For many people, the best part of going out for Mediterranean food is dessert. For many, the dessert of choice is baklava, layers of light and flaky filo dough layered with honey and nuts. There is a relatively easy alternative to this time-intensive dessert: baklava bars. This version of the Greek specialty begins with a sugar cookie base, covered with a sugar, cinnamon and filo dough crumble and finished off with a honey cinnamon glaze.
The recipe, which won the Mix It Up with Betty! Recipe Contest in 2007, doesn't call for anything especially exotic. The recipe can be found below, as well as some tips to help make your trial run easier and substitutions to make it a little healthier or easier to bake.
Ingredients
Cookie Base: 1 pouch sugar cookie mix, 1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened, 1 egg, 1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
Filling: 1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, 1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/8 teaspoon salt, 8 frozen mini fillo shells
Glaze: 1/3 cup honey, 2 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened, 1 tablespoon packed brown sugar, 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice, 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Tips and substitutions for ingredients
For everything but the cookie base, you can use applesauce in place of butter (using it in the cookies or anything that should be crispy is ill-advised).
If you're stuck on campus and don't have cinnamon or vanilla on hand, pick some up at the sugar bar next time you go to Starbucks (after paying for a drink, of course).
Substitute Splenda (original or baking specific) for sugar.
Substitute egg whites for the egg. There are measurements on the sides of boxed egg whites that let you know how much to use in place of an egg, usually three tablespoons.
I used frozen filo sheets and crumbled a little over 1 cup of those instead of using the cups. If you can't make it to the store, it will be just as delicious without the filo.
Since fresh produce is hard to come by on campus, the lemon juice and peel are optional.
Directions
Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom only of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray.
Tip: Don't drench it; that will make the bottom too crispy. Obviously spray is the healthier choice, but if you don't have cooking spray, why not make Paula Deen proud by adding more butter? Rub a stick on the bottom in place of spray.
In large bowl, stir cookie base ingredients until soft dough forms. Press dough in bottom of pan. Bake 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, in medium bowl, stir all of the filling ingredients except the filo until crumbly.
Sprinkle mixture evenly over partially baked base. With hands, crumble frozen filo shells evenly over nut mixture.
Bake 18 to 20 minutes longer or until golden brown.
Meanwhile, in small microwavable bowl, microwave all of the glaze ingredients, except the vanilla, uncovered on High for one minute or until bubbly. Stir in vanilla.
Tip: If you don't have a microwave, stir ingredients together over low heat on the stove for about 10 minutes or until the ingredients have all combined. Keep the mixture warm by keeping it over the lowest heat setting.
Take the base out of the oven and drizzle the glaze evenly over it. Cool completely before cutting.
Optional: Drizzle honey over your bars before taking them out of the pan and serve or store them in a covered container.
Opa!
