Walnut Baklava Dot Cake

Walnut Cake:

1. To a mixing bowl add softened butter, vanilla, eggs, and sugar. Whisk until fluffy.

2. Then add flour, salt, baking powder, ground cardamom, and oil. Whisk until fluffy.

3. Fold in chopped walnuts.

4. Oil a 9×12 deep pan, pour batter in. Bake at 350° for 30-35 minutes until golden on top. Once done, set aside to cool.

Syrup:

1. In a pot add sugar, honey, lemon, and water. Let it come to a boil, simmer on low for 5 minutes. Turn heat off and set aside to cool.

Cream Filling:

1. Thaw plain/unsweetened cool whip. Add cardamom and powdered sugar, fold and set aside.

Walnut Filling:

1. In a processor add walnuts, ground cinnamon, and ground cardamom. Pulse until combined.

Toppings:

1. Butter phyllo sheets and bake on 350°F until crisp. Once cooled, break apart into crumbs and combine with some of the walnut filling. This will be the topping.

Assembly:

1. Use the cake cups as molds to cut out 6 rounds of cake. Slice each round in half horizontally, creating 12 cake layers total (2 layers per cup).

2. In each cup, place one layer of cake and poke holes, top with 1 Tbsp syrup, spoon in 2 Tbsp cream, and top with 2 Tbsp walnut mixture. Then add another layer of cake, top another 1 Tbsp syrup, spoon in another 2 Tbsp cream and dip into the crispy phyllo and walnut mix. Add a single, whole walnut half in the center at the top. Refrigerate for 1-2 hours for an added crunch or enjoy as is.