Grandma Marie's Baklawa

• 3 cups sugar
• 2 cup water
• juice of half a lemon
• 1 tablespoon orange blossom water or rose water
• 1 pound finely ground walnuts
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon orange blossom water or rose water.
• 1 pound unsalted butter
• 10-ounce box fillo (phyllo) dough in refrigerator overnight, then one hour at room temperature

1. Combine 3 cups sugar, 2 cups water and juice of half a lemon in a medium saucepan and boil for 10 minutes.
2. Add 1 tablespoon orange blossom water or rose water. Refrigerate until ready to use.
3. Combine 1 pound finely ground walnuts*, ¼ cup sugar and 1 tablespoon orange blossom water or rose water. (*or unsalted ground pistachios) Refrigerate until ready to use.
4. Clarify the butter by melting 1 pound unsalted butter, and skimming off foam.
5. Thaw one 10-ounce box fillo (phyllo) dough in refrigerator overnight, then one hour at room temperature.
6. Spread butter over bottom of a 10-inch by 15-inch jelly roll pan to cover.
7. Lay 6 sheets of thawed fillo in pan. Spread all of prepared filling on top of fillo sheets in pan.
8. Spread the prepared filling over the fillo dough. Spread evenly to the edge of the dough, pressing down with the back of a spoon.
9. Cover with additional 6 sheets of thawed fillo dough. Cover with prepared butter.
10. Open second package of thawed fillo dough and put on top. Cover with prepared butter. Line up fillo dough so edges meet.
11. Starting in one corner, cut a diagonal cut to the opposite corner, all the way through the baklawa.
12. Continue cutting diagonal cuts across baklawa, spacing them about 1 inch apart.
13. Rotate pan and cut straight lines across baklawa.
14. Rotate pan and cut straight lines across baklawa, again about 1 inch apart, creating diamond-shaped pieces. Spoon prepared butter on top, using up the rest of the butter.
15. Bake in a preheated oven at 315 degrees for 45 minutes to one hour, until lightly browned.
16. Remove from oven and spoon cold syrup over the whole pan of hot baklawa, using about 1-1/2 cups of the syrup. (Extra syrup can be used when making another pan of baklawa or for pancakes or cookies.) Let baklawa cool completely before removing from pan and serving.

Baklawa will keep 1 week at room temperature  or 2-3 weeks in the refrigerator.

It also freezes nicely.