Perfect dessert for your next party, a quick and easy fix for your baklava crave. Crunchy, buttery layers of phyllo dough stuffed with spiced nuts and drizzled with simple syrup. A fun party spin on a Mediterranean favorite recipe.
Check out this amazing classic baklava recipe.
I've made Baklava so many times in my life that I've lost count of. I've also made many baklava inspired recipes like the baked apples and granola.
Still baklava rolls or baklava cigars are the most wanted and enjoyed recipe by my family.
Baklava or Baklawa as we pronounce it in Arabic, is one of the easiest Middle eastern desserts. It comes in a variety of shapes and fillings. Rolls is one of the most common form and usually filled with nuts and drizzled with syrup or honey.
So let's start rolling
I've chosen to fill my baklava with pistachios, it is our favorite. Another favorite of mine is walnuts, I highly recommend roasting the nuts before grounding them specially walnuts, it brings up the flavor and makes a huge difference. So we'll grind about a cup of our favorite nuts.
Here comes the flavoring, cinnamon goes very well with walnuts. For pistachios I've decided to flavor it with orange blossom water, some people like to add rose water.
In my family we prefer orange blossom than rose water, and add 3 Tablespoons of simple syrup/honey or corn syrup whatever is easier for you. Mix those with the ground nuts until you get sort of a coarse, sticky paste.
Brush 2 sheets of phyllo with melted butter and spoon about 1 ½ Tablespoons of the nut mixture in a line.
Roll the sheets tightly and place in a baking pan. Repeat with the remaining sheets until you are done. Bake in a 325F oven until top is lightly golden. Will take 35-40 minutes.
Remove from oven and pour simple syrup over. Let it cool completely before serving.
Remove rolls from pan and cut into two or three equal parts depending on your favorite serving size. I've cut mine into 3 parts. My phyllo package made me 9 rolls, one is already missing from the photos up, guess where did it go? 🙂
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Baklava rolls
Ingredients
- 1 cup roasted unsalted pistachios meat.
- 1 -2 teaspoons orange blossom water*.
- 3 Tablespoons simple syrup.**
- ½ 1lb package of phyllo dough, about 18 sheets.
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
For the Syrup Ingredients:
- 1 cup sugar.
- ½ cup water.
- ½ teaspoon lime juice.
- ¼ cup honey.
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract.***
Instructions
Make the syrup:
- In a saucepan over medium heat, combine syrup ingredeints until it boils, reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes.
- Set aside to cool completely.
Make the filling:
- In your food processor, pulse the pistachios until finely ground. Add simple syrup and the orange blossom water to the pistachios and mix well until you get a sticky coarse paste.
Assemble the rolls:
- Preheat oven to 320F
- On a clean working surface, take two sheets of phyllo dough out, brush lightly with melted butter using pastry brush. Spoon about 1 ½ Tablespoons of the filling and form a log on the short side of the sheet and roll all the way through.
- Brush the finished roll with more butter and place in a baking sheet.
- Bake in oven until top is golden brown, about 40 minutes depending on your oven.
- Pour ½ to 1 cup of simple syrup over and let it cool completely, preferable overnight if you can.
- Take phyllo cigars out, cut into 2 or 4 equal parts.
- Serve and enjoy!.
Video
Notes
- Melt butter in increments of 10 seconds in the microwave and stirring in between. Be very cautious though and cover the container. Or you can melt on stove top.
- It is a good idea when working with phyllo dough to cover the rest of the sheets with damp towel while working.
- Adding orange blossom water is optional, you can add rose water or any other flavors as described in the post above. You can also leave it plain, it is totally your choice.
- You can also use honey or corn syrup instead.
- Adding vanilla extract is optional to flavor the syrup, you can also add a stick of cinnamon.
- Please check the nutrition disclaimer policy.
Nutrition
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mary
I love it rolls are so much better then the pan and easy to freeiz this is the first time I have seen this so happy to have it
Salam
Thank you for the recipe. One question, I don’t have pistachios, can I use walnuts instead? What to add with them?
Thank you
Salam
Sherri
I have one question. You suggest the sit over night when completed. How in the world do you keep he family out of them for hat long. My husband is already hovering around the kitchen wondering when they will be done. (wink).
Parisa
Thank you so much for sharing this amazing recipe with us for free, really helps build community
Amira
Thanks Parisa, glad you liked it.
shama
A wonderful recipe that went a little off for me. When I bit into it, it was flaky and crispy but felt a sip of sugary liquid along with the bite. 1st I thought it was the sugar syrup, so I put the rolls on a perforated tray to allow excess syrup to flow through. Nothing really dripped. This makes me wonder, was it the corn syrup I used with the nut mixture? I want to make this again, but want to hear from the expert. Thank u
Amira
Hello Shama, well I still think it is the syrup. Maybe you've poured the whole amount of the syrup over? You know these Baklava we get at Costco? they are super syrupy and sweet and if you leave them for a whole night, they will not drain a single drop of syrup.
shama
Yes I did pour the entire syrup. i just reread the recipe. Thank u so much. I'll get right to trying these again and let you know. Thank you so much.
