4 cups chopped nuts (pistachios, pecans or walnuts)
¼ cup + ⅓ cup sugar, divided
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
14 sheets (12 ounces) phyllo dough, thawed if frozen
2 sticks unsalted butter, melted and cooled
½ cup water
1 cup honey
1 teaspoon lemon juice
Instructions
In a medium bowl, stir together the chopped nuts, ¼ cup of the sugar and the cinnamon. Set aside. Grease the bottom of a 13-by-9-inch baking pan. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Keep the phyllo sheets covered with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Place a phyllo sheet in the bottom of the baking pan and brush with butter. Repeat the process until you have 7 sheets of phyllo in the pan. Top with the nut mixture, evenly distributing across the phyllo. Repeat the process of topping with phyllo, making sure you cover the top completely.
Using a knife, cut the baklava lengthwise into 4 strips with each strip being a bit less than a couple of inches. Make diagonal cuts to divide the baklava into diamond shapes. You will have odd pieces at the edges. Drizzle any remaining butter over the top.
Place the pan in the middle of the oven and immediately reduce the oven temperature to 325 degrees. Bake about 1 hour or until golden in color.
Meanwhile, place the remaining sugar, water, honey and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Stir to dissolve the sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook, stirring, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
As soon as the baklava comes out of the oven, evenly pour the warm syrup over the pastries. Place on a wire rack then cover and allow to stand at room temperature for 12 hours. Store at room temperature and enjoy within 5 days.
Recipe by The Tennessee Magazine at https://www.tnmagazine.org/shell-game/