Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon vanilla or almond extract
• 4 cups flour
• For the syrup -
• 4 cups granulated sugar
• 4 cups water
• 1 cup honey
• Lemon juice to taste
• For the baklava -
• 1-pound toasted blanched almonds, either toasted almonds or walnut or half of each, finely chopped
• ½ cup zwieback crumbs
• 4 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 dash cinnamon
• 1-pound phyllo pastry sheets
• 1 ½ cups sweet butter, melted

Directions

• Directions
• For cooky filling: Cream the 2 cups sweet butter until light. Gradually heat in the confectioner’s sugar and continue to beat until mixture is fluffy.
• Add egg yolk and vanilla or almond extract and blend well. Work in about 4 cups flour to make a medium soft dough. Set aside and make syrup.
• For the syrup: In a saucepan, combine the granulated sugar and water. Bring to a boil and boil for 15 minutes or until syrup is slightly thick. Add honey and again bring to the boiling point. Add lemon juice to taste and cool.
• Mix almonds or walnuts or a combination of the two with zwieback, 4 tablespoons granulated sugar and cinnamon, brush 2 sheets of phyllo pastry evenly with butter and sprinkle with nut mixture.
• Place 2 buttered sheets of phyllo on top and sprinkle with nut mixture. Shape a portion of cooky filling into a ½ inch thick roll and place to roll along one edge of the pastry sheets.
• Roll up loosely, cut into 2-inch slices and place slices in a buttered cake pan/ (Continue in this method until all phyllo pastry and/or cooky filling is used.)
• Brush tips of each slice with butter and bake in a 350 F oven for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
• Dip the hot baklava slices one at a time, in cold syrup allowing each piece to remain in the syrup for a few minutes.