Baklawa or baklava is a true delight, best enjoyed with coffee after a sumptuous mezze feast. My recipe for chocolate baklawa makes a lusciously nutty, sticky but not overly sweet pastry. The chocolate actually enhances the traditional taste and texture and counteracts the sweetness of the syrup.
What Is Baklawa?
Baklawa is very similar to baklava. It’s the Arabian version. It’s a sweet filo (phyllo) pastry and nut concoction soaked in a rose and lemon syrup. I was introduced to it in Egypt and of course fell in love.
The nuts and pastry are layered up and baked. Once baked, they’re covered in syrup and when cold, cut into neat diamond shapes.
As good as the baklawa was in Egypt though, I have it on good authority that Lebanese baklawa is the best. Indeed, it’s the best I’ve ever tasted.
What’s The Difference Between Baklawa and Baklava?
Baklawa is the Middle Eastern version of the better known Turkish and Greek baklava. They are very similar and both are made with filo (phyllo) pastry, nuts, sugar and spices.
Nevertheless, there are some difference between the two. This is mostly in the syrup flavourings.
- Baklawa – flavoured with cardamom, orange blossom or rose and lemon
- Baklava – flavoured with cinnamon, cloves and honey
Arabic does not have the letter V in its alphabet, so this is the main reason Arabic speaking countries call it baklawa and not baclava. Turkish, on the other hand, does not have the letter W.
Where Does Baklawa Come From?
The exact origin of baklawa is rather lost in the mists of time. Some say it came from the Persian Empire and others from the Ottoman Empire. Either way, it’s ubiquitous across the Middle East, Turkey and the Balkans.
Chocolate Baklawa
This chocolate baklawa recipe came about when we had some friends over for a curry night. I wanted to make something authentic for pudding. But how to get the chocolate bit in? This was back in the days of Chocolate Log Blog.
Kulfi is the only Indian desert I know. But chocolate kulfi? No, it just didn’t seem right. So, I cheated a bit and made mango kulfi for pudding and then a middle eastern baklava to have with coffee and lemon balm tea after dinner.
I’ve made baklawa a few times, but never with chocolate. I was, therefore, slightly concerned at how this would turn out. I needn’t have worried. The chocolate actually enhances the filling’s taste and texture. It also counteracts the sweetness of the syrup to make a lusciously nutty, sticky but not overly sweet pastry that everyone enjoyed.
Chocolate Baklawa: Top Tips
Baklawa is actually quite easy to make, if a bit on the fiddly side. It’s well worth the effort for a special occasion though.
Filo Pastry
If you’re using frozen filo pastry, ensure you remove it from the freezer the day prior to making your baklawa. Just place it in the fridge overnight to defrost.
It’s actually really easy to buy chilled filo these days. But I do wish they made the pastry sheets the same size as my tin. Life would be a lot easier.
Butter
You need butter to brush the filo pastry sheets in between layers. Ghee, or clarified butter is the ideal butter to use with filo pastry. However, I just melt unsalted butter very gently and it seems to work fine.
Nuts
Traditionally, baklava from Greece and other balkan countries is made with walnuts. In Turkey and the Middle East, almonds and pistachios are preferred. As you can see from the recipe below, I used a mix of all three.
You’re looking for pieces of nuts to bite into and chew on in good baklava and baklawa. You’re also going to dry fry them, so the pieces need to be big enough to withstand this. Pulse the nuts carefully in a food processor. Alternatively, to be on the safe side, you might want to chop the nuts by hand. I usually do.
The first time I made this syrupy bake, I foolishly used a coffee grinder and ended up with dust rather than rubble. If you’re too enthusiastic you’ll have ground nuts, when what you really want are bits.
Chocolate
Use the best chocolate you can afford. Dark chocolate works well as it helps to alleviate the sweetness of the baklawa. Milk or white chocolate is too sickly for this bake.
Cutting And Shaping
To shape the chocolate baklawa, you need to cut the pastry before it goes into the oven. Diamonds are the traditional shape, though you’ll see in my photos that I didn’t manage it on this occasion.
In order to create diamond-shaped baklawa, use a sharp knife and slice the baklava carefully into four even strips lengthwise. Once you’ve done this, slice diagonally across. You’ll end up with some very small pieces, but these are called cook’s perks in our household.
