Pistachio Baklava Birthday Cake

 

Baklava is one of Hannah's favourite sweet treats and so what would be more fitting than to turn it into a cake for her nineteenth birthday? (Eeeesh it's been all go on the birthday front recently and soon it will be Christmas gaaaah so many occasions so little time so little dollar) This cake/baklava extravaganza is made up of two layers of spiced cake laced with honey syrup and coated in a mix of chopped pistachios, almonds and pumpkin seeds (OK so technically it's a mixed nut + seed baklava birthday cake, feel free to omit the latter pistachios are expensive but I wanted green!!) and two layers of sweet sweet spiced, honey-syrup-drowned, pistachio covered baklava.

I feel I should put a disclaimer in just in case some sort of pastry professional has a gander at this post - I have never I repeat NEVER worked with filo pastry in my life. Ever. A google search told me all about the technique - butter layer butter layer butter layer and repeat x1000043324324 x32. I had to make the baklava twice because I initially tried to bake it lathered in honey syrup, this, chums, leads to a rather black baklava complete with stuck together edges. Yum. (Apparently it was yum, Hannah scoffed both of them!!)

Anyhow because it was Hannah's birthday and we work on a strict it's-my-birthday-so-we-do-what-I-want basis, photo taking got cut short (I am not complaining, trying to make my camera focus on all those tiny pistachios on the outside of the cake was a nightmare) so consequently I am going to cut this post short as I have a grand total of three successful(ish) photos woopwoop (that's a big ish - the second photo is somewhat blurry!!). It would be been rude not to share it with you though because damn it was good. By good I mean super duper delicious. It contains astronomical amounts of sugar and butter how could it not be mmmmmmm.

Ingredients

For the cake

3/4 cup unsalted butter (175 g)
1 1/4 cups white granulated sugar (250 g)
3 medium free-range eggs
1 1/2 cups self-raising flour (190 g)
1/2 cup ground pistachios (or a combination of almonds and pistachios) (60 g)
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp mixed spice
zest of 1 orange
1/2 cup semi-skimmed milk (115 ml)
1/2 cup coarsely chopped pistachios to decorate

For the spiced honey syrup

1 cup granulated white sugar (200 g)
1 cup water (250 ml)
1/3 cup honey (85 ml)
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger

For the baklava

half a cup of melted unsalted butter (to begin with, you may need more) (115 g)
32 circular sheets of filo pastry roughly the same size as the baking tin (about 150 g filo pastry)
1 cup of coarsely chopped pistachios (I don't have a to-grams conversion for this but I used about 1 handful X 4)

Directions

1. Grease and line a 6" cake tin about 5" deep. Pre heat oven to 180 degrees C.
2. In a large mixing bowl cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy then beat in the eggs. Sift in half the flour, baking powder, spices and add the orange zest. Add the milk and remaining flour and mix well.
3. Bake for 45-50 minutes, until a skewer comes out clean.
4. To make the baklava cut out 32 circles of filo pastry each with a 6" diameter approximately and obtain 2 more 6" (or bigger) cake tins. Use a pastry brush to cover the bottom of the cake tin in melted butter then lay down a circular filo sheet, butter this sheet, then lay another sheet on top of it. Repeat this until you have 8 layers of filo circles in each of the two cake tins.
5. Sprinkle about a handful (1/4 cup) of coarsely chopped pistachios (again feel free to use a combination of chopped nuts) on top of each 8th layer of buttered filo then place another filo circle on top of the nuts. Butter. Add another circle. Butter. You get it, do this until there are another 8 layers of filo pastry on top of the ground nuts (for both cake tins). Sprinkle coarsely chopped pistachios on top of each 16th layer as before and bake at 180 degrees C for 20-25 minutes, until the filo has risen and browned slightly.
6. To make the spiced honey syrup add all the ingredients into a medium saucepan, stir continuously whilst bringing to the boil on a medium heat. When the mixture has began to boil lower the temperature and simmer for 8-10 minutes. Remember the syrup will thicken further as it cools.
7. Using a skewer to make holes in the cake, pour the honey syrup down the holes like you would a lemon drizzle cake. A few evenly distributed holes will do as this syrup is much thicker than a drizzle!
8. Once the baklava circles have cooled go to town pouring spiced honey syrup all over the tops of each of them.
9. Pour about 1/2 cup coarsely chopped pistachios onto a dinner plate or shallow sided pie dish. Cut the cake into two layers. Using a palette knife cover the sides of the cake in spiced honey syrup and roll the cake layers in the pistachios.
10. To assemble the cake place the bottom half of the cake on whatever you want to use to serve the baklava extravaganza, followed by a baklava circle, then the top half of the cake and finally the second baklava circle. Feel free to add an extra splash of honey syrup and another sprinkling of chopped pistachios for good measure.

NB - I do not advise putting candles in this cake but don't fret the cake is so fab the birthday person won't even notice ;)