POULSBO — Tasty, fresh baked baklava is a delicacy best found in places like Istanbul, Turkey or towns and cities along the Mediterranean Sea.

Or, Thompson Road just off State Route 3 on a Wednesday afternoon.

There, you’ll find aspiring baker and budding entrepreneur Blake MacLearnsberry, 13, at the side of the road, serving up the scrumptious Middle-Eastern delight whose reputation spreads with each car that passes by.

What started as a 4-H fair project has become a grassroots business for Blake, that is now two years running. Now a veteran in the roadside biz — he’s dipped into selling waffle cones and even the classic lemonade stand — his dream is to open his own deli or bakery.

And why baklava?

“Because it’s a challenge to make,” he said. “And if you’re gonna run a bakery, you have to know how to make all kinds of pastries.”

The Middle-Eastern classic dish, of which he has made two kinds — rolled version (85 cents) and open-faced ($1.25) — explodes with the flavors of succulent maple syrup and savory mixed nuts on a soft pastry shell.

Blake begins the recipe by taking 12 cups of nuts and chopping them up. He then spreads out Phyllo dough, which he butters, and then adds the nuts. After baking, a layer of maple syrup is added.

His first try at running a baklava stand last year, he made a cool $30 for his efforts.

“I figured that was pretty good for a little lemonade-type stand,” he said.

“He’s a natural salesperson,” added his mother, Kadi. “Not everyone would be able to go out there and put on a chef’s hat and garb.”

Give him 10 years, and Blake said Poulsbo may see a new deli or bakery with his signature baklava and other goodies and sandwiches. He said his menu would include many items with a myriad of tastes.

“When you go to a bakery nowadays, you buy a donut and you’ve basically bought oil, flower, and sugar. It’s like you’re just eating fat,” he said. “Baklava is a rather healthy dessert.”

Word has certainly spread of his baking know-how, evidenced by the fact that last summer, he was making about a batch and a half of baklava each week. This summer, he’s doubling that with three batches.

The increased workload does see the inspired young baker up until midnight sometimes to complete his dessert. He does have help from his parents, however, who aid him in the baking process and even buy up any of the baked treats he doesn’t sell.

Though there’s never much left, he said.

Even if young Blake MacLearnsberry doesn’t own his own bakery and deli someday, Kadi said his experiences will go with him for the rest of his life.

“If this doesn’t become his career, it will always be a love,” she said.