Apple Strudel (Apfelstrudel)
Hand-stretched pastry, pulled paper-thin over a floured cloth, wrapped around cinnamon-spiced apples and rum-soaked raisins — a Viennese classic first recorded in 1697, whose stretched-dough technique traces back to Ottoman/Turkish pastries carried into Central Europe.
Vegetarian
⚠ Contains: Gluten, Dairy. Always check your own ingredients — this isn't a guarantee for severe allergies.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4-5 tart apples, peeled and thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup raisins, soaked in 2 tbsp rum
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- Zest of 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 1/4 cup butter, melted, plus more for brushing
Steps
- Knead the flour, warm water, oil, and salt into a smooth, elastic dough. Cover and rest for 30 minutes.
- On a large floured cloth, stretch the dough by hand from the center outward until it's paper-thin, almost translucent, trimming any thick edges.
- Saute the breadcrumbs in the melted butter until golden, then scatter them evenly over the stretched dough.
- Toss the apples with the sugar, cinnamon, and lemon zest, and spread them along one edge of the dough with the soaked raisins.
- Using the cloth to help, roll the strudel up tightly into a long log, tucking in the ends.
- Transfer to a baking sheet, brush generously with melted butter, and bake at 375F for 35-40 minutes until deep golden.
- Let cool slightly before slicing and serve warm, dusted with powdered sugar.