Ingredients
1 cup pistachio nuts
450g packet vanilla slab sponge cakes, halved horizontally (see tip)
1 ¾ cups vanilla yogurt
125g punnet raspberries
pashmak fairy floss (optional), edible flowers, to serve
FILLO PASTRY LAYERS
1 cup walnuts
½ cup pistachios
1 tbsp caster sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground cardamom
16 sheets Antoniou Fillo Pastry
100g butter, melted
SPICED SYRUP
1 cup water
½ cup sugar
¼ cup honey
5 cloves
3 cardamom seeds, crushed
1 cinnamon quill
Recipe Tips
If preferred use round sponges and cut the filo stacks round to fit the size of the cake before baking.
As an alternative decorate with raspberries, strawberries or dust with icing sugar.
Method
Before you begin this Filo Pastry recipe, take your fresh Filo Pastry out of the fridge and allow it to come up to room temperature in its packaging (at least 2 hours).
Preheat oven to 200°C (180°C fan-forced). Lightly grease and line 2 oven trays.
FILLO PASTRY LAYERS
In a food processor, pulse nuts, sugar and spices to a fine crumb. Place one filo pastry sheet on a clean work surface, brush with butter.
Sprinkle over about 1 tablespoon of the nut mixture. Top with 1 more fillo sheet, crumpling slightly. Repeat with another 6 fillo sheets, brushing with butter and sprinkling with nut mixture, finishing with a fillo layer. Repeat with remaining fillo, nut mixture and butter to make another stack.
Cut each stack into two 14 x 18cm rectangles (the same dimensions as sponge cake layers). Lift onto trays with offcuts. Bake 8-10 minutes until golden and crisp. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
SPICED SYRUP
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan combine all syrup ingredients. Bring to the boil on medium, stirring, until sugar dissolves. Reduce heat to low and simmer, without stirring, 10 minutes until thick and syrupy (brush sides with water to remove sugar crystals and prevent crystallisation).
In a small food processor, pulse 1 cup pistachios to a fine crumb. Hold each cake half in the palm of your hand. Dip each side into the spiced syrup, then press cake sides into pistachios to coat.
Roughly crush raspberries with a fork and swirl through yoghurt.
ASSEMBLING
Place one cake layer on a serving plate. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of syrup. Spread thinly with ¼ cup of raspberry yoghurt. Top with one fillo stack, spread with another ¼ cup of yoghurt. Repeat with remaining cake, syrup, yoghurt and fillo stacks, finishing with fillo layer.
Decorate with shards of fillo, remaining chopped pistachios, pashmak and edible flowers.