Buckeye Baklava!

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I'm in Ohio. Ohio, where our nickname is "The Buckeye State," and on any given weekend during the fall there's a colossal amount of people in scarlet & gray getting ready to cheer the beloved OSU Buckeyes onto (hopefully) another football victory. Pretty much, if it's Buckeye-themed or scarlet & gray, whatever "it" happens to be, you'll gather at following. And that's how these little babies were born.

It all started one day when I was driving back from visiting my parents (or "home-home" as I like to call it, as opposed to "home" which is where I am every other day of the year) and I had a brainchild. Just out of the blue. An Immaculate Conception of an idea. I...would create... BUCKEYE BAKLAVA.

I'm a baker who likes to give common treat-favorites a little twist so suddenly they're anything but common. I'd love to make a living having my own bakery someday. This just seemed... NATURAL. Here I am, in the home of the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Buckeye State. WHY THE H- NOT???

Buckeye Baklava is a twist on the luxurious Meditteranean treat of walnuts, pistachios, honey, & filo dough. Buckeye Baklava is like traditional baklava and a buckeye candy had A REALLY GOOD BABY. It's peanuts (w/ some pecans), chocolate chips, some flavorings, layers upon layers of filo dough and butter, a magical peanut butter sauce full of layered flavors, and chocolate ganache. I can't tell you everything b/c it's a secret. You know how I said I'd love to have my own bakery? Yeah. I gotta keep this stuff close to the vest if I want to make a living off it, you know what I'm sayin'? No one wants to buy the cow if you get the milk for free. So... buy my baklava! Just kidding... no, not really. Buy my baklava. Please.

So that's the story. I CAN tell you my source recipes to which I referred for measurement approximations & all that. I used one from Epicurious and one from Food Network by Emeril Lagasse. I'm not going to lie--it's time consuming whether you're experienced or not. But it's worth it. Sooooo worth it. ;-)