This Baklava is flaky, crisp, and tender, and easier to make than you think. I share my authentic Greek Baklava Recipe below with step-by-step directions that are easy to follow. Make this dessert and be prepared for oo’s and ahh’s, because this is the BEST baklava recipe I have ever tried.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
Helpful Reader Review
“Love this recipe. I am Greek, but my baklava never turned out this good. I made your recipe for my husband’s family reunion. They were so impressed by how delicious it was. They said the syrup wasn’t too sweet like other baklava recipes and it’s the best they ever tasted.” – Tina ★★★★★
Baklava Video
Baklava can be a little tedious to make, but it’s truly simpler than you think. Watch my video, and you’ll be confidently buttering layers in no time! If you want a sneaky shortcut version, try my Baklava Cups.
Best Baklava Recipe
Store-bought baklava has nothing on this, and trust me, I’ve been around the block when shopping for baklava. This baklava recipe is well-loved wherever it goes, and with so many 5-star reviews, it is definitely a reader and family favorite! It’s also make-ahead and freezer-friendly, which is perfect for holiday baking.
My baklava recipe comes out beautifully flaky, buttery, and crisp. The flavor is incredible, since this one is not too sweet. You will love the hint of mellow lemony flavor, which offsets the sweetness and complements the cinnamon. It also keeps well for over a week on the counter, making it a great option to make ahead.
Baklava Ingredients
While this recipe is a Classic Greek Baklava, other varieties, such as Lebanese and Turkish recipes, swap the walnuts for pistachios and include rose water. My Baklava recipe calls for simple ingredients, most of which you can find in your pantry.
- Phyllo (fillo) dough – one 16oz package should have about 40 total paper-thin sheets. Do not use the thick sheets of fillo dough for this recipe. They are sold in the freezer section of the grocery store. Thaw according to the package instructions.
- Unsalted Butter – don’t skimp here! This keeps the fillo dough from peeling away.
- Walnuts – finely chop. You can swap them for almonds, pistachios, or a mix of nuts.
- Cinnamon – adds a great hint of flavor that’s traditional for Baklava
- Syrup ingredients – sugar, lemon juice, water, and honey
- Garnish – drizzle with melted chocolate or Chocolate Ganache, and chopped walnuts
How To Make Baklava
While it takes time to brush each layer, the result is worth every moment! Don’t skim on the butter, and you will be rewarded.
- Thaw phyllo dough in the refrigerator per the package instructions, then place it covered on the counter for 1 hour to bring to room temperature.
- Trim the phyllo dough to fit your 9×13 pan, covering it with a damp (not wet) towel to keep from drying out.
- Grease – use butter to coat the sides and bottom of a 13×9 non-stick baking pan. You can line it with parchment paper so you don’t damage it with your knife when slicing later.
- Make the honey syrup – heat the syrup ingredients in a medium saucepan while stirring until it boils, and then reduce the heat to medium-low and allow to cook for 4 more minutes without stirring. Set aside to cool.
- Chop Walnuts – pulse walnuts in a food processor until finely chopped, and then mix with cinnamon.
How to Assemble the Baklava
- 10 Layers – Preheat oven to 325°F. Start layering the phyllo dough, brushing each sheet with butter as you place it in the pan. Repeat this until you’ve added 10 layers. Then sprinkle 3/4 cup of walnuts over the top.
- 5 Layers – add 5 more sheets, buttering between each one, and then another layer of walnuts. Repeat this 3 more times. Finally, add 10 more layers of buttered dough on top.
- Cut the dessert into strips using a sharp knife, and then cut across to make diamonds. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes.
- Add syrup – spoon cooled syrup over the Baklava right after removing it from the oven. It should sizzle. Leave it uncovered on the counter to cool completely (4 hours or overnight). Then store covered with a tea towel for up to a week.
Tips for Making the Best Baklava
Follow these simple tips to make homemade baklava easy.
- Use a 13×9 pan with straight corners that fits the pastry to the edges. Avoid pans with angled corners that fan out, as they can cause the syrup to pool at the edges and make the top of the baklava dry. If you choose a larger pan, increase the syrup amount by 25% so you don’t run out. You can also cut the recipe in half using an 8×8 pan.
- Don’t skimp on the butter, especially on the top layers, since that can cause them to flake off. You can melt a few more tablespoons if you run out.
- Sizzle – the sound you’ll hear when you spoon the syrup over the hot pastry. This keeps it from getting soggy.
My Baklava recipe has so many layers of irresistible textures and flavors! The crispy layers of dough are perfectly complemented by the honey syrup and crunchy nuts. I hope it becomes your new favorite dessert.
Baklava Recipe
Ingredients
- 16 oz phyllo dough, thawed by package instructions
- 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter, 10 oz or 2 1/2 sticks, melted
- 1 lb walnuts, finely chopped, about 4 1/4 cups unprocessed
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice, juice of 1/2 lemon
- 3/4 cup water
- 1/2 cup honey
- Melted chocolate chips & chopped walnuts for garnish, optional
Instructions
Preparation
- Thaw phyllo dough by package instructions (this is best done overnight in the fridge, then place it on the counter for 1 hr before starting your recipe to bring it to room temperature).
