Ghillie Başan is an internationally acclaimed writer, broadcaster and food anthropologist with, and is renowned for her work on Turkish, Middle Eastern and Moroccan food. But her heart is also in the Highlands where she loves to bring her food knowledge to Scotland’s wonderful larder of ingredients. Her latest book, Food, Whisky, Life is more than a recipe book – it’s a celebration of a life well lived and well fed! Here, we publish her recipe for whisky-inspired baklava.

Food, Whisky, Life
By Ghillie BaŞan
Published by Tin Shack Press

Whisky-inspired Baklava

Pastries filled with ground nuts, baked fruit or creamy, semolina mixtures, and bathed in honey or syrup are made for a dram.

A legacy of the Ottoman Empire, baklava is perhaps the grandest of all sweet pastries as the paper-thin sheets of dough, the number of layers, the different texture of the nuts, the density of syrup and the shape of the pastries are all crucial to its perfection in its many guises.

During the reign of Suleyman the Magnificent when the banquets were indulgent and lavish, the creative chefs of the Topkapi kitchens produced trays of syrupy pastries and sponges with suggestively descriptive names – ‘young girl’s breasts’, ‘sweetheart’s lips,’ ‘ladies’ navels’, ‘Vezier’s fingers’ – all of which are still popular today but, when I’m pairing with whisky, it is baklava that I turn to.

Many people shy away from making baklava at home as it seems like it would be complicated to do, but if you buy the filo sheets rather than make them yourself, the rest is easy, although I’m not saying that a top pastry chef in Istanbul would approve! In my modest kitchen where the oven is erratic and I use shop-bought filo, I stick to elements of tradition interspersed with a twist of fruit and flavoured syrups tailored to the whisky I am pairing with, such as apricots and raspberries, combined with orange, rose or whisky syrups.

An Ottoman sultan might have thrown me out of his kitchen but I enjoy preparing baklava to pair with whisky as you can be creative and invent your own fillings and toppings. My guests are always delighted– even the ones from Turkey, Lebanon and Greece! It usually leaves with them in a doggy bag. These are some of my creations: Ricotta, vanilla, pine nuts with whisky syrup and fresh raspberries; Ground Pistachios, chopped dried apricots in lemon syrup; Ground Pistachio with blackcurrants in lime syrup; Ground almonds, mashed baked pumpkin, rosemary and preserved lemon syrup; Ground cashews, pulped pineapple with pink peppercorn syrup

How do you make baklava?

First you make the syrup with a ratio of roughly 500g granulated sugar to 300ml water, the juice of one lemon and any other flavourings. Bring the water and sugar to the boil in a heavy-based pot, stirring all the time, then add the lemon juice and other flavourings and simmer for about 10 minutes to thicken. Turn off the heat and leave the syrup to cool. You add cold syrup to hot baklava.

For a large tray of baklava, you need a 250g packet of filo sheets (you can use more than this – it all depends on the size and shape of your tin), roughly 175g butter or ghee, and the fillings you choose for the layers, generally consisting of finely chopped or ground nuts, chopped dried or fresh fruits, and spices like cinnamon, vanilla and cardamom. Preheat the oven to 350F/mark 4/180C.

Melt the butter in a small pan and keep it beside you as you layer up the filo sheets. Brush a little butter over the base of your oven tray, place a filo sheet over the base and brush it lightly with butter, then place a filo sheet on top of that and brush it with butter. Repeat with five to seven layers and work quickly so that the filo sheets don’t dry out. (If your sheets of filo overlap the tray, just fold them over to fit and brush the fold with butter and, if your filo sheet is too short for the tray, you can overlap with another sheet making sure the overlap is brushed with the butter).

Scatter your filling over the fifth or seventh layer, spreading it evenly across the sheet, then continue layering the sheets and brushing with butter. If you are using two fillings, layer two to three sheets between the fillings. There are usually 12 sheets in a packet. When you get to the top sheet, brush it generously with butter and, using the tip of a sharp knife, cut down through the layers in lines from one end of the tray to the other and across the way to form small squares or diamond shapes.

Place the baklava in the oven for 35-40 minutes, until golden brown and crispy on top. If the oven is too hot, it will darken on top but won’t be cooked all the way through, so you can put it on the low shelf of your oven first and then move it up towards the end of the cooking time.

Take the baklava out of the oven, ladle some of the cold syrup over the top, and return it to the oven for five minutes. This helps to absorb the syrup and seal the top layer.

Take the baklava out of the oven again and place it on a heat-resistant surface. Gradually drizzle the rest of the syrup over it, giving the baklava time to absorb it. You can garnish the top with fruit, nuts, roasted seeds, petals, whatever you like, and leave to cool before serving.

Food, Whisky, Life by Ghillie BaŞan is published by Tin Shack Press, priced £26.