HAZELNUT CHOCOLATE BAKLAVA

Ingredients

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 350 °F.
2. Add syrup ingredients to a small saucepan on medium heat. Stir occasionally and reduce down for 10 to 15 minutes until syrup has thickened and reduced down by about a quarter. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
3. While the syrup cools, generously brush a 5 x 13-inch deep baking tray with melted butter.
4. In a small saucepan, melt 1 tbsp of butter, and add hazelnut cocoa spread. Stir until well combined and warm so that it can be easily drizzled.
5. On a clean surface, lay all layers of phyllo pastry flat, and cover with a clean cotton dish towel to prevent it from drying out.
6. Take 2 sheets of phyllo, covering the remainder. Brush the first sheet with melted butter, then lay the next sheet on top and brush with a little more butter. Sprinkle some ground hazelnuts all over the sheet and, using a fork, drizzle Stefano hazelnut cocoa spread all over the surface.
7. Gently roll the phyllo pastry sheets into a log (not too tightly) and cut the baklava in half.
8. Place in a baking tray, and immediately brush with butter. Repeat the same process until the baking pan is full of baklava rolls.
9. Bake on the middle rack for 30 to 40 minutes until fully golden brown.
10. Take baklavas out of the oven and immediately pour over the cooled syrup. You may not need all of the syrup. Sprinkle a little of the reserved ground hazelnuts on the baklavas for garnish, and drizzle additional hazelnut cocoa spread, if desired.
11. Let stand until completely cool before serving, preferably a few hours. Baklavas can be covered tightly and stored for 3 days at room temperature or longer in the fridge, if they last that long!