Recipe courtesy of
Amy Stevenson
for
Food Network Kitchen
Recipe courtesy of
Amy Stevenson
for
Food Network Kitchen
Watch how to make this recipe.
Apple Strudel
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- Level: Intermediate
- Total: 5 hr 50 min (includes resting time)
- Active: 1 hr
- Yield: 8 to 10 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 10 servings
- Calories
- 419
- Total Fat
- 17 g
- Saturated Fat
- 6 g
- Carbohydrates
- 63 g
- Dietary Fiber
- 4 g
- Sugar
- 35 g
- Protein
- 5 g
- Cholesterol
- 24 mg
- Sodium
- 398 mg
This apple strudel is a labor of love—but one that’s far more approachable than it seems. The key is patience: a very thorough knead and a long rest transform the dough into something supple and surprisingly easy to stretch paper-thin. A layer of buttery toasted breadcrumbs adds more than just flavor—it acts as a buffer, absorbing the apples’ juices so the pastry bakes up deeply golden and crisp. Filled with spiced apples, plumped raisins and walnuts, the finished strudel tastes every bit as impressive as it looks. Serve it simply with a dusting of confectioners’ sugar or if you really want to go all out, with a dollop of whipped cream alongside.
- Level: Intermediate
- Total: 5 hr 50 min (includes resting time)
- Active: 1 hr
- Yield: 8 to 10 servings
-
- Nutritional Analysis
- Per Serving
- Serving Size
- 1 of 10 servings
- Calories
- 419
- Total Fat
- 17 g
- Saturated Fat
- 6 g
- Carbohydrates
- 63 g
- Dietary Fiber
- 4 g
- Sugar
- 35 g
- Protein
- 5 g
- Cholesterol
- 24 mg
- Sodium
- 398 mg
Ingredients
Dough:
Filling:
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Directions
- For the dough: Combine the oil, vinegar, salt and 2/3 cup room-temperature water in a measuring cup, stirring to dissolve the salt. Put the flour in a medium bowl and pour in the water mixture. Mix with a fork to make a shaggy dough, then transfer to a work surface and begin to knead by hand. Knead, using as little flour as possible to keep the dough from sticking, until the dough is very smooth, 12 to 15 minutes. (A long kneading time is important to make a stretchable dough.) Form the dough into a ball and lightly rub it with oil. Wrap in plastic and let rest at room temperature for at least 4 hours and preferably overnight in the refrigerator. (If refrigerated, remove from the fridge and let rest to return to room temperature before stretching, about 1 hour.)
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a flat baking sheet (it will be easier to transfer the rolled strudel if your baking sheet is flat) with parchment. (If you only have a rimmed baking sheet, you can roll the strudel onto a sheet of parchment and carefully lift the whole thing to transfer to the baking sheet as well.)
- For the filling: Combine the raisins and brandy in a small bowl and set aside to soak for 15 minutes.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a small skillet over medium-low heat. Add the breadcrumbs and cook, stirring often, until dark golden and toasted, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and let cool, then stir in 1/4 cup of the granulated sugar, 1/2 teaspoon of the cinnamon and a big pinch of salt. Melt the remaining 6 tablespoons butter, then transfer to a small bowl and set aside.
- Combine the apples, walnuts, lemon zest and juice, 1/4 teaspoon salt, remaining 3/4 cup granulated sugar and remaining 1 teaspoon cinnamon in a large bowl. Add the raisins and brandy and stir well to combine. Let sit so the apples release their juices while you stretch the strudel dough.
- Drape a sheet over a table or your countertop (ideally, you should have access to the table from all sides to make stretching easier). Lightly flour the sheet and the dough ball. Pat the dough into a rectangle and begin to roll into a larger, thinner rectangle, dusting very lightly with flour only as needed to keep it from sticking. Once you can no longer roll the dough, begin to stretch. Remove any rings and slide your hands under the dough. Gently lift the dough onto the back of your hands, making loose fists so your fingers don’t poke the dough. Begin to slowly stretch the dough, like pizza dough. Once the dough gets too big to stretch this way, return to the floured sheet and begin to walk around the dough, pulling and stretching it evenly into a rectangle at least 24 inches by 30 inches. (Try not to tear the dough, but if you do, don’t worry; just pinch it back together and proceed.) The dough should be very thin at this point – you should be able read through it.
- The very edges of the dough will be a bit thicker than the rest. Trim this thicker edge off, just about 1/2 inch or so all around. Brush the dough with about two-thirds of the melted butter, leaving a 2-inch border all around. Evenly sprinkle with the breadcrumb mixture, leaving the same size border. Drain the apples from their juices. Stand with a 24-inch side of the dough closest to you. Mound the drained apples close to the bottom, leaving about 2 inches on the right and left sides and 6 to 8 inches on the bottom. Fold the sides over the edges of the apples and dough and bring the bottom of the dough up over the mound of apples to cover all of the apples if you can. Now, using the sheet as a helper, lift the sheet and let the strudel roll over onto itself. Continue to lift and roll until the strudel makes a long, cigarlike tube. Place the lined baking sheet in front of the strudel and roll it onto the baking sheet seam-side down. Curve the edges in if it’s too big to fit the baking sheet. Fold any untidy ends under the strudel and brush with half of the remaining melted butter. Sprinkle with granulated sugar and cut 4 or 5 small slits (1/2 inch or so) in the top of the strudel for steam to escape.
- Bake the strudel for 15 minutes. Remove from the oven and brush with the remaining melted butter. Return to the oven, rotating 180 degrees from its prior position, and continue to bake until the dough is very browned and crisp, 20 to 30 minutes more. Remove to a rack and cool at least 30 minutes before serving. Dust with confectioners' sugar, if desired, and slice. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Cook’s Note
When measuring flour, we spoon it into a dry measuring cup and level off excess. (Scooping directly from the bag compacts the flour, resulting in dry baked goods.)
