Ingredients
- 2/3 cup (150g) caster sugar
- Zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 1 cup (150g) macadamia nuts, chopped, plus extra to serve
- 1 1/2 cups (150g) walnuts, toasted, chopped
- 1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted
- 3 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 9 sheets filo pastry
- 100g unsalted butter, melted
- Icing sugar, to dust
Directions
Preheat the oven to 170C. To make the syrup, place the sugar, and lemon zest and juice in a saucepan over medium heat with 2/3 cup (165ml) water, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Simmer for 5-6 minutes until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon. Set aside to cool. Place the macadamia, walnut, sesame seeds and cinnamon in a food processor and pulse until finely ground. Add 1/4 cup (60ml) syrup and whiz until the mixture binds together. Place 1 sheet of filo on a workbench and brush with butter. Repeat with 2 more sheets, creating a filo stack. With a shorter end of pastry facing you, place one-third of the nut mixture over the bottom third of the pastry, then roll up. Cut the log, on the diagonal, into three even-sized pieces. Place the baklava, seam-side down, on a baking tray and brush with more melted butter. Repeat twice with remaining filo and nut mixture. Bake for 20-25 minutes until crisp and golden. Remove from oven and while still hot, pour over the remaining syrup. To serve, trim off any uneven ends, scatter with extra macadamia and dust with icing sugar.