Pistachio Baklava Nests

 

Pistachio Baklava Nests

 I had leftover kataifi so I decided to try this recipe. It was a little more challenging to use the katalfi than I thought because it was slightly dry and brittle so hard to shape the katalfi into a circle. However, the general steps for this recipe are pretty easy!  I only made enough of these nests to fill a dish so I used a lot less ingredients than called for in the recipe below.

 Here is what I did:

·       -Thawed katalfi overnight

·       -Melted some butter. Took some strands of the katalfi and brushed it with melted butter. Then wrapped the strands of katalfi in a circle around my thumb to make a nest. Then I put 1 pistachio in the center of the nest. Repeated this step until I filled a dish with pistachio nests. Then brushed everything again with butter.

·        - Baked for 350 degrees for 25 min.

·         -While the nests were baking, I made the simple syrup, boiling ¼ cup of water with 1 cup sugar. When sugar melted, added ¾ tablespoons orange blossom water.  

·         -After the baklava nests finished baking, poured the simple syrup over the pastry.

 

Easy Pistachio Bird Nest Baklava Recipe – Cookin' with Mima

Ingredients

·         16 oz. kataifi shredded phyllo dough, thawed

·         ¾ cup ghee, melted (used butter)

·         ½ cup whole pistachios, preferably raw or roasted

·         ¾ cup simple syrup (Lebanese Simple Syrup (Ater) – Cookin' with Mima)

·         2 tbsps crushed pistachio, optional for garnishing

 

Instructions

1.       Thaw the dough the night before in your fridge or couple of hours are room temp before starting.

2.       First, prepare the Simple Syrup so that it cools down before the nests are baked. (I made this while the pastry was baking)

3.       Preheat oven to 350 F.

4.       To assemble the bird nest, pull a 1/2 inch thick string of dough and fold with your fingers in the center, forming a nest shape. Make sure you leave enough room in the center to add at least 4-5 pistachios.

5.       Repeat this procedure to form the rest of the nests. Add them to the pan as you go. You will need only half the dough to make enough for a 9×11 inch pan.

6.       When you are done forming all the nests, add 4-5 pieces of pistachios into each nest.

7.       In a measuring cup, measure 3/4 cup of ghee. Place them in the microwave and melt it (about 30 seconds) or do it on your stovetop over low heat.

8.       Pour over the melted ghee carefully onto each nest. You can also use a spoon to do so evenly if you like.

9.       Bake in a preheated 375 F oven, for 30 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Baking time will vary per oven, so keep an eye on them. Always place the tray in them middle rack. (Baked 350 for 25 min)

10.   When the nests are golden brown, remove them from the oven and pour 3/4-1 cup (depending on how sweet you want them) of simple syrup evenly over the nests.

11.   Completely before serving. Transfer them to a platter when ready to serve.

 

Notes

·         Always prepare the simple syrup ahead of time.

·         Use a preheated oven.

·         Thaw the dough in the fridge the night before, or on the counter a couple of hours before.

·         Keep the nests same size so that they cook evenly.

·         Use raw whole pistachios if you can get your hand on them. If not use roasted ones.

·         Add or reduce the amount of simple syrup based on your preference.

·         Do not over cook the nests, you want them to be golden brown not too brown, just like the photos.

 

Lebanese Simple Syrup (Ater) – Cookin' with Mima

Ingredients

·         4 cups white granulated sugar (used 1 cup sugar)

·         2 cups water (used ¼ cup sugar)

·         2 tbsps. orange blossoms water (used ¾ tablespoons orange blossom water)

·         1 tbsps. rose water (did not use)

·         ½ small lemon (did not use)

 

Instructions

1.       Measure and add the sugar and water into a medium pot. Mix to dissolve the sugar very well.

2.       Bring the pot to medium heat. Right when the mixture starts to boil, time 5 minutes of boiling time. Then add in the orange and rose water as well as a squeeze of lemon juice into the pot.

3.       Continue to boil for 2 more minutes. Remove from heat and allow the syrup to cool completely before adding into a storage container or bottle.

4.       If you are using this to add into another recipe, make the syrup ahead of time so it cools down a little before adding it into the other recipe.

Notes

·         If you are using this to add into another recipe, make the syrup ahead of time so it cools down a little before adding it into the other recipe.

·         Do not use dark sugar or powdered sugar. Only white granulated cane sugar works best for the recipe.

·         Be careful not to over boil the mixture as you don’t want to caramelize it. It shouldn’t be golden brown.