Pina Colada Baklava

Heat oven to 350 F. Rough chop pineapple and place in a food processor. Pulse to break up chunks then puree. Pineapple will become a sticky mass. It is fine if there are small chunks but hand cut any large ones that might have remained.

Reserve and set aside a heaping 1/3 cup of the coconut for topping baklava after baking.

Butter the inside of a 9″x13″ baking pan. Remove phyllo dough from packaging. Trim off excess phyllo to fit baking pan using kitchen sheers or a knife (optional). Lay phyllo flat on your work surface and cover with plastic wrap and a damp towel. Working one sheet at a time, butter the top of a phyllo sheet and place it butter-side-up in the baking pan. Repeat for 10 more sheets (there should be a total of 11 buttered sheets in the pan for the first layer), buttering each sheet before placing in the dish. Keep the unused phyllo sheets covered to prevent drying out.

Pull apart and layer 1/4 of the pineapple over the top phyllo sheet. The pineapple will be clumpy and sticky to work with. Sprinkle 1/4 of the coconut and 1/4 of the almonds over the pineapple.

Layer 6 buttered phyllo sheets over the pineapple/coconut mixture. Top with 1/4 of pineapple, 1/4 of coconut and 1/4 of almonds. Repeat layering the 6 phyllo sheets and filling two more times.

There should be 11 phyllo sheets remaining. Butter and place each sheet over the last layer of pineapple/coconut mixture. Use a sharp knife and cut through baklava on a diagonal to create diamond shaped bars that are roughly 1 1/2-inch thick.

Bake at 350 F for 60 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Meanwhile, during the last 15 minutes of baking, make the glaze. Place butter and agave nectar in a small saucepan on medium heat. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add rum and boil for 1 minute. Remove from heat.

Spoon about 1/3 of the glaze evenly over the baklava once it comes out of the oven. Let glaze soak for a minute. Spoon another 1/3 of the glaze over the top then sprinkle on the reserved coconut flakes. Add the last third of the glaze. Allow to set for about 4 hours before serving.

Note: If you don’t want to use rum, it may be substituted with a coconut extract. Take the finished glaze off the heat and stir in coconut extract. Start with about 1/2 teaspoon and adjust quantity to taste.