Baklava

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ pounds walnuts, finely chopped (can substitute walnuts with pistachios too)
• ½ cup sugar
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 2 cups sugar
• 2 cups water
• 1 cup honey
• 1 tablespoon lemon or orange zest, grated
• ⅛ teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 pound butter, melted, divided
• 2 packages (16 ounces each, 14x9-inch sheet size) frozen phyllo dough, thawed

Preparation:

1. Put the walnuts, sugar, cloves, and cinnamon in a small bowl and set aside. Brush a 15x10x1-inch baking pan with butter. Unroll 1 package of phyllo dough and cut it into a 10-1/2x9-inch rectangle. Repeat with the remaining phyllo. Discard the scraps.
2. Line the bottom of the prepared pan with two sheets of phyllo dough (they will overlap slightly). Apply a coating of butter. Repeat layering fourteen times. (To avoid drying out the sheets, cover the dough with a damp cloth until ready to use.)
3. Add two cups of the walnut mixture and spread. Place five phyllo dough layers on top, coating each one with butter.
4. Spread with the remaining walnut mixture. Place a single sheet of phyllo dough on top and smear with butter. Repeat fourteen times.
5. Cut into 2-1/2-inch squares, then diagonally divide each square. Brush the rest of the butter over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 minutes, or until golden brown.
6. Heat the syrup ingredients in a large pot until they boil. Lower the heat and simmer for ten minutes. Cool syrup to lukewarm after straining it and removing the zest. Pour syrup over the warm baklava.

Cannoli

Ingredients:

• 1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 egg white
• 8 cups vegetable oil, for frying
• 32 ounces whole milk ricotta, strained
• 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
• ¾ cup mini chocolate chips
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• Chopped pistachios (optional)
• 1 ½ granulated sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• ⅓ cup marsala wine
• 1 large egg

Preparation:

1. In a food processor, combine flour, sugar, and salt. Pulse in short spurts around ten times. Add the butter and pulse in quick bursts until no clumps of butter remain.
2. Combine the marsala wine and the whole egg. Blend to combine, then add more wine until the dough forms a soft rough mass.
3. Form a spherical shape and place in an oiled bowl. Allow to rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, preferably up to 2 hours.
4. Heat 1 ½ cups of vegetable oil in a big pot to 345 to 355 degrees.
5. Roll out the dough very thinly onto a lightly floured surface (about 1/16 inch) while working with half of it at a time and keeping the other half covered in the bowl.
6. Cut the dough into rounds with a 4-inch cookie cutter. Spray the cannoli forms with cooking spray, then wrap individual dough circles around them, coating approximately ¾-inch of one end lightly with egg white. Press the edge against the other side.
7. Carefully submerge the shell with metal tongs in hot oil and fry it for one to two minutes, or until golden brown and crisp. Keep an eye on the oil temperature to prevent burning the shells. You can cook up to six at once.
8. Take the cannoli shell out of the oil with metal tongs, allowing the oil to return to the saucepan, and then place it on paper towels to drain.
9. Wrap a paper towel around the shell to gently slide it off of the mold (or folded layers of paper towels) while holding it in place with wire tongs.
10. Allow forms to cool before repeating the process with the remaining dough circles. You can remove extra flour from scraps, press them back together, cover them in a bowl, and let them rest for at least 10 minutes before reusing.
11. Now for the cannoli filling, combine the strained ricotta, powdered sugar, chocolate chips, and cinnamon in a mixing bowl and fold and whisk. Let cool on a wire rack before adding the cannoli filling.
12. Pour into a piping bag that has a big round tip attached. Filling should be piped into chilled cannoli shells.
13. Decorate with melted chocolate around the borders, chopped pistachios, mini chocolate chips, or powdered sugar on top.

Gulab Jamun

Ingredients:

• 1 cup whole dry milk powder
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 green cardamom pods, crushed
• 1 teaspoon rose water
• ¼ teaspoon lemon juice
• Chopped pistachios and rose petals (optional)
• Oil for deep frying
• ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
• 1 tablespoon ghee
• 6 tablespoons whole milk
• 1 cup sugar
• 1 ½ cups water

Preparation:

1. Mix the flour, baking powder, ghee, and milk powder in a big bowl. To create a stiff dough, slowly whisk in 1 tablespoon of milk at a time. Don't knead the dough if it's sticky; instead, use greased hands to combine it lightly. Place a moist towel over it and let it sit for five minutes.
2. Meanwhile, put the cardamom pods, water, and sugar in a big saucepan over medium-high heat. Heat until it boils. Lower the heat and simmer for 5 to 6 minutes, uncovered, until syrupy. Take off the heat. Add lemon juice and rose essence and stir.
3. Roll the dough into 1-inch balls with oiled hands, being careful not to let the dough crack. Heat the oil in a deep-fat fryer or electric skillet to 350°F.
4. Balls should be fried four to five at a time until golden brown on all sides. Transfer to paper towels for a minute to drain and cool. Add to the sugar syrup. Repeat with the remaining dough.
5. Soak the jamuns in the syrup for at least two hours, or cover and keep them in the refrigerator overnight.
6. Place the jamuns in a serving bowl and pour the remaining syrup from the saucepan over them. Add rose petals or pistachios as a garnish if you would like. It can be served warm or cold, according to your preference.