Whenever someone mentions baklava, it would take me back to my two trips to Turkey. The bustling outlets of Hafiz Mustafa became a staple after dining place, almost every single day when I was on the trip there. Hafiz Mustafa is famous for producing delectable cakes, Turkish coffee and of course, baklava.
The traditional baklava is still a favorite of many. Layers of phyllo pastry slapped with a generous amount of ghee and pistachios, doused in a thick sugary syrup. The baklava has a unique texture, crispy yet still wet with the layer of sugary syrup. The variation of baklavas is amazing! Instead of pistachios, walnuts have been introduced. Instead of plain phyllo, some variations call for chocolate added to the phyllo.
The availability of phyllo pastry has certainly affirmed my decision in attempting to make my own variation of baklava. This has a modern twist, using leftover mini chocolate pieces in the fridge. It sorts of resemble a bird nest (phyllo) with a bird’s egg (chocolate cubes or pieces) in the middle.
This recipe is perfect for those with a not-so-sweet tooth as the lemon and orange peels lend a zesty flavor, slightly masking the sweetness of the sugar syrup.
Baklava Choco Bites
- Prep time: 20 minutes
- Cook time: 30 minutes
- Yields: 24 baklava cups
- Course: Dessert
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup water
- 1/4 cup melted ghee
- ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoon orange peel
- 1 pack phyllo sheets, thawed
- 20 – 24 mini chocolate pieces
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350*F
- In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, water, orange peel and squeeze of lemon juice and cook on high heat. Once it comes to a boil, reduce heat to low and allow to simmer for 5 minutes. When the syrup gets slightly thick, remove from heat, and set aside to cool completely.
- Unwrap the phyllo sheets. Cut the phyllo sheets into 2-inch squares. Place each square phyllo layers into mini muffin pans and make a well by pressing in the middle with your finger, so that a piece of chocolate can accommodate after baking.
- Brush the sides and center of the phyllo sheets with melted ghee.
- Pop the muffin pan into oven and bake for 20 minutes. Bake until the phyllo sheets turn golden brown and crisp. Remove from oven and immediately drizzle or brush the baked phyllo sheets with prepared sugar syrup.
- Now place each chocolate piece in the middle of each baklava. Let it melt in the heat of baklava, else pop the muffin pan again into over for 5 minutes until the chocolate just melts.
- Remove muffin pan from oven, top with nuts of your choice and serve.
