
Our guest today is Nancy Parra. She'll tell us about her latest book, Death Bee Comes Her, the first in a new series. Nancy will also share a recipe and give away a book to someone who leaves a comment at the end of this post.
Please welcome Nancy, a good writer, a good cook, and a good friend.
Take it away, Nancy!
Hi Mystery Lovers, Thank you for letting me visit and share with you my latest book, Death Bee Comes Her. It’s a cozy mystery set on the beautiful coast of Oregon. Wren Johnson, our protagonist, owns “Let It Bee” a shop using honey and honeybee products. She even has a hive in the wall of her store (encased in glass) so people can see the bees at work.
Death Bee Comes Her is the first in a new series and is a Barnes and Noble exclusive this year. You can find it here.
For today’s blog, I’m sharing my Baklava Honey Pie recipe.
Baklava Honey Pie
Ingredients1 16-ounce package of phyllo dough (you can find it in most freezer sections at your local grocers)
1 pound of real butter (melt ¼ of a pound at a time. You might not use it all, but you can never have too much butter in Baklava.)
1 cup of sugar
½ cup of honey
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
¾ cup of water
4 cups of finely chopped walnuts (you can substitute pistachios or almonds or combine all three.)
1 tablespoon of cinnamon
Step 1: Thaw filo dough (over-night in the refrigerator is best).
Step 2: In a heavy sauce pan, mix together sugar, honey, lemon juice and water. Boil over medium heat, stirring until the sugar is dissolved. Then reduce the heat to med low and boil unstirred for 4 minutes. Remove from heat and let cool completely.
Step 3: Butter a 9-inch pie pan. Place a sheet of thawed phyllo dough in pie pan gently tapping it along the side to take the shape of the pan. Use a pastry brush, brush on melted butter to completely cover the dough. (Some dough will hang over the edge. We’ll address that later.) Turn the pie pan and place a second sheet of dough so that the points hang over opposite of the first sheet. Tap into pan and brush on butter. Repeat turning the pan and placing the dough and buttering until you have ten sheets. (Tip: cover the remaining dough with a damp tea towel to prevent it from drying out while you are layering)
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
Step 4: Finely chop the nuts and combine with 1 tablespoon of cinnamon. Spread about ¾ cup of nut mixture over phyllo dough. Repeat with five more sheets, turning the pan, buttering each sheet with melted butter. Add ¾ cup of nut mixture. Repeat until you only have ten sheets left. Finish off the top of the pie with 10 layers of buttered sheets. Brush the top with butter.
So it should go like this: 40 sheets of Phyllo
10 buttered, ¾ cup of nut mixture
5 buttered, ¾ cup of nut mixture
5 buttered, ¾ cup of nut mixture
5 buttered, ¾ cup of nut mixture
5 buttered, ¾ cup of nut mixture
10 buttered and butter the top
If your package is less than 40 sheets, still put ten on bottom and ten on top and fewer layers in the middle.
Step 5: Carefully trim off extra phyllo dough hanging over the edge and using a fork press and seal the edge of the pie. Cut pastry into 1 ½ inch wide strips, then cut again diagonally to form traditional diamond shapes. Bake at 325 degrees F for 1 hour and 15 min or until golden brown.
Step 6: Remove the pie from oven and immediately spoon the cooled syrup over the hot baklava evenly. Let cool completely uncovered.
Tip: let it sit 4-6 hours or overnight before serving. Store at room temperature, covered with a tea towel. It can keep up to two weeks but that rarely happens at my home.
You can find more honey recipes and tips about bees in the book. The Oregon Honeycomb series is my latest mystery series. I also write as Nancy J Parra and Nell Hampton. Please feel free to visit me online.
Website: nancyjcoco.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/nancyjcoco/.
Giveaway
I’m happy to give away a copy of Death Bee Comes Her to one lucky winner. To enter leave a comment below by February 22nd and list your e-mail address.
Honey and bee products are used for more than just yummy recipes. What is your favorite way to use honey?
I've only ever used honey for food. However, I do love Burt's Bees lip balm. It's the only thing that works for me. jdzchaotickittie (at) yahoo (dot) com
ReplyDeleteI love Burt's Bees products. Thanks Ashley
DeleteWhat a timely recipe. My cousin gave me a jar of honey produced by her bees. I do use honey in some other recipes. One recipe is a marinade for pork chops. dbahn(at)iw(dot)net
ReplyDeleteOh, yes, honey would be great on porkchops!
DeleteI love baklava so much and this pie looks amazing. I can't wait to make it! I like honey in hot tea, biscuits and english muffins. bobandcelia@sbcglobal.net
ReplyDeleteThanks Celia!
DeleteWhat a great recipe! I can't wait to try it and to read your newest book. Thank you, Nancy.