Raani
Love it thank's for sharing, keep them coming
Exetermags
Yes! At last I've found an authentic recipe with orange flower water and honey. And roasted walnuts. All rolled up. So delicious and straightforward to make! Thank you so much!
Amira
Thanks, I am happy you like the combination.
Dalia Blass
Came out perfectly! I did with and without honey —without a bit lighter. Reminded me of my
Mom’s. 🙂
Amira
Oh this made me so happy, anything with moms makes me happy. Thank you so much Dalia for your feedback.
TMaMa
We love this rolled up version of baklava. Easy to handle- still taste great. Thank you!!
Amira
So glad you liked it TMaMa, thanks for your feedback.
Lili
You are so cute Amira. Where did the other roll go?
Mónica
Hi Amira. I did the rolls yesterday. I let them cool down, and later, cut them and put them away in a plastic container. I was so disappointed this morning when I ate one and realized it had lost all the crunch. Please tell me what did I do wrong.
Thanks
Amira
Monica, this is natural especially if you live in a humid area. Try to reheat them in the oven to crisp them up before serving again, this should take care of that problem.
Kiran
Hi Monica. The rolls should not be stored in a closed container, otherwise they will be soggy. I store mine on a tray covered with a light tea towel to keep the crispiness.
Sofia
Do we need to apply butter to each layer of the sheets? Someone told me that one layer is better cause it’s more crispier? It’s my first time
Amira
Applying butter to the phyllo makes them more crispy I usually apply it every couple of layers or so.
Muna P.
Love this Baklava recipe! My husband (who is a picky dessert eater) is addicted! I already have requests for another double batch. Thank you for posting!
Amira
Muna, Thank you for your sweet comment and I am happy that your picky eater loved it
Anisa
I was wondering what the dimensions we're of your phyllo sheets. i feel like mine are much bigger than yours but it might just be the pictures.
Amira
Anisa, phyllo comes in many shapes and dimensions sometimes even thickness. Mine was 9”x 14”. I hope this helps.
Evelyne CulturEatz
These look so great and yes easy ti make. I never did before as it looked time consuming. I approve of the pistachio and nice pairing with the orange blossom water!
John/Kitchen Riffs
Baklava is really good stuff! Love it. 🙂 Don't think I've had it in roll form, though -- really like the idea. Thanks!
Amira
Thanks John, I hope you'll try it soon and I am really glad to see you back :).
Leila
Hi Amira, greetings from Cairo
Amira
Cheers Leila 🙂 how is everything there?
سلمي لي على مصر وأهلها
Leila
I just saw this masr btselm 3leeky kteer all is good in Cairo.. I really love your blog, its a life saver for me you're recipes are so simple sana 2oula fel mutb5 made easier
Charles
Hi Amira, I adore baklava - can you believe I never tried to make it though? I think it's probably a good idea because I'd eat it all way too quickly and turn into a little fat ball, haha!
Yours looks very nice - really tasty and well done!
Amira
Hmmm , good point :), I usually end up eating more than half and my poor kids wake up next morning searching for it with tears in their eye hahaha The Monster mama ate them all
Nami | Just One Cookbook
YUM! I love baklava! I still have some phyllo dough in my freezer. I totally should make this soon. It's hard to control eating one or few... 🙂
Shady
So So Delicious, I love love them!
Amira
Thanks Shady for your sweet comment.
Denise Browning@From Brazil To You
A simple yet very delicious treat... I love baklava!!!!
Amira
I have never seen someone who does not like it!!! It is divine. Thanks Denise.
Samah@Good Cooks
My god, this is so delicious, love baklava, your's looks so yummy...
Amira
I made it for my kid's teachers as they visited us couple of weeks ago and they were thrilled 🙂 Thanks Samah for stopping by.
Merriam
Where can I find orange blossom water and sheets I am from Riyadh and I can’t find the comment box to send you a comment I am using the reply button everytime
Amira
Hmm, I will see with the tech person about this comment box, it should be there if you scroll down all the way to the bottom. Here we buy the orange blossom water from the Middle East store, in SA it should be everywhere may be next to spices and rose water. The phyllo sheets are called goullash in the Middle East "جلاش" and it can be found in the freezer section in your store probably right next to the puff pastry and samosa sheets. I hope this answers your question. If you have any more questions do not hesitate to send me.