Baklava, baklava, baklava! It’s such an amazingly perfect dessert, but it’s often time consuming to make. I’m so nuts (pun intended!) about baklava that I made a simpler, rolled variation that you can make much quicker.

Hands down, this will be the easiest baklava recipe you will come across. It’s flaky, chewy, nutty and yummy! Just giving you a warning, you might have trouble observing a diet with this one. I was hoping to share this baklava with friends, but it was gone too quickly and too soon.
This recipe for baklava combines all my favorite things about cooking — a helpful shortcut, a small ingredient list and no skimping on the sugar. If you don’t already know me, you will learn that I love saving time and effort in the kitchen. Let’s get started!
Where did Baklava Originate?
This scrumptious dessert is not only seeped in honey, but also history! I’m corny, I know. The earliest records of baklava recipes date back to early as the 8th century B.C. Today, many ethnic groups make baklava and have their own variations of the dessert. From the Greeks to the Turks, every chef has their own style of baklava and that makes the eating all the greater. Variety is the spice of life, right?
What is Baklava Made of?
If you have had baklava before, you know it is as decadent as it gets. To make it, you alternate layers of phyllo dough with chopped walnuts, cinnamon, sugar and butter. After you bake your baklava, you will drench it with melted honey and let it soak in all the sweetness for several hours. This. Is. Heaven.

Tips on Making Baklava
- Use a food processor to chop your walnuts and save yourself a battle with a knife. You will need to pull them about 10 times to get them to the correct coarseness.
- Work with your phyllo dough as quickly as possible to prevent it from drying out.
- Roll your rolls are tightly as possible to ensure that you have even and smooth layers on the inside.
- Pour your honey and sugar and honey mixture on your baklava rolls while they are still hot. This will allow them to soak up the mixture better.
- Cut your baklava pieces at an angle with a sharp knife. I like to use a bread knife in a light, sawing motion to make sure all the pretty layers stay intact.
- Biggest tip of all: You must let your baklava rest at room temperature for at least 3 hours. Overnight works best. Make sure to keep baklava uncovered while it’s resting.
Different Varieties of Baklava
There are so many different types of baklava out there. Some chefs use pistachios instead of walnuts, while others use almonds. Some people also like to bake their baklava like cakes! For this recipe, you will use my rolling method to skip some of the manual labor. When I created this easier version, I didn’t realize how dangerous it was going to be to have baklava on the table so fast!
How Do You Keep Baklava from Getting Soggy?
Keep your baklava from getting soggy by covering it lightly with a paper towel. You can store it in the fridge or at room temperature once you have given it enough time to soak up the honey and sugar mixture.
Freezing Baklava
Freeze your baklava in an airtight container. If you have to layer your pieces, make sure to place a piece of wax paper between them to prevent sticking. When you are ready to eat, allow the baklava to thaw in the refrigerator overnight.
Other Nutty Recipes
Recipe
Ingredients
- 18 sh filo dough
- 150 g melted butter
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 2 cup walnuts
- 1/2 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup honey
Instructions
- In a food processor, chop walnuts into tiny pieces.
- Place chopped walnuts with confectioners' sugar and cinnamon, toss to combine. In a separate bowl, melt butter.
- Lay out one filo sheet at the time, brushing with melted butter. Cover the buttered sheet with another sheet, while brushing butter again. Repeat with a third sheet. You should have three buttered sheets.
- Apply 1/3 cup of walnut mixture onto the buttered sheet, spread evenly over the sheet. Roll up tight into a roll and set it on a baking dish. Repeat until you run out of ingredients.
- Brush baklava with melted butter. Bake it at 375 °F for 25 minutes.
- In a small pot, combine sugar and water, cook on low heat for about 10 minutes. Add honey and stir to melt. Pour liquid mixture over baklava and set to rest for at least 3 hours.
- Slice baklava rolls into your preferred sizes.
Dry on the inside. Next time I would drizzle some of the topping inside the rolls before rolling.
Thank you for the tip, sorry they didn't work out well for you.
A solid recipe and easily executed! These are actually called warbat in Arabic as I was informed by my friend and can be filled with custard, nuts or sweet cheese and eaten for breakfast.
