🥮🥮 How to Make BAKLAVA | 🇧🇬Bulgarian Recipe for Ukrainian Nut Spas 🇺🇦 | Easy Holiday Dessert

⚓️ My cooking utensils and dishes: https://amzn.to/46nLtWb ⚓️Coarse and Fine Grater: https://amzn.to/43C9sA2 ⚓️ All-purpose seasoning by Vegeta: https://amzn.to/3ITRCBD ⚓️Oil/Vinegar Cruet: https://amzn.to/3WmGOir ⚓️Kitchen Scale: https://amzn.to/4ns8WMK ⚓️One Measuring Spoon for 1 Tbsp, 1 Tsp, 1/2 Tsp, 1/4 Tsp: https://amzn.to/4ghcZsS ⚓️ Dual Glass Oil and Vinegar Dispenser Cruet: https://amzn.to/4onz3oL ⚓️ Glass Pitcher with Cork Lid: https://amzn.to/3YfFpvg ⚓️French Onion Soup Crock - Soup Bowls: https://amzn.to/3O19IUo ⚓️Round 8" Cake Pans: https://amzn.to/46TncIm The holidays of Ukrainian Spas are a series of three late-summer traditional festivals dedicated to the Savior (Jesus Christ) and the harvest: Honey Spas, Apple Spas, and Nut Spas. The Three Spas Festivals: Honey Spas (First Spas / Makoviya): Celebrated on August 1 or August 14 (depending on the calendar shift); marks the blessing of honey, poppy seed bouquets (makoviychyky), and water. Apple Spas (Second Spas): Celebrated on August 6 or August 19; coincides with the Feast of the Transfiguration, where people bring apples, pears, and grapes to church for blessing. Nut Spas (Third Spas / Bread Spas): Celebrated on August 16 or August 29; honors the final harvest of nuts, baking of new bread, and the trading of linen cloth. 🥮🇺🇦🇧🇬 How to Make Baklava for Ukrainian Nut Spas! My husband is Bulgarian, and I love adapting Bulgarian recipes to Ukrainian holidays. ❤️ We’ve discovered that our cuisines share many traditions and flavors, making this Bulgarian baklava a perfect treat for Ukrainian Nut Spas. 🥜✨ Crispy phyllo, toasted nuts, butter, and sweet lemon syrup — a delicious Bulgarian-Ukrainian family tradition! 🇺🇦 Happy Nut Spas! 🇧🇬 🥮✨ How to Make Baklava | Easy Bulgarian Recipe 🇧🇬 🍽️ Servings: 40 pieces ⏱️ Prep Time: ~60 minutes 🔥 Cooking Time: ~45-50 minutes 🔥 Calories: ~180 calories per piece 🧈🥮 Ingredients: 🍋🍯 Syrup: 💧 350 ml water (1½ cups) 🍚 400 g granulated sugar (2 cups) 🍋 1 large lemon 🍂 2 cinnamon sticks 🌸 2 cloves 🥜🥮 Baklava: 🧈 227 g unsalted butter Kerrygold (2 sticks) 🥮 450 g phyllo dough (1 box) 🥜 120 g almonds (1 cup) 🌰 240 g pecans (2 cups) 🍯 100 g brown sugar (⅔ cup) 🍂 1 tsp ground cinnamon 👩‍🍳 Instructions: 🍋🍯 Make the Syrup: 🍚 In a medium saucepan, combine the water, sugar, cinnamon sticks, and cloves. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, then simmer for about 10–12 minutes. 🔥 🍋 Cut the lemon in half. Squeeze the juice from one half, then cut the other half into small cubes. 🍋 Add the lemon along with its juice and continue cooking for another 2–3 minutes. ❄️ Remove the syrup from the heat and let it cool completely. Refrigerate until ready to pour over the hot baklava. Remove the lemon, cinnamon sticks, and cloves before using. 🥜🌰 Prepare the Nut Filling: 🥜 Finely chop the almonds and pecans. You can use a food processor, but be careful not to grind the nuts into a paste. 🍂 In a bowl, combine the chopped nuts, brown sugar, and ground cinnamon. 🥄 Mix well. 🧈🥮 Assemble the Baklava: 🔥 Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C). 🧈 Melt the butter and keep it warm. 📏 Lightly butter a 9 × 13-inch (23 × 33 cm) baking pan. 🥮 Unroll the phyllo dough and keep it covered with plastic wrap and a slightly damp kitchen towel while working to prevent it from drying out. 🧈 Place one sheet of phyllo in the pan and brush it generously with melted butter. Repeat with 5–6 sheets, buttering each layer. 🥮🧈 🥜 Sprinkle a thin, even layer of the nut mixture over the phyllo. 🥮 Continue layering the phyllo sheets, brushing each one with butter and adding the nut mixture between the layers. 🥜 Save some of the chopped nuts for topping after baking. 🧈 Finish with 2–3 layers of phyllo on top, brushing each sheet generously with melted butter. 🔪 Using a sharp knife, cut the baklava into 40 pieces before baking. You can cut it into squares or diamonds. 🔷 🔥🥮 Bake the Baklava: 🔥 Bake at 350°F (175°C) for about 45–50 minutes, or until the top is deeply golden brown and crisp. ✨ 🌬️ If using convection, reduce the fan speed to the lowest setting. If you are not using convection, rotate the pan every 15 minutes for even baking. 🔥 Remove the baklava from the oven and immediately pour the cooled syrup evenly over the hot baklava. 🍯 🥜 Sprinkle the top with the reserved chopped nuts. 🥄 Allow the baklava to cool completely and absorb the syrup for at least 4–6 hours, preferably overnight. ❄️🌙 🍽️ Serving Suggestions: ☕🍵Serve the baklava at room temperature with a cup of coffee or tea. 🥮✨ Baklava is especially delicious the next day, when all the flavors have had time to develop and the syrup has fully soaked into the layers. ✨🥮 Enjoy your delicious homemade BAKLAVA! 🥮✨ 👉💡 Tips: 💡 🧈 Make sure to butter each sheet of phyllo. This is what gives baklava its beautiful, crisp, flaky layers. 💡 🔪 Cutting the baklava before baking makes it much easier to create clean, beautiful pieces. 🔴Channel's main page:    / @homecookingwitholhabatchvarov