[Sca-cooks] Re: [Sca-cooks]was divinity/now baklava

[Siegfried Heydrich]

    It was taught to me by the mother of a Kurdish friend, who was a refugee
from the unpleasantries in that neck of the woods (she came from the Alamout
region - she said the ruins of the Assassins Castle could be seen from her
village).
    I'm assuming you know the basics of Baklava, and the regional variant is
that instead of the greek version with walnuts, you use pistachios (which
are a major cash crop in that region), and cut way back on the amount of
honey you put in the syrup, as well as the syrup itself. This doesn't get
soaked as much as the greek version. Also, in the syrup, you add the juice
and zest of about 3 lemons.
    It's not as cloyingly sweet, and the lemons add a tartness that goes
well with the pistachios. The spicing is pretty much the same as the greek,
but in general it has a lighter and more refreshing taste.

    Sieggy

----- Original Message -----

> > I make my Pistachio Baklava (actually, a Kurdish recipe) .
>
>    Dear Siegfried,
>
>        Do you mean the recipe comes from Kurdistan, or is from someone of
> Kurdish descent? (I'm curious 'cause I like Kurdish rugs ...)
>
>        Elizabeth