Maple Bacon Baklava dessert recipe

Give the traditional Greek dessert baklava a new twist and delight bacon lovers with Maple Bacon Baklava.  It’s got all the salty sweetness that you love with the added crunch of bacon to delight.

You’ve probably eaten baklava filled with chopped nuts between layers of crisp filo pastry, all sweetened with honey.  But what if you added a savoury element to the mix? Bacon is the perfect partner in this collaboration and you’ll be impressed by the results.

Of course, the deliciousness of your Maple Bacon Baklava does rely on using good ingredients so don’t stint on the bacon.  Make sure you find Australian bacon (that’s harder than you think) and buy a premium product.  The delicious flavour of good bacon will make or break your baklava.

​Maple Bacon Baklava

Serves six

Scroll to the end for a printable recipe card

Ingredients

• 8 sheets filo pastry
• ½ cup of brown sugar
• ½ cup dried figs, chopped
• 1 ½ cups dried dates, pitted chopped
• 1 ½ cups pecans, chopped
• ½ cup bacon, diced and fried
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp rose water
• 150g butter, melted
• ½ cup of maple syrup
• 1 tbsp sesame seeds

Method

1. Preheat the oven to 175°C.
2. Combine all ingredients, except the filo, in a large mixing bowl. Unroll the thawed filo dough and cover it with a damp towel to keep the unused layers from drying out.
3. Brush the bottom of a baking sheet (lined with silicone baking paper) or a 9×13 baking pan with the melted butter mixture.
4. Lay one sheet of filo dough in the pan and brush the entire filo sheet lightly with butter. Place another layer of filo on top and repeat with butter and filo until you have four sheets of filo.
5. Sprinkle about six tablespoons of the nut mixture evenly over the top filo sheet. Top with a layer of filo, lightly butter and top with the second sheet of filo. Repeat this layering process until you have reached the top of the pan or all of the nut mixture is used up.
6. Brush the top and sides of the filo stack with butter. Using a sharp knife, score the top few layers of the baklava, making sure not to cut through to the bottom. Sprinkle over sesame seeds.
7. Bake for 20 minutes until light golden brown.
8. Serve with whipped cream and extra maple syrup.

Photo by Ali Tarhini on Unsplash

A bit about baklava

While you are eating your Maple Bacon Baklava, you might like to think about the dish’s history. This dessert has been around for a long time.  It is known to have been popular in the Ottoman Empire in the 15th century and was served during Ramadan. However, baklava is considered a national dish in many countries, including Lebanon, Greece and Turkey. They all have their own twists on this very popular dessert.

You don’t have to refrigerate baklava, but it will keep longer if you do.  You can also freeze it.  Small batches are best for freezing as it’s easy to defrost for use.  Make sure you separate the pieces and put them on baking paper to freeze.

What else can you have for dessert?

I have to admit that dessert is my favourite part of any meal and I’ve got several other delights for you to try.

• Salted caramel rice pudding
• Classic Bombe Alaska
• Pumpkin Pie
• Austrian Apple Strudel