as it begins to take on a slightly golden color, remove from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes.  While it's cooling, make the syrup.

In a small saucepan, heat the water, honey, sugar, rosewater, and orange blossom water until the sugar has dissolved.  Pour evenly over the layered kataifi "cake" and allow to sit for at least 8 hours.

And if you're up for a challenge, you can use the kataifi and walnut mixture to make kataifi minis!  (Roll the kataifi into little nests, place them in mini cupcake papers, fill with walnut mixture, and bake for 15 minutes.  Remove from mini cupcake papers, place in baking dish, and pour syrup over and allow to sit for 6-8 hours.)

Now, what plate of baklava is complete without a thick cream sauce?  My "Cremaster" boyfriend monitored the Kaymak as it cooked for eight hours, but it didn't drive him to scale any walls (yes, I'm making a Matthew Barney pun).

Kaymak (Turkish milk cream), adapted from Binnur's Turkish Cookbook: 

*Note: you need a lot of lead time for this recipe

--2 cups pistachio milk (this is the leftover milk from the pistachios you soaked for the Fistikli Durum, plus the addition of any whole milk needed to bring the measurement up to 2 cups)

--2 cups heavy whipping cream

Whisk the milk and cream together in a Pyrex bowl.  Next, heat approx. 2 cups of water in a small saucepan, with the Pyrex bowl sitting on top (creating a double boiler).  Once the water (and the cream mixture, sitting on top) has come to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and allow the cream mixture to simmer for eight hours.  Yes, this is such a long time, but it's worth it!  Whisk the mixture every 15 minutes or so, and once eight hours have passed, remove from heat, allow to cool.  Then cover the cream mixture (still in the Pyrex bowl, but now thickened from cooking) with plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator overnight.

Once the mixture has been in the refrigerator for approximately 8-10 hours, a thick mound should have formed in the middle of the bowl, cut it/spoon it onto the top of prepared baklava.  

[If you don't have time to make Kaymak, a regular vanilla ice cream goes very nicely on top, too!] 

Baklava and other phyllo pastries do not need refrigeration, and they last for quite awhile (at least a week or two!).  Delicious desserts for days, and days, and days!