spinner
Food & Wine

Tell Us What You Think

Bacon Baklava

Average Rating

 From 1 rating.

User Reviews

rating lovinkat
I printed out this recipe months ago but I just made it for the first time this week, a few days before Christmas.  Maybe it's the time of year, but it had a very "mince pie" flavor effect on me.  The combination of orange zest, bacon, nuts, dried fruit and maple syrup work together beautifully.  This is a really Christmas-y dish that I'll plan to make again and again.  What's better than baon in your already-favorite dessert?  I did learn one thing that I'll avoid next time I make it: no thick slice, center-cut bacon.  It's too chewy and not nearly crispy enough for this recipe.

recipe tools

Printer-Friendly Page Printer-Friendly Page
RSS RSS
AddThis
Email to a Friend

Bacon Baklava

  • make ahead MAKE-AHEAD
  • staff favorite STAFF FAVORITE
ACTIVE TIME: 50 MIN
TOTAL TIME: 2 HRS plus overnight soaking
MAKES ABOUT 35 SMALL PIECES
Whether it’s a crisp shard garnishing bread pudding or crumbles on maple ice cream, bacon is subtly making its way into desserts. And not so subtly: When bacon impresario Dan Philips of the Grateful Palate collaborated on a bacon-themed dinner at The Brown hotel in Louisville, Kentucky, pastry chef Brian Logsdon created this bacon-studded baklava for dessert.
ingredients
  • 1 1/2 pounds sliced bacon
  • 1 cup whole blanched almonds, toasted and coarsely chopped
  • 3/4 cup coarsely chopped dates
  • 1 package phyllo dough
  • 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar
  • 1 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 tablespoons bourbon
  • Finely grated zest of 1/2 orange
directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400°. In a skillet, fry the bacon in batches until crisp. Drain well and crumble. In a food processor, finely chop the bacon with the almonds and dates.
  2. Butter a 9-by-13-inch metal baking pan. Lay a sheet of phyllo in the pan; trim the edges to fit and brush with butter. Repeat with 4 more phyllo sheets and butter. Spread 1 cup of the filling evenly over the phyllo. Repeat this layering of 5 phyllo sheets and bacon filling two more times. Top with 5 buttered phyllo sheets, buttering the top well.
  3. With a small, sharp knife, cut the baklava into diamonds. Bake the baklava for 10 minutes. Turn the oven to 325° and bake for 1 hour longer, or until nicely browned.
  4. Meanwhile, combine the sugar, maple syrup, water, bourbon and orange zest in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes, then let cool to room temperature. Pour the cooled syrup over the hot baklava and let stand at room temperature uncovered overnight.