Breakfasts, Desserts, Recipes, Snacks, Uncategorized | 39 comments
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This Low-Carb Baklava Braid has the sweet honey-walnut and spice flavors of Baklava. However, this recipe is low enough in carbs, that it can be part of a low-carb, keto, diabetic, gluten-free, grain-free, or Banting diet.
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I have been working for over a year to bring this recipe for Low-Carb Baklava Braid to all of you. I love baklava, but I knew that making real low-carb baklava would be an impossible. Real baklava is made from super thin layers of phyllo dough. Sheets of this dough are layered with spiced nuts and a honey infused syrup.
The problem with making a low-carb real baklava is twofold. First, I don’t think a low-carb phyllo dough is possible. Second, high-carb honey is an integral part of the flavor combination.
I decided that, while making low-carb baklava might be impossible, I could still have all of the flavors of the Greek dessert in the form of a pastry made from mozzarella dough like I used in my low-carb sticky bun recipe. Problem number one–solved!
The second problem, the high-carb honey, was not so easy to solve. Last fall, I made several prototypes of this recipe using a commercial honey-stevia blend. While it tasted amazing, I just couldn’t get the number of carbs per serving low enough to work for most of my followers lifestyles.
I thought about using one of the sugar-free honey-flavored syrups available, but most of them contain maltitol or other types of sugar alcohols that are notorious for causing GI distress in some people (including myself). While some people do fine with these, I just can’t develop a recipe using ingredients that make me miserable.
A few weeks ago, I finally found a solution to the honey problem! I found an all natural honey flavoring on Amazon. I have used this company’s molasses flavoring in my recipe for Low-Carb Molasses Cookies and been pleased with the results, so I decided the honey flavoring was worth a try. It worked perfectly!
The final product is a gorgeous braided pastry filled with walnuts blended with exotic flavors of cinnamon, cardamom, and clove. The filling is soaked with a honey glaze scented with lemon and clove. More glaze on top adds a lovely sheen. The flavor is just like baklava, but this treat has way fewer carbs.
This Low-Carb Baklava braid has a beautiful presentation, but is really a cinch to make. I took step-by-step photos, to make it even easier. You don’t even need to know how to braid!
This Low-Carb Baklava Braid makes a lovely holiday treat. It would be stunning for a holiday breakfast or brunch. It could also be served as a dessert. Enjoy!
-Annissa
This Low-Carb Baklava Braid has the sweet honey-walnut and spice flavors of Baklava. It would be stunning for a holiday breakfast or brunch. It could also be served as a dessert. Enjoy!
5 from 9 votes
Low-Carb Baklava Braid
This Low-Carb Baklava Braid has the sweet honey-walnut and spice flavors of Baklava. However, this recipe is low enough in carbs, that it can be part of a low-carb, keto, diabetic, gluten-free, grain-free, or Banting diet.
Course Breakfast, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine Greek, low-carb
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 23 minutes
Total Time 43 minutes
Servings 12
Author Annissa Slusher
Ingredients
For the filling:
- 1 1/2 cups walnuts whole or pieces
- 2 tablespoons granulated stevia/erythritol blend
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
For the syrup:
- 2 tablespoons granulated stevia/erythritol blend
- 1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 tablespoons VitaFiber IMO Syrup
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 clove
- 1/8 teaspoon honey flavoring
For the pastry dough:
- 1 cup super fine almond flour
- 1/4 cup granulated stevia/erythritol blend
- 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1 1/4 teaspoon grain-free baking powder
- 1 large egg
- 2 cups part-skim shredded mozzarella cheese (8 ounces)
For the assembly:
- 1 tablespoon butter melted
Instructions
Preheat oven to 350º Fahrenheit. Have two sheets of parchment about 20 inches long and a rolling pin available. Place one of the parchment sheets on a large cutting board or similar surface.
For the filling:
Place walnuts, stevia/erythritol blend, cinnamon, cardamom, and cloves in a food processor.
Pulse food processor until nuts are very finely chopped and mixture is blended. Set aside.
For the syrup:
In a small saucepan, whisk together the stevia/erythritol blend and the xanthan gum. Slowly stream in the water while continuing to whisk. Whisk in the VitaFiber syrup and the lemon zest. Drop in the clove.
Place the saucepan over low heat. Bring mixture to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Simmer for 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, stir in honey flavoring and set aside.
For the pastry dough:
In a large heavy saucepan, whisk together the almond flour, stevia/erythritol blend, xanthan gum, and baking powder.
Add the egg and whisk in. Stir in the mozzarella cheese.
Place mixture over low heat. Heat, stirring frequently, until cheese melts and mixture forms a dough.
