Paklawa, the Kurdish baklava

My paklawa...baklava to you. We call this pastry paklawa in my native language, Kurdish.

Paklawa has many names that are all pronounced similar or as close as, such as baklava, baklawa, or even paklava. It is down to subtle letter nuances and pronounciation. You may also come to associate this as a Greek pastry and not realize that it spans so many different countries close by or in and around that all pay homage to this beautifully sweet pastry.

This dish is hands down my ultimate eat-before-I-die dessert. Heck, I would probably have it for all meals too, I sort of do when my family or I make it. I am in love with this dish. That is even an understatement. It is my whole soul in one plate. If you tried this, I would aim to hear the words 'this is like Tara as a dessert' come out of your mouth! I do not lie. Words cannot describe the flavors of my mum's own recipe when they touch my lips. I don't care for paklawa anywhere else -- I've only bought or ordered baklava a handful of times, more so for putting it to the test against ours, but they have been great disappointments -- it is exactly why I don't bother to give anyone else's variation a try anymore. That may sound selfish, and maybe even unfair, but when I know good, I love only good. No one, and I mean that, makes it like our family recipe. I have searched, I have googled. Ours is a very small secret I can never release. I already feel sinful writing a post about my most loved food. Yes, it is more than dessert to me, it's actually a dish.

There is a lot of history in this pastry. It is infamous across all of our neighbors territories, yet there are arguments over it, there are fights, and then there's the classic my-family-makes-it-better-than-yours incantation (I am obviously the latter). This is a dish most known in all Middle Eastern, Greek, and Turkish households. I'll be damned if someone from these regions didn't know what paklawa was, or even how to remotely make it. This nutty, divinely sweet, buttery, sticky, and spicy pastry is controversial in its history, and unfortunately not very well documented. I will aim to do it some justice through my words, but ultimately, I hope you get joy and salivating mouths at the end of this, understanding a little more about my food history, intertwined with the rest of the Middle East and it's glorious number of variations that every nation seeks to call the original. My mama's is forever our original and my staple. Good gracious, thank you Kurdistan, for this finger-licking glory.

Many ethnic groups, such as the Greeks and Turks, claim paklawa as their own. It is still the great mysterious debate. There are versions that state the Assyrians as the originators of this delectable treat, as early as the 8th century B.C. The accounts allude to layers of flat bread, in place of filo pastry (this obviously came much later into the picture, as we know), with chopped nuts in between, drenched in honey (sugar syrup is a more modern invention), and then finishing it off in the wood burning oven. The modern day paklawa has gone through transformations along the centuries, most notably replacing flatbread with filo pastry and honey with a sugary syrup, that sometimes does contain honey in it, but it is a sugar based syrup nonetheless. It's most famous ties to history is that this pastry is claimed the national dessert for a lot of nations that all came by way of the Ottoman Empire. During these periods it is known that this dessert was served to royalty, thought of as a luxury, which only the wealthy could afford. It's come a long way, because paklawa not only nourishes the body, but it comforts the mind and brings happiness with it. It's amazing what food can do for the mind, body and soul. It is easily overlooked, because sustenance is key in the notion of food, and consumption, but deep down how something is made, and it's purpose, can be broken down to reveal pleasures and history. These are dishes that are now easily made at home and not even thought of too much, but were once thought to be only served to the rich and royal. In the modern Western world we live in now, we don't often realize the many class divisions by way of food. Every food had a label, a price tag. Though there are still items that are more expensive than others in the market, paklawa is an extremely understated dish in today's society. It is affordable, and very simple in ingredients, but it is the time and effort that makes it a luxurious and rich treat. And, that richness is what royalty had easy access to.

It is a dish sometimes regarded for only special occasions, especially in Greece, but it is a very culturally significant dish. The great baklava way ignited in 2006, when Cyprus claimed baklava as their national dish represented in Sweet Europe, for the cultural initiative Cafe Europe. "Baklava is Turkish, we will not allow Greek Cypriots to feed it to the world", published in the Assyria Times (2006), was the big proclamation at the start of the great debate, which was both triggering, and offensive. Who truly knows the origins of paklawa. It definitely played a big part in Turkish cuisine during the 15th century, and the invasion of Constantinople (modern day Istanbul), but that leaves a very big gap from 8th century BC, and a lot of nations hail this dessert as part of their national cuisine, so it would be unfair to dismiss it from an entire continent and neighboring continent's culture and heritage. Of course, we all claim ours is the best, but we focus on recipe, rather than origin. The recipe is ultimately what defines your household, your history, in front of family, friends, and strangers alike.

Paklawa is the definition of desserts for a lot of us. It is a staple in my homeland, like many others, but what makes this pastry as glorious as it is, from its start to the modern day adaptation, is the butter/oil content between every layer, and the sugar syrup. You must not be shy with the butter and oil spread, because paklawa is not supposed to be dry. At least not for us. It's supposed to be doused in butter and syrup. It needs to be trickling down your fingers, and it will naturally dry over the days (though, not sure how it can live past day two, because of how good it is, we certainly eat these like peanuts). That is thanks to it's syrup intake. So never fear drowning your paklawa; you could actually never. I love this dessert, but it's more tiring to assemble than you think. Though, it is typically reserved for special occasions, we don't necessarily follow that in our household, but I understand more and more every time I make it why we don't really make it that often. And, by that way, you end up savoring it's flavors and memories even more, because this pastry dessert is a keeper of memories. Happy paklawa!