Crispy Pastry
For gorgeous crisp chocolate baklawa pastries, you need to make the syrup first. Let it go cold and then pour it over the hot pastry as soon as it’s out of the oven. This keeps the pastry nice and crisp, as opposed to soggy.
Other Middle Eastern Desserts You Might Like
- Basbousa: semolina cake
- Coffee, cardamom, chocolate mousse cake
- Maamoul: date & walnut stuffed cookies
- Pistachio biscuits (cookies) with fragrant rose and almonds
- Pistachio & orange blossom cake
- Sesame halva biscuits (cookies)
Keep in Touch
Thanks for visiting Tin and Thyme. If you make this gorgeous chocolate baklava pastry I’d love to hear about it in the comments below. And do please rate the recipe. Have you any top tips? Do share photos on social media too and use the hashtag #tinandthyme, so I can spot them.
For more delicious and nutritious recipes follow me on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram or Pinterest. And don’t forget to SUBSCRIBE to my weekly newsletter. Or why not join the conversation in our Healthy Vegetarian Whole Food Recipes Facebook Group?
If you’d like more pastry recipes, follow the link and you’ll find I have quite a lot of them. All delicious and nutritious, of course.
Choclette x
Chocolate Baklawa. PIN IT.
Chocolate Baklawa – The Recipe
Chocolate Baklawa
Ingredients
Syrup
- 300 g granulated sugar
- 200 ml water
- 6 cardamom pods lightly crushed
- 1 tbsp rose water
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
Pastry
- 400 g filo (phyllo) pastry sheets
- 100 g almonds
- 100 g walnuts
- 100 g pistachios
- 100 g dark chocolate
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tbsp syrup
- 175 g unsalted butter
Instructions
Syrup
- Heat the sugar with the water in a medium sized pan over a medium heat. Give it an occasional stir until the sugar dissolved.300 g granulated sugar, 200 ml water
- Add the cardamon pods and bring the syrup up to the boil. Turn the heat down and simmer with the lid off for 15 minutes until slightly thickened.6 cardamom pods
- Leave to cool then add the rose water and lemon juice. Give it a good stir.1 tbsp rose water, 2 tbsp lemon juice
Pastry
- Meanwhile, chop the nuts into small pieces. You can use a food processor to pulse the nuts, but be careful not to grind them.100 g almonds, 100 g walnuts, 100 g pistachios
- Dry fry them for about 5 minutes. Stir occasionally and be careful not to scorch them, then leave to cool.
- Chop the chocolate into small pieces.100 g dark chocolate
- Mix the nuts, chocolate, cinnamon and one tbsp of the syrup together in a bowl.1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tbsp syrup
- Melt the butter in a small pan over a low heat.175 g unsalted butter
- Butter a 20cm (8″) sq cake tin then cover the tin with two overlapping sheets of filo and brush with melted butter.400 g filo (phyllo) pastry sheets
- Repeat this another 5 times, then spread half the nut mixture over the pastry.
- Fold in any overhanging bits of pastry.
- Cover the nut mixture with another 6 layers of pastry brushed with butter then spread on the remaining nut mixture. Fold in any overhanging bits.
- Place the remaining nut mixture on top and spread out evenly. Top with another 6 layers of pastry brushed with butter. Fold in any overhanging bits and give it all a final buttering. Pour any remaining butter over the top.
- Using a sharp knife, cut the baklawa into about 18 small diamond shaped pieces. Cut right through to the bottom.
- Bake at 180℃ (160℃ fan, 350℉, Gas 4) for twenty minutes. Turn the oven down to 160℃ (140℃ fan,320℉, Gas 3) and bake for a further twenty minutes or until the top is crisp and golden.
- Remove the cardamom pods from the cold syrup and pour it over the top as soon as you remove the bake from the oven. This helps to keep the pastry crisp.
- Leave the pastry to cool down and the syrup to soak in.
Tavo says
great recipe! Nothing like great baklava, and this one was great! Thanks for the recipe.
Choclette says
Thanks for letting me know. So pleased you enjoyed it. Chocolate adds an extra dimension.