To assemble:
Turn out dough onto the parchment covered cutting board. Pat into a rectangle.
Cover the dough with the second sheet of parchment. Roll into a 15 inch by 10 inch rectangle.
Cut slanting strips, about 1 inch apart on each long side about 1/3 of the way in. Be sure to cut the same number of strips on both sides.
Spread melted butter over the center third of the dough.
Spoon the walnut mixture over the melted butter. Create a trench in the top of the walnut mixture and spoon all but about 1 tablespoon of the syrup in the trench.
Cut off the bottom and top corners of the dough. Fold the bottom and top flaps over the filling.
Fold the strips over the filling, alternating sides.
Tuck the last two strips under the top. Transfer the pastry to a baking sheet by lifting it with the parchment paper.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
Remove from oven. Brush the remaining tablespoon of the syrup over the top of the pastry. This adds a beautiful sheen. Transfer to a cutting board and cut into 12 slices. Serve warm.
Recipe Notes
Serving size: 1 slice (with braid cut into 12 slices)
Per serving:
Calories: 226
Fat (g): 19
Carbs (g): 6
Fiber (g): 3
Protein (g): 10
Net carbs (g): 3
allison on December 15, 2017 at 11:01 am
OMG That is just gorgeous! Gotta try that!!
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on December 15, 2017 at 6:17 pm
Thank you!
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Konul Pickering on December 17, 2017 at 2:52 pm
My son also has to avoid dairy. Would it work if I replace mozzarella with Daiya Mozzarella style shreds? Thank you!!
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on December 18, 2017 at 10:12 am
I’ve never used that product. If it is stretchy, like regular mozzarella, it should work just fine. I just don’t have enough experience with it to give you a yes or no answer. If you do try it, I’d love to know if it worked. Many of my followers are dairy free and would benefit from this.
-AnnissaReply
Esther A Robison on December 24, 2017 at 8:04 am
Yes it works well . My sister and I use Daiya mozzarella all the time .
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on December 24, 2017 at 9:23 am
Thanks for the feedback Esther! I’m not familiar with the product, so I’m glad for your input!
-AnnissaReply
Debra on April 7, 2019 at 3:38 pm
I think it would work, but it would up the carb content since Daiya ‘cheese’ is made with pea protein.
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Maria on December 19, 2017 at 4:08 pm
Hi can you tell me if I can replace stevia with regular sugar in this recipe?
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on December 19, 2017 at 4:27 pm
If you replace the stevia/erythritol blend with regular sugar, you will need to use twice the amount.
-AnnissaReply
Arlene on December 27, 2017 at 9:59 pm
Hope I make this soon!
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on December 28, 2017 at 11:24 am
Let us know how it turns out when you do!
-AnnissaReply
Anita on January 18, 2018 at 1:21 am
Hello! Thank you for this amazing looking recipe 🙂
I’ve been over the entire thing several times to be sure, so I feel pretty confident in saying that I think you might’ve missed explicit instructions for the honey flavoring in the body of the recipe- I couldn’t find when to use it. Common sense will infer that it goes into the syrup combination step, but I just wanted to make sure. If you could let me know I’d appreciate it!
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on January 18, 2018 at 10:49 am
Thank you so much for bringing this to my attention! The honey flavoring goes in when you remove the syrup from the stove. I’ve altered the recipe to show this. I always hate it when I make a mistake like this! I’ve gotten better and developed a proofreading system, but sometimes things still slip through the cracks. Thanks again for letting me know!
AnnissaReply
Lisa on January 30, 2018 at 2:17 pm
There seems to be an issue with the link for the honey flavoring. I’m not sure which one you used. Also want to order from your affiliate link. Your site looks awesome! Can’t wait til I have more time to properly check it out!
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on January 30, 2018 at 2:24 pm
Hi Lisa,
Thanks so much for your kind words! The site is truly a labor of love. Here is an affiliate link to the honey flavoring. We really appreciate the support. For some reason there seems to be an issue with the program I use to put in the recipes.Hopefully it will be resolved soon!Best regards,
AnnissaReply
Christine on February 10, 2018 at 12:43 pm
Your recipes are amazing! Thank you so much!
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on February 10, 2018 at 7:44 pm
Thanks so much!
-AnnissaReply
Patty Wincek on February 15, 2018 at 11:46 am
Can one use Swerve in place of the stevia/erythritol blend?
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on February 15, 2018 at 12:19 pm
Patty, while I haven’t tried Swerve in this recipe, I don’t see why it wouldn’t work. Swerve is less sweet than Pyure, so you will need to double the amount of sweetener to get the sweetness level right. Good luck!
