Baklava Shortbread Cookie Bars
These Baklava Shortbread Cookie Bars are a great alternative for those of you (aka me) who need a holiday treat, without all the hard work or any of the effort. Traditional baklava is a Middle Eastern dessert that is typically made by layering a bunch of phyllo sheets together with butter, chopped nuts and sugar and then sweetened with syrup or honey. It’s nutty, flaky, sweet and insanely delicious. It also happens to be a pretty labor intensive dessert, and while all the hard work does payoff, you sometimes just don’t have the time or the patience to pull it off. So in honor of that holiday laziness that is sure to hit us around this time of year (I’m already feeling it) I’m sharing another super easy holiday “cookie” recipe on the blog. These bars taste like baklava and are 100 times easier to make than the traditional variety. Be sure to give it a try this week, or next week, and hand it out as gifts to all the adventurous eaters in your life. They’ll be so thankful you did.
These are great to make this holiday season because they’re different and a little “out there” for most traditionalists. If you’re attending a cookie swap or need to bring a sweet treat to the office for a pot luck, then these are the way to go because they’ll intrigue people and they’ll be the first to go!
Baklava Shortbread Cookie Bars
Equipment
- 9-inch square baking pan
- Pastry Brush
- Saucepan
Ingredients
Shortbread Crust:
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
- 1 large egg
- 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
Filling:
- 1 cup roughly chopped walnuts
- 3/4 cup roughly chopped pistachios plus more for garnish
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/3 cup unsalted butter softened
- 6 phyllo sheets thawed
- 1/4 cup unsalted butter melted
Honey Butter Syrup:
- 1/2 cup honey
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ground all-spice
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/8 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
- 1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with parchment paper, allowing a bit to hang on either side, to make it easier to pull the bars out of the pan. Set aside.
- To make the crust, in a large bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar until creamy, about 5 minutes on high. Stir in the vanilla, lemon zest, and egg until well-combined. Add the flour and mix until just combined. Transfer the mixture into the prepared baking pan. Press down with floured hands, onto the bottom of the pan, in an even layer. Bake for 10 minutes, until lightly golden brown around the edges. Remove from the oven and let cool while you make the filling.
- In a medium bowl, toss together the walnuts, pistachios, sugar, cinnamon and salt. Add the softened butter and toss together until well-combined and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Set aside.
- Lay one sheet of phyllo on a cutting board. Brush with melted butter and then place another sheet of phyllo. Brush once more and repeat until all the phyllo sheets and butter have been used. Cut into thin strips using a pizza cutter or a sharp knife.
- Transfer the nut mixture onto the par-baked crust, and spread out in an even layer. Sprinkle the top with the phyllo pieces. Bake until golden brown all around and the phyllo is golden brown and flaky, about 18 to 20 minutes.
- While the bars bake, make the syrup topping. In a medium saucepan, combine the honey, butter, sugar, lemon juice, and spices. Set over medium heat and cook until melted through and the mixture comes to a low simmer. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
- Once the bars are baked, remove from the oven and immediately pour the syrup over the top evenly. Allow to cool completely and the bars have set, at room temperature, about 4 hours. Lift the bars from the baking pan, using the parchment paper, and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into three even rows. Then cut each row into 3 squares. Then cut each square in half diagonally so you end up with triangles. Serve with a drizzle of honey and sprinkling of pistachios. Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Enjoy!