I added orange zest from one orange, two slices of orange, cinnamon, cardamon and star anise (a dash of each and one star anise seed pod) to the syrup for a deeper flavor profile. I also baked it about 35mins to get a more golden color on top. It's good to pour the syrup on when the syrup is room temperature and the baklava fresh out of the oven.
Last note, I had about one cup of pistachios left from another recipe so I just tossed them in with the walnuts and blitzed them together. Delish!
Great recipe, very tasty!
Thank you for sharing all of that information and those tips! Interesting idea on adding the orange, sounds like it adds tons of flavor! Thank you for taking the time to comment.
Perfection! Just the right amount of sweetness. When I pull the baklava from the oven, I let it cool for an hour or two and then place the baklava itself on cooling wracks with parchment paper underneath so it doesn’t sit in the syrup and become soggy. Thanks for sharing!!
Hi Karen, thank you for all of the tips! I hope you love the baklava.
I had to double the filling to do the 6 rolls, but that’s ok
Hey Sandra, you can add more filling if that is your preference.
Submitted for your approval ... use 1 sheet of phyllo. Butter 2/3s of it (vertically). Fold the unbuttered third over the middle third, then the last third over that middle. Voila 3 layers. Much easier than trying to line up the three sheets. Then just a couple Tablespoons of the walnut filling - and then only 1 or 2 cuts on the finished roll (if any cuts at all).
(learned this 1-sheet-into-thirds trick with making spanakopita... makes an appetizer size perfect for parties)
Izzy, great tips. Thank you for sharing!
I made this yesterday and it's the best baklava I've ever made. I won't be using any other recipe again. I added the juice of a lemon to the syrup to give it a bit of a tang. Fantastic tasting and so quick and easy to make. Thank you xx
Hey Fiona, I am so glad to head this feedback. I love the idea of lemon juice, trying it next time for sure!
Hi Greek immigrant here... we ALWAYS add the juice of a lemon to the honey liquid. It not only flavors but keeps the sugar from crystallizing. Happy baklava!!!
Angela, this is such a great tip. Thank you!
My daughter and I made this today. I made it 2 1/2 hours before tasting it. It's insanely amazing. Once we got the hang of separating the sheets and then rolling, it went very well and was pretty easy. We will most definitely be making this again.
Hey Jean, I am so glad you love this recipe. I think the hardest part is the waiting time. Thank you for sharing your feedback! 🙂
This recipe is life changing. I love baklava but it's so time consuming I don't make it very often. Yay for a great shortcut.
Krissy, yes this one made our life so much easier 🙂 Glad you like the recipe!
Love baklava! I don't make it often, but when I do, it's gone in minutes! Love the taste!
Natalie, thank you! Glad you found the recipe useful!
You are right! This is the easiest Baklava recipe. Thanks for the step by step instructions.
Erin, thank you so much! so happy you love the recipe. I love a simple recipe when I bake so glad you found it easy as well!
I have never made baklava, but I do love it! It's sticky & flaky & delicious!
Kristyn, I am so glad. I love the sticky part too. We go for extras of the sticky dipping.
Excellent recipe!! I did however add a tiny bit less cinnamon in the baklava and a little more walnut the second time around but both ways are amazing. I've tried different baklava recipes over the years and this is by far my favorite!!! Easy and delicious! Thank you! 😊
Oh wow! What a sweet comment and love all that feedback. It gives great options for others.
I’m just curious if you can cut the rolls into smaller pieces to bake? I’m just thinking they would be easier to handle after the syrup is on them...
Hi, Greek who makes baklava from the "old country" recipe. We make rolls and cut them into bite size pieces (about 1 inch). Then you can eat lots!!!
1 inch, I love that!!! thanks for sharing.
One of the readers mentioned that she has tried making them smaller and baking later and it didn't go as well. They are pretty easy to manage this way. They hold their shape pretty well because syrup gets absorbed.
This was absolutely delicious! My husband couldn't even wait the 3 hours before he tried a piece. It's some of the best I've ever had. One question though, I think I over-buttered (is that even possible?!?) my filo dough as I had butter in the bottom of my pan when it came out of the oven and then I poured the honey/sugar mixture on top of it. Is that normal, or should I back down the butter next time. This is the first time I have worked with filo dough, so I wanted to be sure it had plenty. It soaked up most of the liquid as it dried on the counter, but the bottoms are still a little wet. Thanks so much!