- Trim phyllo dough to fit your baking dish. My phyllo package had 2 rolls with a total of 40 sheets that measured 9×14, so I had to trim them slightly. You can trim one stack at a time, then cover with a damp towel to keep from drying out.
- Grease – Butter the bottom and sides of a 13×9 non-stick baking pan. Line the bottom with parchment if desired to protect the pan when cutting later.
- Make the honey syrup – In a medium saucepan, combine 1 cup sugar, 1/2 cup honey, 2 Tbsp lemon juice, and 3/4 cup water. Bring to a boil over medium/high heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved, then reduce the heat to medium/low and boil an additional 4 min without stirring. Remove from heat and let the syrup cool while preparing baklava.
- Chop walnuts – Pulse walnuts 10 times in a food processor until coarsely ground/ finely chopped. In a medium bowl, stir together: 4 cups finely chopped walnuts and 1 tsp cinnamon.
Assemble the Baklava
- 10 layers – Preheat the oven to 325°F. Place 10 phyllo sheets into a baking pan one at a time, brushing each sheet with butter once it's in the pan before adding the next (i.e., place phyllo sheet into pan, brush the top with butter, place next phyllo sheet in pan, butter the top, etc.). Keep the remaining phyllo covered with a damp towel at all times. Spread about 1/5 of the nut mixture (about 3/4 cup) over the phyllo dough.
- 5 layers – Add 5 buttered sheets of phyllo, then another layer of nuts. Repeat four times with the remaining layers of fillo, butter and nuts. Finish off with 10 layers of buttered phyllo sheets. Brush the very top with butter.
- Cut pastry into 1 1/2" wide strips, then cut diagonally to form diamond shapes. Bake at 325˚F for 1 hour and 15 min or until tops are golden brown.
- Add syrup – Remove from oven and immediately spoon cooled syrup evenly over the hot baklava (you'll hear it sizzle). This will ensure that it stays crisp rather than soggy. Let baklava cool and rest uncovered at room temperature 4-6 hours or overnight for the syrup to penetrate and soften the layers. Garnish with chocolate and nuts if desired.
Notes
- 10 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
- 5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
- 5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
- 5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
- 5 buttered sheets, 3/4 cup nuts,
- 10 buttered sheets and butter the top.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
More Pastry Recipes
Homemade pastries always turn heads, so once you try this Baklava, don’t miss these other classic dessert recipes:
- Eclairs
- Croissants
- Cream Puffs
- Apple Turnovers
- Churros
- Fruit Tart
- Rugelach
- Palmiers
- Cheese Danish
- Apple Danish
- Apple Roses
Hello. Never had this before. Looks excellent. I love pecans, do you think that would work. Would love to know your thoughts. Thanks for sharing this beautiful recipe.
Yes, pecans would work just fine. You can even do a mix of nuts. 🙂
wonderful! Next time I make this recipe, and I will make it again, I will increase the amount of nuts to 1 cup of chopped walnuts for each layer and 3 sticks of melted butter.
I’m so glad you liked it 🙂
i made this for my son. With love. It was amazing. Thank you Natasha!
Thank you for the great review Anni and you are welcome :).
Thank you for sharing this recipe! I’ve made it a few times and it’s always a hit. Everyone loves how crisp and flakey it is. Some things I do a bit different…taste, taste, taste! I’ve found cinnamon varies greatly so don’t forget to taste the nut mixture before you use it in the baklava. I also add about 1/3 cup of organic cane sugar (has more molasses than white without being brown) to the walnuts, and I add a cinnamon stick and a whole lemon peel to the syrup while it boils. This enhances the lemon flavor and adds a hint of cinnamon to the syrup. Just make sure to strain before you use it! A++++ recipe.
Thank you so much for sharing your modifications with me Stephen! 🙂 I’m so happy you loved the recipe 🙂
Natasha thank you for looking the sustitushions for honey,i use 1/2 cup organic agave nectar.it worked very well.
Thanks for sharing that with me! I’m sure someone else might have the same question. It’s great to know it works well 🙂
Thanks for sharing that with me! I’m sure someone else might have the same question. It’s great to know it works well 🙂
Hi Love this, Can’t wait to make it.
Just wondering and I feel a little silly not being able to follow the math, but you say to cut the strips 1 1/2 inches wide. If the pan is 9 inches wide would that not be 6 strips, the picture has 4. Just asking cause Baklava is so rich, I’m not sure if I should make the pieces smaller (6 strips) or leave as four strips.
You’re right and your math does make sense :). It’s about 1 1/2″ wide, maybe closer to 1 3/4″. The pieces will be just the right size once you cut them on the diagonal. 🙂 I thought 4 strips was sufficient the long way and my pan was 9×13.