Annissa
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Tierney on March 10, 2018 at 8:28 am
Still can’t access the honey flavoring. The page on Amazon is missing.
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on March 11, 2018 at 4:00 pm
Gosh, that’s frustrating. There are several others on Amazon that look like they might work. This one (aff. link) looks particularly good to me. I wish they had the ingredients listed. You may need to adjust the amount you use.
-Annissa
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Naida on May 19, 2020 at 1:09 pm
Hey, none of the honey flavorings you linked in the comments have worked for me. Is it possible to just replace it & the IMO syrup with one of those sugar free honey syrups? If so, how much? I really want to make this but I cannot find that honey flavoring anywhere.
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Annissa Slusher on May 20, 2020 at 5:41 pm
Yes, I’m so disappointed that this is now hard to find. I would use one of the sugar free honey syrups. The IMO syrup isn’t very sweet, so you might want to use a little less.
AnnissaReply
Lynn on March 27, 2018 at 9:24 am
Can this be frozen after cooking? Doe this warm up well in the micro?
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on March 27, 2018 at 10:00 am
Hi Lynn,
I haven’t tried freezing this, but I have kept leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for a few days. I warmed mine up in a low temperature oven. I don’t have a microwave, but I would think that heating it up in a microwave would work fine as well. I don’t see why freezing it would be an issue. I just haven’t done it.
AnnissaReply
Madeleine Mulanix on June 11, 2018 at 12:06 am
What is the Vita fiber syrup? I have never heard of it. Is it necessary to the recipe and is there something that could replace it?
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Harper and Annissa Slusher on June 11, 2018 at 5:26 pm
Vita Fiber syrup is a sweet syrup made with prebiotic fiber. It has the same consistency as corn syrup. You may be able to replace it with a different sugar free syrup.
-AnnissaReply
Jenelyn on November 3, 2019 at 5:17 pm
Hi, I just want to say—WOW!!!! This was incredibly delicious. No doubt! I did use swerve, so I doubled the amount as directed. I also used pyure’s faux honey for the syrup and it was great. One thing I have trouble with whenever using a fathead dough (mozz+almond flour) is the mozzarella never really melts completely. How did you get yours so smooth?! Mine was super sticky, and a bit hard to form. In addition, not sure if it’s because I used double the amount of swerve, but I had so much walnut mixture leftover and not enough dough. My braid was probably 10 inches long and 5 inches wide. Final result was a bit ugly, but still delicious nonetheless. Thank you for the recipe! Will definitely be using again.
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Annissa Slusher on November 3, 2019 at 6:24 pm
I find that the mozzarella in a rectangular block that I shred myself works best for this type of dough. Pre-shredded cheese has anti-caking fillers in it that can keep it from melting as well. I had no idea that Pyure has a honey substitute. I’m going to get some of that!
Annissa
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Deborah on December 26, 2019 at 8:43 am
Made this for our Xmas dessert this year….will be THE XMAS DESSERT on our table going forward. Loved it. Reminded me of the Hungarian Walnut Rolls made each holiday when I was a child by a beloved neighbor and given as gifts. So delicious. Mine was also not as pretty as yours as it spread out during cooking and looked a bit like a pastry fish. Next year will fit it into a long rectangular tart pan I have….should do the trick.
But oh the flavor…..just wonderful!
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Annissa Slusher on December 26, 2019 at 8:23 pm
I’m so glad it worked out for you! My theory on food is that it doesn’t matter what it looks like, as long as it tastes good!
Thanks so much!
AnnissaReply
Melissa Sherman on July 21, 2020 at 6:24 pm
I just made this and I am in heaven! I haven’t had baklava in years because of my favorite healthy eating ways. This obviously isn’t equal to it but it does the exact job I need it to. I will be making this again. Thank you!
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Annissa Slusher on July 21, 2020 at 6:27 pm
Thanks so much!
-AnnissaReply
Shadi on September 22, 2021 at 5:10 pm
Recipe came out perfect -it tasted like a baklava filling wrapped in a knafeh!
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Annissa Slusher on September 29, 2021 at 6:58 pm
Awesome!!!
-AnnissaReply
Janet on December 4, 2022 at 10:02 pm
Vitafiber syrup hasnt been available for a couple years now. Do you have a substitute?
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Annissa Slusher on December 15, 2022 at 4:06 pm
Gosh! I guess I need to do some updating! I think Allulose syrup would work. Also, a sugar-free honey substitute would be great in this recipe.
-AnnissaReply
cindy on July 22, 2023 at 9:31 pm
Can apple be added? Seems like it would make a pretty darn good apple strudel recipe.
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Annissa Slusher on July 23, 2023 at 2:22 pm
Sounds like a great addition!
-AnnissaReply
