JUDGE’S RECIPE

PAUL’S BAKLAVA

This baklava recipe uses a much quicker laminating technique for making flaky filo than the traditional roll and stretch method. There’s also no pastry wastage, as all the trimmings are sprinkled back into the layers as you go. The filling is a classic – aromatic rosewater and nuts.

Makes 48 pieces

For the filo pastry

500g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

2tsp baking powder

¼tsp salt

2 eggs

170g full-fat Greek yoghurt 90ml vegetable oil

50g unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing

1tbsp white wine vinegar 200g cornflour, for sprinkling

For the syrup

135g caster sugar

300g runny honey

1 large unwaxed lemon, sliced

1tbsp rosewater

For the filling

350g walnuts, finely chopped 350g pistachios, finely chopped

50g caster sugar

1tbsp ground cinnamon

1tbsp ground cardamom

To assemble

400g salted butter, melted

To decorate

75g pistachios, finely ground 2tsp edible dried rose petals

MAKE THE PASTRY Sift the flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl and make a well in the centre. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, yoghurt, vegetable oil, melted butter and vinegar together until smooth. Pour the egg mixture into the flour and bring everything together to form a dough. Tip out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth, then divide into six pieces. Shape each piece into a ball, then place on a plate or baking tray, cover with a clean tea towel and leave for 15 minutes.

MAKE THE SYRUP While the dough is resting, place the sugar, honey and lemon slices in a pan with 200ml water. Bring to the boil over a medium heat, stirring, until the sugar has dissolved. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat, pour into a heatproof jug, stir in the rosewater and leave to cool.

ROLL OUT THE PASTRY Lightly dust the work surface with cornflour. Roll out one of the balls of dough to a circle about 30cm in diameter. Dust the top with cornflour, then fold the right-hand edge to the centre and the left-hand edge to the centre, so that they meet.

Dust again with cornflour, then fold the top down to the centre and the bottom up to the centre, to give a rough square. Dust again with cornflour, then fold each corner inwards so they meet in the middle to make a smaller square.

Dust again with cornflour, then fold the corners into the middle again to give an even smaller square. Turn the dough over (so the joins are underneath), cover with a clean tea towel and leave it to rest for 15 minutes. Repeat with the remaining five balls of dough until you have six small squares.

MAKE THE FILLING Mix the walnuts, pistachios, sugar, cinnamon and cardamom together in a bowl.

ASSEMBLE THE LAYERS Roll out one of the squares of dough to a rough 30cm-diameter circle. Using the sandwich tin as a guide, cut a neat 30cm circle, and place in the base of the tin. Lay any trimmings evenly on top. Repeat with a second square of dough, placing the pastry circle on top of the first circle and laying any trimmings on top. Repeat once more with another square of dough and trimmings. Spoon the nut mixture evenly on top of the three layers.

Repeat this layering process with the remaining squares of dough to make three more layers of filo, placing the trimmings from the top layer of filo underneath it, so the top of the baklava is flat, without any trimmings. Cut the baklava into a star design (as in the picture), slicing all the way through the layers to the base. Pour the melted butter over the top, then leave the baklava to stand for 10 minutes while the pastry absorbs the butter. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 170°C/fan 150°C/gas 3.

BAKE AND FINISH Bake the baklava for 1 hour, until the top is crisp and golden. Remove the baklava from the oven. Strain the cooled syrup through a sieve, then pour the syrup over the warm baklava. Leave it to soak in for 15 minutes before removing the baklava pieces from the tin. To decorate, sprinkle the ground pistachios over the baklava (in a pattern, if you wish), and finish with the rose petals.