Bavarian Style Apple Strudel Apfel Strudel Recipe 465

Steps:

• NOTE: I find that rolling out the puff pastry on a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper is ideal. This helps with the rolling of the strudel and for the transferring of the filled strudel onto a baking sheet a breeze! Filling: Peel and remove the core. Slice the apples thinly. NOTE: I invested in an apple peeler, corer, that makes this process so easy to do. I simply attach the apple to the fork, turn the crank and my apple is peeled, cored and sliced thin very quickly! I also drop the prepared apples in a bowl of cold water, with the juice of half a lemon (to prevent browning). If using Clearjel thickener, add it to the sugar and mix together. Add the sugar, lemon juice, golden raisins, boiled apple cider** (if using)and cinnamon to the apples and mix to combine. Set aside. **Boiled cider is a heavily concentrated cider that has been boiled down and reduced to a very thick syrup. I use this to enhance my apple pies, crisps and strudels. It's also a great way to make apple juice, or pour it over pancakes. Gently roll the sheet of puff pastry out to smooth out the fold marks into a rectangular shape. Brush an even layer of melted butter onto the pastry. I "plop" about 3 tablespoons of sour cream right down the center and spread it evenly, leaving at least a 2-inch border all the way around. The apple mixture might become watery, as the apples begin to release their juices. So, use a slotted spoon (or clean hands) to add half of the apple mixture into the center of the pastry sheet-- leaving at least a 2-inch border. Lift up one side of the parchment paper to cover the center filling. Lift up the other side to cover the fruit entirely. Pinch together the long seam and both ends, to seal the pastry. Tuck the ends over the top and gently press to seal. Lift the parchment paper over a parchment lined baking sheet and gently roll the strudel on to the sheet, with the sealed side down. Repeat the process with the second puff pastry sheet. At this point, you can refrigerate the strudel until you are ready to bake it (within a few hours). Preheat the oven to 400°F. Brush the egg wash over each strudel and sprinkle with coarse sugar (if using). Using a sharp knife, make diagonal slices across the top 2-3-inches apart. Bake between 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown. Allow to cool on a baking rack, for at least five minutes. The strudel is best served warm or at room temperature, and is best eaten on the day that is is baked. If desired, you can whisk powdered sugar all over the top right before serving. Fresh whipped cream is a lovely garnish, as well.

Steps:

• To make the dough: Place the flour, egg, soft butter and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer. Mixing with the dough hook on low speed, add enough of the cold water to make a soft dough. Knead the dough in the electric mixer at medium speed until it is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Form the dough into a ball and coat it with oil. Cover and let rest at room temperature for about 1 hour.
• For the filling: To make the coarse bread crumbs, toast slices of white bread in the oven until crisp, about 10 minutes. Break into pieces and place in a food processor. Pulse the processor until the bread resembles large bread crumbs. In a saute pan, over medium heat, saute the bread crumbs in 1/4 cup of the melted butter until they are golden brown. Reserve the sauteed bread crumbs and the remaining melted butter separately. Combine the sliced apples, granulated sugar, raisins, nuts, ground cinnamon and about half of the bread crumbs. Cut the firm butter into chunks and gently toss together with the apple mixture.
• To Assemble: Cover a work surface approximately 4 feet by 4 feet with a clean piece of cloth. The cloth is used to facilitate stretching and rolling the dough. Make sure that the cloth is securely fastened to the table. Dust the cloth lightly with the flour. Place the rested dough in the center of the cloth. Using a rolling pin, roll the dough into a large, thin rectangle. When the dough is as thin as it will go with the rolling pin, it is time to begin stretching and pulling the dough. To stretch and pull the dough, place your hands under the dough, and, using your thumbs and the back of your hand, gently begin pulling and stretching the dough. Pull and stretch the dough until it is a rectangle approximately 3 1/2 feet by 2 1/2 feet. Be very careful when you are pulling and stretching not to tear the dough. After it is pulled to the proper size, let the dough relax on the table for a few minutes. There will be a thick edge around the edges, trim this away. You also want to trim off any parts of the dough that hang over the edges of the table. Place the apple filling next to the long edge of the dough closest to you. Form the filling into a thick log. Brush some of the reserved melted butter generously over the remainder of the dough. Sprinkle the remaining bread crumbs over the dough. Using the cloth to help lift the dough, roll the strudel as you would a jelly roll, starting from the filling side. Place the strudel, seam side down, in a horseshoe shape on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush the strudel with the last of the melted butter. Bake in a preheated 375 degree F oven for about 35 minutes, Remove the pan from the oven and cool. Slice the the strudel into individual servings and serve either warm or at room temperature.