Baklavas Tart is a twist to the classic Greek baklavas dessert made with walnuts and topped with chocolate ganache.
Baklavas (pronounced Mpah-klah-VHASS), is one of the best Greek desserts, which is a rich, sweet pastry made of layers of phyllo, filled with chopped nuts with spices among the layers and drenched with syrup.
Today’s recipe baklavas is made in a Tart pan. To make this tart, I cut the phyllo sheets giving them a round shape, using the tart pan as my guide.
Lightly score the phyllos 2.5 cm (1 inch) away from the tart pan and with a sharp knife or a pair of scissors, cut round sheets of phyllo.
The phyllo sheets are buttered and layered in the tart pan with nuts between the phyllo sheets.
After the baklavas tart is baked, it is drenched in honey syrup and when the syrup is absorbed, chocolate ganache is added on top.
Really, who can resist a dessert like that, especially if you are a chocolate lover like I am?
I’ve made Baklavas innumerable times, considering that it is one the desserts I used to make in the restaurant I used to work in but also during the cooking classes.
I’ve made quite a few tweaks to the classic recipe, either using nuts and spoon sweets (quince) or adding pastelli combined with more nuts.
You can use any nuts you prefer or a combination of several nuts, such as almonds, walnuts, pistachios, peanuts, hazelnuts etc.
Note: As nothing goes wasted in my kitchen, leftover phyllo pieces can be made into this easy Tyropita.
*Update 1/12/2015:
I would suggest that if you have a tart pan with a deep indentation, it is preferable, after the syrup dries, to reverse it and put the chocolate on top, as it makes it look much prettier!
When I made this tart again, I added a few drops of raspberry essence in the chocolate ganache, which made a huge difference to the taste of the chocolate layer. It tasted amazing!
Also this time I bought a bigger container of heavy cream and the leftover I whipped it with a little icing sugar and decorated the baklavas on top.
You can find my Greek recipes in my cookbooks «More Than A Greek Salad», and«Mint, Cinnamon & Blossom Water, Flavours of Cyprus, Kopiaste!» both available on all Amazon stores. Read more here.
Today I have great news to share with you. BHMAgourmet, a Greek magazine, is hosting the First Food Blog Awards and my blog has been nominated in the category “Best Greek cooking in English”.
The Best Chocolate Honey Baklavas Tart
Baklavas Tart is a twist to the classic Greek baklavas dessert made with walnuts and topped with chocolate ganache.
Ingredients
- 10 sheets phyllo dough
- 110 grams toasted walnuts
- 120 grams toasted almonds
- 2 tbsp dried bread crumbs
- 1/2 tsp powdered cloves
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp cane sugar
- 125 grams clarified butter
- 10 toasted walnut halves, for decoration (optional)
Syrup:
- 1 cup honey
- ½ cup water
- 3 cloves
- 1 small piece (about an inch) cinnamon stick
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
Chocolate Ganache:
- 125 grams dark chocolate
- 125 ml heavy cream 35%
- A pinch of freshly grated black pepper (optional)
- A pinch of coarse sea salt
- 3 drops vanilla or raspberry essence
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180oC / 350o F or 160oC / 320oF, for convection
oven - While the oven is preheating, toast the walnuts and almonds, for about 15 minutes and set aside to cool Reserve 10 walnuts halves for decoration When
they cool pulse the remaining in a food processor with a couple of spins to
make coarse pieces Add the bread crumbs, cinnamon, cloves and cane sugar to the nuts, mix and set aside. - Prepare the syrup Put the honey with water as well as spices in a small pot and mix until the honey has dissolved Bring to a boil and cook for 5 minutes Remove from the heat, discard the spices and add the lemon juice.
- Prepare the clarified butter. Put the butter in a small frying pan or pot and melt it over medium heat Remove the froth which rises on top and use the melted butter only The milk solids should be discarded.
- Take 10 sheets of phyllo and put the tart pan on top Lightly score the phyllos 2.5 cm (1 inch) away from the tart pan and with a scissors, cut round sheets of phyllo.
- Brush the tart pan with butter.
- Brush three sheets of phyllo and place one on top of the other Using the brush, arrange them to sit on the tart pan Sprinkle 1/3 of the nut mixture on top Place another two phyllos, brushed with butter on top and press them with the brush to sit over the nuts Add the next 1/3 of nuts and two more sheets on top, brushed with butter Continue with the remaining nuts.. Finally add the remaining three sheets, each one brushed with butter.
- Now take the edges of the phyllo and twist them around the pan, to form the rim If the edges are dry, wet them by brushing them with some butter Finally brush the top.
- Wet your hands and sprinkle some water on top.
- Reduce the temperature to 160oC / 320oF or 150oC / 302oF for a convection oven and bake for about 30 minutes or until golden on top.
- When the baklavas is ready, remove from the oven. Using a spoon wet the surface and sides of the tart with the cold (or lukewarm) syrup Set aside until
the syrup is absorbed. - While it is cooling prepare the chocolate ganache Place a double boiler (bain Mari) on the heat and add the heavy cream When the water starts boiling add the chocolate, cut into pieces and mix until it starts melting Add the vanilla or raspberry essence, salt and pepper and continue mixing until it melts.
- Add the chocolate ganache on top and decorate it with the reserved roasted walnut halves.
- Set aside for a few hours for the chocolate to set before cutting. If you like, when the ganache sets, you can decorate it with whipped cream as well.
- No refrigeration is needed. However, if you add the whipped cream you will have to refrigerate it.
Nutrition Information
Yield 10 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 608Total Fat 38gSaturated Fat 15gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 21gCholesterol 47mgSodium 231mgCarbohydrates 64gFiber 4gSugar 42gProtein 8g
Other related Recipes:
All you need to know about Greek Baklavas
Kopiaste and Kali Orexi,
Aparna
Tuesday 6th of October 2015
Wow, chocolate on Baklavas! I am drooling!
Richard
Tuesday 6th of October 2015
Hi Ivy,
You saved my day. 3 days after My wife's birthday is there. So I am planning to make such chocolate honey tart :-p Wish me luck for my cooking skills. Thanks for showing the step by step recipe.
Angie
Saturday 3rd of October 2015
A calorie bomb, but it surely is very delicious with all the nuts and chocolate. Congratulations, Ivy and I just voted it for you. Good Luck! Angie
Ivy
Saturday 3rd of October 2015
Thank you Angie!
Martha
Friday 2nd of October 2015
Thanks for sharing step by step guide for how to make best chocolate honey baklavas tart.. I am going to make it. After i'll inform you how it was..
Thanks for explain each and everything very nicely..