Layers of buttery, flaky phyllo and savory crushed nuts are bathed in silky sweet syrup, making this vegan baklava an indulgent yet balanced dessert.
Phyllo dough can easily be made vegan- it doesn’t require butter or eggs to prepare. Here, I’m using a store-bought variety, since making phyllo dough is another recipe venture entirely.
Baklava requires a bit of oil or butter to come together, but this can be vegan. In my opinion, the dessert is elevated by the use of vegan oil instead of dairy butter, since the taste of butter can really overwhelm the dessert by overpowering the nuttiness and diluting the sweetness.
The primary change I’ve made to this recipe is that I use maple syrup as my syrup base instead of honey. You can substitute this for another kind of syrup, like agave, or you can use honey to keep the dessert authentic.
Ingredients
The best thing about this baklava- aside from the symphony of tastes and textures that the dessert offers, of course- is that it keeps really well. You can store in a very lightly covered container for up to 2 weeks.
Note that you should not use a securely covered container with a lid, or it will become soggy! The limiting factor with this baklava isn’t the freshness, but your dessert frequency.
You’ll need:
- Phyllo dough (found in the freezer section of the market)
- Nuts (I suggest walnuts and/or pistachios)
- Butter or coconut oil (using oil will help the baklava hold its shape slightly better, but you may prefer butter for a more neutral taste)
- Maple syrup (or agave syrup or honey)
- Sugar + water (simple syrup)
- Cinnamon
- Vanilla extract
- Rosewater extract (totally optional; you may not prefer this- I ultimately didn’t)
See recipe card for quantities.
Instructions
Note that your phyllo dough layers are thickest at the bottom and the top of the baklava for structural integrity purposes. Your dough package may come with more or less sheets than I outline here, so the general outline to follow is:
2-3 phyllo sheets + brushed butter, repeated 2-3 times for a base layer of 6-9 buttered phyllo layers;
Cinnamon nuts;
2-3 phyllo sheets + brushed butter;
Cinnamon nuts;
2-3 phyllo sheets + brushed butter, repeat for a top layer of 4-6 buttered phyllo layers, plus any scraps.
Let’s get to it.
You’ll need to totally defrost the phyllo dough before proceeding.
Chop the nuts in a food processor and combine with cinnamon so they’re totally coated in lovely, spiced goodness.
Next, you’ll butter a baking dish; here, I’m using a dish that measures 8×8”. You can cut the phyllo dough to fit the dish. Keep the trimmings on hand to use under the final top layers of the baklava.
Keep a damp towel within reach and place it over the phyllo dough as you work to ensure the sheets don’t dry out.
Place 2-3 sheets of phyllo into the dish and brush with softened butter or oil. Repeat this 2-3 times for a base layer of 6-9 buttered phyllo layers. It’s fairly important that the bottom and top layers of the baklava are thicker than the center layers for the best structurally sound dessert!
Then you’ll add a layer of cinnamon nuts, topped with a layer of 2-3 phyllo sheets, which are brushed with butter.
You’ll add a second layer of nuts and top this layer with 2-3 phyllo sheets brushed with butter. Add another 2-3 sheets and brush with butter to complete the top layer of the dessert.
While the oven is preheating to 350ºF, you’ll cut almost through the baklava, leaving about ½” uncut from the bottom. The shapes you cut are up to you, but the important thing is to make this first cut because the phyllo will become too brittle to delicately slice once it’s cooked. Again, do not cut all the way through the baklava!
The baklava should bake until crisp and golden, which takes about 45 – 60 minutes depending on the number of phyllo sheets used in your dessert.
During baking, you’ll make simple syrup by combining water and sugar in a saucepan. You’ll heat this mixture to a boil and then reduce to a simmer for 15 minutes. Once the mix has simmered and reduced, you’ll add maple syrup, vanilla, and (the very much optional) rosewater, and continue simmering for 15 additional minutes.
Once the baklava has cooked to crispy, golden perfection, allow it to cool completely. Then, cut the shapes all the way through to the bottom of the pan and pour on the syrup.
The baklava is best after a couple hours bathing in a syrup pool because the layers begin to absorb the silky sweetness and become what I would call obscenely luscious.
Variations
You can use honey (not strictly vegan; traditional, though) or agave syrup instead of maple syrup.
You also may want to tweak the spices used here. You could try substituting orange blossom water for the rosewater. You could also add ⅛ teaspoon of cardamom to balance the cinnamon.
Equipment
You need a food processor to chop the nuts and a baking dish to assemble and bake the baklava.
Storage
The baklava will keep for up to 2 weeks uncovered in the refrigerator.
This baklava freezes extremely well for at least 6 months in an airtight container. You can defrost it overnight, uncovered, int he refrigerator.
Top tip
Don’t cover the baklava after baking! This way leads to mushy, soggy phyllo dough.
FAQ
Baklava is from the Middle East, Turkey, and Greece, and is thought to have originated during the Ottoman Empire in the 15th and 16th centuries. Adding rosewater makes this a Middle Eastern baklava; I prefer the Greek variety (no rosewater).
Technically, honey (and, sometimes, the addition of butter) makes baklava not vegan. This baklava is vegan!
Yes! Defrost in the fridge overnight when you want to bake.
📖 Recipe
The BEST Vegan Baklava (Easy!)
Equipment
- 1 food processor
- 1 baking dish
Ingredients
For the baklava:
- 227 g phyllo half of one standard-size box, cut to fit your baking dish
- 227 g walnuts chopped
- 227 g pistachios chopped
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 57 g vegan butter softened
For the syrup
- 100 g sugar any kind
- 120 g water
- 160 g maple syrup substitute agave syrup or honey
- 2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon rosewater optional!! Taste test first- this is very floral!
Instructions
- Ensure your phyllo dough is defrosted.
- Use a food processor to chop nuts finely.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the nuts and the cinnamon; set aside.
- Soften your butter (or coconut oil) by blitzing it in the microwave for a few seconds, or allow it to reach ambient temperature; this makes it easier to work with as you go.
- Remove the phyllo dough from the packaging. Keep a damp towel handy and place it over the phyllo dough as you work to ensure it doesn’t dry out.
- Butter a baking dish. Cut the phyllo dough to fit the dish.
- Place 2-3 sheets of phyllo into the dish and brush with butter or oil. Repeat this 2-3 times for a base layer of 6-9 buttered phyllo layers.
- Add a layer of cinnamon nuts; top with a layer of 2-3 phyllo sheets, and brush with butter.
- Add a second layer of nuts and top with 2-3 phyllo sheets brushed with butter. Add cut phyllo scraps (if you have any) and another 2-3 phyllo sheets and brush with butter to complete the top layer of the baklava.
- Preheat the oven to 350ºF.
- Use a sharp knife to cut almost completely through the baklava, but leave about ½” uncut from the bottom. You can cut any shapes you like. Small squares or diamonds are more traditional shapes, but I love a palm-sized behemoth slice of baklava, too.
- Bake the baklava until crisp and golden, which will take 45 – 60 minutes depending on the number of phyllo layers you’ve incorporated.
- As the baklava bakes, you can make your simple syrup. Combine water and sugar in a saucepan and bring to boiling. Reduce the heat once it starts to boil and allow the mixture to simmer for 15 minutes.
- Whisk in your maple syrup, vanilla extract, and optional rosewater extract and allow the simple syrup to simmer for another 15 minutes.
- Once the baklava has cooled completely, cut the shapes all the way to the bottom of the pan and pour on the syrup. If you can resist, wait 1-2 hours or so to let the syrup really soak into the pastry and nuts.