THE HISTORY OF

 SYRIAN BAKLAVA

            Syrian cuisine is a diffusion of the cultures of civilizations that settled in Syria, particularly during and after the Islamic era beginning with the Arab Umayyad conquest, then the eventual Persian-influenced Abbasids and ending with the strong influences of Turkish cuisine, resulting from the coming of the Ottoman Turks. It is in many ways similar to other (Greater Syria) Levantine cuisines, mainly Lebanese, Palestinian, Jordanian and Iraqi.

Baklava is a very sweet dessert pastry made of layers of flaky pastry filled with a mixture of grind nuts and Syrup. It must be sliced after baked and it must be brushed with sweet syrup. What many do not know is that baklava dates back to the 8th century BC when the Assyrian Empire was on its way to diminishing.

The reason it is Syrian authentically is that’ baklava, by nature in the Near East, required pistachio called Red Aleppo that originated from a place called “Halab.” Halab translates to English as Aleppo. The name of the pistachio deduces its nomenclature from its birthplace and colour. The pistachio is uniquely red. Important tenants of this pistachio filled pastry are its identity in a social context, cultural significance, environmental climate, urbanization, and a large export trade internationally reckoned.

The Turkish, the Greek, the Italian, Egyptian, and the Persian do not recognize this kind of baklava as separate from their own since they use different forms of nuts and toppings.

This, in turn, eradicates the original authenticity and preservation of the dessert dish itself. Although unanimously sweet, Syrian Baklava is different in flavour, texture, and shape.