Quote:
Originally Posted by transplant99
There seems to be tradition for most, and I think we should share recipes!!!!
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I usually make apple strudel for dessert. My Mom made her own strudel dough but I have never been able to duplicate how thin and delicate she could make it so I cheat and use store bought phyllo (filo). This recipe will serve 8 to 10 and it is easier to make this apple strudel than apple pie.
APPLE STRUDEL
9 sheets phyllo (filo) dough – in frozen foods where you find pie shells and puff pastry
½ cup unsalted butter, melted
2 tsp icing sugar
¼ tsp cinnamon for sprinkling
9 large apples
1 cup raisins (dark seedless California)
¾ cup brown sugar
4 Tbsp flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1. Center a large 11” springform pan on a piece of foil. Fold foil part way up sides of the spring form pan. This prevents butter and juices from leaking out during baking.
2. Filling: I normally use around 5 Granny Smith and Jonagold for the other 4 but all Golden Delicious works too. Peel the apples, cut in half and core. Cut each half into 3 pieces, so 6 wedges per apple. Cut each wedge into 4 to 5 slices, not too thick, not too thin. In bowl, toss together the apples with the brown sugar, flour and cinnamon; set aside. The easiest way is put all the ingredients in an ice cream pail and shake vigorously to incorporate the apples with the dry ingredients. Stir with a large spoon to make sure apple slices on the bottom are coated with the dry ingredients.
3. Arrange 1 sheet of the phyllo on work surface such as a large cutting board, keeping remaining phyllo covered with damp towel to prevent drying out. Brush the sheet of phyllo lightly with butter. Top with second sheet; brush lightly with butter. Top with third sheet but do not butter. Each time, cover your reserved phyllo with a damp cloth so it does not dry out. If it dries, you wont be able to separate the sheets.
Spread one-third of the filling in strip along closest long edge of phyllo, leaving 1/2-inch (1 cm) border at each end. Sprinkle a small handful, approximately 1/3 cup, of raisins over the apple filling. Fold ends over and roll up firmly jelly roll style. Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make 2 more rolls. Snake two of the rolls on the outside of the pan and push them tightly towards the outside to make a large cavity in the inside. It will look like a donut with a hole in the middle. Coil and fit the third roll in the inside, being careful not to break it. If any of the rolls do break, take a bit of phyllo and cover the broken portion. Brush the whole surface of your strudel liberally with melted butter.
4. Preheat the oven to 425°F. Put the strudel in the bottom third of the oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the temperature to 375°F and bake for 50 minutes longer or until golden brown and crisp. You can test with a fork to see if the apples are cooked but I find this time to be dead on accurate.
5. Remove the strudel from the oven and remove the foil from the springform pan. Put the springform pan on a large serving plate. Loosen the clamp on the outside of the springform pan but don’t remove the side of the springform pan. Let the strudel cool for about an hour. After an hour, you can remove the loosened side of the springform pan.
The strudel can be set aside at room temperature for up to 6 hours. It should not be covered and refrigerated because the phyllo pastry will lose its crispness. It can be reheated just until warm in a 375
°F oven for about 10 minutes. It is nicest served warm.
Sprinkle with icing sugar and a little cinnamon. A small scoop of vanilla ice cream is the perfect accompaniment.
Note: Left over phyllo pastry can be refrozen. Put a sheet of wax paper on top of the stack of phyllo and now roll the phyllo up. Wrap with saran and put back in the box the phyllo came in. Put the box of phyllo in a plastic bag and freeze. One box of phyllo pastry will make 2 strudels, possibly 3 depending on the brand that you buy.
Here are the before and after pictures.