ReplyDeleteThanks for thinking of me.
DeleteThe pie looks delicious! I mostly use honey for eating but I love Burt’s Bees products. My favorite is the Overnight Intensive Lip Treatment. It makes my lips feel great. cking78503(at)aol(dot)com
ReplyDeletehoney is great for the skin!
DeleteWhat a fun recipe, Nancy, and great book title. Shared your giveaway on my Facebook page. ~ Daryl
ReplyDeleteThanks, Daryl
DeleteI really enjoy your writing. I don’t do Barnes and Noble, only Amazon. I’ve been disappointed I couldn’t try this book. I haven’t tried it but I’ve heard honey can be used for wounds. suefoster109 at gmail dot com.
ReplyDeleteHey Sue, This book will go wide in Jan 2021-
DeleteI love putting honey in my tea. I also use it in my oatmeal.
ReplyDeletedebprice60(at)gmail(dot)com
Hi Deb, I love honey in oatmeal.
DeleteI'm not sure which sounds better, the recipe or the book - here's hoping I win - thanks for the chance - trwilliams69(at)msn(dot)com
ReplyDeleteHi Taylor- thanks!
DeleteYour recipe is delectable and the book would be greatly enjoyed. I use honey in tea especially when my throat is a problem. honey is soothing and lovely. saubleb(at)gmail(dot)com
ReplyDeleteI agree- and it has antibiotic properties.
DeleteThis looks so good. Ellen_worgan@yahoo.com
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteMostly use honey in food. We do have big blocks of the wax which are great for everyday household use, like running it along thread to make it slide through easier when sewing.
ReplyDeletekozo8989(at)hotmail(dot)com
Oh Alicia, I'd forgotten about waxing thread - thanks for the reminder!
DeleteHoney on buttered toast.
ReplyDeletelbbydodd at comcast dot net
Hi Libby, honey on butter toast is amazing!
DeleteDrizzled over waffles
ReplyDeletesgiden at verizon(.)net
Love that!
DeleteWelcome, Nancy! A baklava recipe I might actually be able to make!
ReplyDeleteHi Leslie, thanks- it's really easy.
DeleteThat pie looks delicious! And the book cover looks delicious too. Just want to jump in and read it!
ReplyDeleteHi Stephanie, thanks!
DeleteI would love to try this recipe! I love drizzling honey in plain yogurt or just on toast or a bagel with butter! Thanks for the chance! almaj80(at)suddenlink(dot)net
ReplyDeleteAlmaj, honey is great in yogurt. Thanks!
DeleteI love baklava! Sometimes I like to put honey in my oatmeal.
ReplyDeleteturtle6422 at gmail dot com
Hi Jana, yum!
Deletecongratulations on your new book. I love honey. I bake with it. I put it in my tea, etc. But this recipe is wonderful for this time of year: Homemade Sore Throat Gummies Recipe with Lemon, Ginger and Honey
ReplyDeletequilting lady 2 at comcast dot net
Lori that's amazing, thank you!
DeleteLooks yummy although I'm not a big honey fan! Love your work!! suepete12 at yahoo dot com
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteThe MINUTE I'm done with my diet I will be making this. I love Baklava!. I use honey with tea and lemon for sore throat, Burt's Bee lip balm is always in my purse and I love honey on toast.
ReplyDeletebobntoni@aol.com
Hi Toni, honey is one of my favorites.
DeleteMy favorite way to use honey is in my tea. Looking forward to start reading your new series.
ReplyDeletediannekc8(at)gmail(dot)com
Thanks, Dianne
DeleteI've used honey in the usua ways - cooking and tea - but also in making soap and candy.
ReplyDeleteWould love to read this - thanks for the chance!
jwhite410(at)yahoo(dot)com
Oooh, honey in soap is a great idea!
DeleteI mostly use honey on biscuits or when I have a cough.
ReplyDeletelkish77123 at gmail dot com
Linda, I love honey on bisquits.
DeleteDuring the winter I use honey daily in tea, and on crackers and baguettes. Your recipe is wonderful. elliotbencan(at)hotmail(dot)com
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteI have not used honey for reasons other than food, but I should give a mixture of it a try on my very dry lips.
ReplyDeletebrowninggloria (at) hotmail (dot) com
I hope you do give it a try.
DeleteI like to put honey in my tea. Jteastman215atgmaildotcom
ReplyDeleteYum!
DeleteThis is an interesting recipe. I make baklava every year at Christmas. I look forward to trying your version. annmcclaflin@aol.com
ReplyDeleteHi Ann, I made it for Pi Day at work.
DeleteI love your books and look forward to new series.karen , at karden45@comcast.net
ReplyDelete