This is my first time making baklava. It took me 3 hours. its currently in the oven and I still have 20 minutes left. That’s the one thing that I don’t like because I know it will be gone much quicker than it took me to make it! I had a hard time with the phyllo dough right after the layer of nuts. I would put butter on then put the nuts on and then I would put the next sheet of phyllo dough on and this is where I had a hard time putting butter on that sheet because of the nuts underneath it, it would move around. Any suggestions? My house smells so good I can’t wait to try it!!
I agree that was probably the most difficult part of assembly because it does like to slide around. You just have to hold it down with your fingers as you brush over the top of it. That’s the best trick I’ve been able to come up with. I hope you absolutely love the baklava! I can only imagine how nice your house smells 🙂
Can’t wait to try this! I myself have never tried baklava. Can you substitute the phyllo dough with puff pastry dough?
Puff pastry would not work. I’ve only ever done it or seen it done with phyllo. Enjoy! It’s quite a treat 🙂
I made this recently to take to a luncheon at school. It was a huge hit and beautiful to look at! I ended up using 3 sticks of butter instead of 2 because I ran out of butter before I ran out of layers. Perhaps I was too heavy-handed with the first layers. Regardless, it was delicious!
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! Extra butter definitely wouldn’t hurt the baklava :).
привет Наташа!у моего мужа алергия на мед,чем его можна заменить в этом рецепте.заранее благодарю.
I have not tried any substitutions, but you could probably just do water with the sugar to make the syrup equally sweet. I did do a little research online and here are some common substitutions you can do but keep in mind that these are substitutions for one cup of honey so cut the ingredients and a half: 3/4 cup (180 ml) maple syrup plus 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar
OR
3/4 cup (180 ml) light or dark corn syrup plus 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar
OR
3/4 cup (180 ml) light molasses plus 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated white sugar
OR
1 1/4 cups (250 grams – 265 grams) granulated white or brown sugar plus 1/4 cup (60 ml) additional liquid in recipe plus 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
Have this in the oven now. I used pecans instead of walnuts. Smells so good! Thank you so much for the detailed recipe with photos.
Pecans would be amazing in the baklava! I hope you absolutely love it. 🙂
Hi there,
Hoping to make this tomorrow. I was wondering about cutting it while still in the pan. Wouldn’t that scratch the pan?
Thanks!
You can use a dull knife toward the bottom if you are using a non-stick pan. Also, if you’re really concerned, you can line the bottom with parchment paper to protect it while cutting.
This is really close to my Baklava recipe. Same ingredients just a little different on assembly but I imagine the results are the same.
This gets rave reviews everytime I make it. I am a whitebread american but have been told by those who know that this is authentic.
What do you do differently in assembly? Thanks Doyle! 🙂
Argh, was hoping the dough itself would have a recipe/directions as I was hoping to tweak it to GF.
No sorry, I’ve always just purchased it to keep the recipe simple. I do however like your toddler pillow! I had no idea that such a thing exists! Heading over to Amazon right now 🙂
Hi!
Do you end up using all of the honey sauce when you spoon it over the baklava? I made a recipe once that made too much honey sauce and my baklava was drowning in it!
Natasha, this is just the right amount for the recipe, just make sure to spoon the sauce while its still hot. I would love to hear how it turns out :).
This looks really good! I want to go make a batch right now.
I hope you LOVE it! 🙂
I’ve never seen such a gorgeous baklava! All those gorgeous layers, perfection!
Thanks so much Jaclyn :).
I made this and it was a huge success. My brother in law who is Turkish, ate three pieces and said it was really good. He should know as Baklava is a staple dessert in Turkey. Thanks Natasha.
Thank you for the great review Ina and you are so welcome. Have an awesome 2015! 😀
Hello Natasha,
Happy late Christmas! It’s always wonderful to come to your site for something new and different.By the way,I would like
to know if the dough you’re using if there’s a different brand that can be used? Also can the walnuts be replaced with something else? This looks yummmy!!
You can use a variety of nuts; almonds, pistachios, I’ve even seen people add bread crumbs, but I haven’t tried the bread crumbs myself. You can use various brands of phyllo a.k.a. fillo dough. This is just the one that was at my local Fred Meyer. You may have to trim it down differently depending on the size of the dough sheets and your baking dish. Happy late Christmas to you too! European Christmas is January 7th so technically, you’re still right on time 🙂
My husband is Turkish and I have been visiting Turkey every year for over 20 years…..and as you know the Turkish Ottomans were the inventors of Baklava. I’ve never seen baklava like the way you made it very interesting.They never do it in orders of the Phyllo dough and no honey just sugar and lemon and I’ve never seen chocolate before….but sometimes in a fancy restaurant maybe…but thanks for sharing your recipe and maybe I’ll try it this way and see if my Turkish husband likes it.
The honey and lemon add some really nice flavors to the baklava. I hope you both love it! 🙂 The chocolate is definitely something extra; but it was so easy to add it that I figured; why not! 🙂