I think they are supposed to be very buttery but you could drain some of the butter after baking next time. If I am treating myself, I love butter and the more the better lol... that was in my 20s hahahah
I am a butter lover too. I actually added more butter than your recipe called for (another stick), so I think that had something to do with it. I wasn't sure how much to put on each layer, so I just kept adding until I got a good layer. I think when I make it next time I will know better to pace the amount to end up with what your recipe calls for and it will be perfect. I have to say that NO ONE complained about the extra juicy bottom, but I think they would sustain better if I used the amount in the recipe. My husband loved these so much. In fact, he said they were the best he had ever eaten. We will definitely be making these again. I have 5 boxes of Filo dough still in my freezer (I sent my husband to buy Filo cups and he bought sheets instead!). Thanks so much again for the fabulous recipe. It is definitely a keeper!
Oh so cool. I need to stock up on Filo dough. This works great for a quick recipe. 🙂
this recipe looks amazing! How far in advance can you make them or better yet how long will they stay good for. Also do you keep them in the fridge or the countertop? thank you!!!
If you keep them in a fridge they will be good for a while, I would say even couple weeks. In a room temperature I think it will be good for a few days.
Hi, should we put the honey syrup right after it comes out of the oven? or do you wait till it is cooled down? Also if I want to make a day before I actually serve it, what is the best way to preserve it so it is still crunchy and good?
You can pour it with the sauce, right when it comes out of the oven. I left it in a room temperature, if it was just overnight. You don't need to cover it, this way it will have a bit of a crunch.
I made these over the weekend, they were so good and easy to make. My mum said they were better than the shop bought ones as they weren't too sweet.
I am so glad you guys loved it! I have been breaking my head on what to make for this weekend, you might just have inspired me 😉
This is a great recipe! i love the fact is does not fall apart when you bite it......its in a roll type.....Thank you so much! my husband said its his favorite after medovik.....lol i made it last week and will do it a again today! Thank you!
Angie, this makes me so happy! Glad you guys love it.
I love Baklava, but haven't dared try to make it. But this I will try. How long will these keep in a container or in the freezer.
They can stay in airtight container refrigerated for a few weeks but they can be frozen for a few months. Honestly I would be surprised if it would stay longer than a week, ours was gone very quick. I hope you will love this recipe 🙂
Thanks, I was thinking of making a large batch as I know my boys will just gobble these up.
What is filo sheet?
They are sold in grocery stores in freezer section, you can google to see how they look.
Can you freeze these?
I would think so. I would actually eat them frozen during not summer days. Yum!
Your Baklava looks good...just like the Turks make. My husband of 26 years is Turkish and I'm always making Baklava for him....thanks for sharing your recipe. 🙂 Irina
What a sweet compliment to hear from you, especially with your husband being Turkish. We visited Turkey a few weeks ago, they are pretty creative with their baklava.
Hi dear Natalya! My sister made this today (she's used some other complicated recipe before).I printed your recipe and talked her into using this.After we waited for a few hours and we all got to try it, she said "the best baklava ever!". Your recipe reminded me of baklava we ate at a Middle Eastern restaurant.Delish. Thank you for sharing. Have a blessed mothers day:)
Hey! So glad to hear this awesome feedback! Where did you eat at Middle Eastern restaurant? We are always looking for some good ones.
Hi Natalya, I haven't been checking the website.just saw your email. We ate at Jerusalem Cafe.
I love Baklava.... It always looked complicated to me, I had no idea its this easy to make.... I will definitely give it a try
Totally easy, right! I love that 😉 Hope you will love it!
My sister loves baklava I'll have to send her this way 🙂 great recipe!
Thank you Marina! I hope she loves it as much as our family did 😉
if you dont want to pour honey on top can you not? or its not as good without it?
I haven't tried skipping on the honey, but I think it would work.
I love baklava!:)
I've made baklava with a different recipe. (Taste of home recipe). This looks way easier and I always have trouble cutting in into the perfect diamond pieces :). I will have to try this for sure;) I even have some dough in my freezer 😉
I noticed that it's way easier to serve it when it's made in rolls. I hope you love it as much as we did 🙂