Hazelnut baklava is a tray-baked pastry made with hazelnuts instead of pistachios in Giresun and Ordu. Hazelnuts have a higher fat content than pistachios, and their papery skins are bitter, so the nuts are lightly toasted and rubbed free of their skins before being added. When the toasted hazelnuts meet the syrup, they give the dessert a deep, roasted aroma that pistachio baklava does not have.
Bring the sugar and water to a boil and simmer for 12 minutes. Add the lemon juice just before removing the pan from the heat. Set the syrup aside to cool; it should reach room temperature by the time the baklava comes out of the oven.
Toast the hazelnuts in a dry skillet over medium heat for 5 minutes, shaking the pan constantly. Stop when the papery skins begin to crack and lift. Put the hot hazelnuts in a clean kitchen towel and rub them between your hands to remove the skins. Let them cool, then chop them coarsely with a knife.
Melt the butter and let it stand for 3 minutes, then use the clear portion. Brush a baking pan with butter and layer half the phyllo sheets in it, brushing butter between each sheet. Spread all the hazelnuts in an even layer, then add the remaining sheets, pulling the top sheet taut.
Use a sharp knife to cut the baklava into diamond shapes, pressing the blade all the way to the bottom of the pan each time. Do not saw back and forth. Pour the remaining clarified butter into the cuts.
Bake in an oven preheated to 180°C / 355°F for 25 minutes on the lower rack, then 20 minutes on the middle rack. The baklava is ready when the cuts have opened and the layers are distinct. As soon as it comes out of the oven, ladle the cooled syrup into the cuts and wait for the sizzling to stop.
Remove the hazelnut skins. They contain bitter compounds, and the bitterness spreads through the whole tray when combined with the syrup. After toasting, rub the hazelnuts in a clean kitchen towel to remove the skins.
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