Apple Strudel

By
Pete Scherer
ghi
Pete Scherer
Pete Scherer is a cook and baker with a decade of experience across many facets of the Southern California food scene.
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Updated on 09/25/20
apple strudel

 Pete Scherer

Prep: 90 mins
Cook: 35 mins
Total: 2 hrs 5 mins
Servings: 12 servings
Yield: 1 strudel

Strudel is an Austrian dish, whose name comes from a German word that means "whirlpool." A soft filling is rolled up in a paper thin dough, then baked to flaky perfection. It's a dish of simple contrast between the flaky, buttery crust and the filling. There are many kinds of strudels, both sweet and savory. Examples include fruit, cheese, potato, poppy seed, and spinach, but perhaps the most popular strudel is apple.

The variety of apple you choose will have a big effect on the finished product. This recipe calls for honeycrisp because they hold their shape and bake up juicy. You can also try braeburn, granny smith, golden delicious, and jonagold. Sometimes a blend of different apples can create a filling with pleasant textural contrast. Most bakers recommend avoiding red delicious, for example, because they get so soft when baked, but mixing them into a filling with firmer granny smiths can balance things out.

The filling for apple strudel is typically flavored with lemon zest and cinnamon and may also include nuts and rum-soaked raisins. This recipe calls for plain raisins, but you may soak them if you like. The filling is easy to prepare. The dough is more challenging, but don't be intimidated. Follow the instructions carefully with patience and gentleness and reap the rewards later. Serve with vanilla sauce or ice cream.

Ingredients

  • For the Dough:
  • 80 grams warm water
  • 15 grams vegetable oil (any kind)
  • 3 grams lemon juice
  • 3 grams salt
  • 145 grams bread flour
  • For the Filling:
  • 1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
  • 1 1/2 pounds honey crisp apples, peeled, cored and chopped (about 3 large apples)
  • 1/2 cup golden raisins
  • 1 teaspoon fresh lemon zest
  • 1/4 cup melted unsalted butter

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. Add all dough ingredients to a medium bowl. Mix until the dough is smooth and uniform. It's okay if the dough is shaggy and a little sticky. Cover and rest the dough for 20 minutes.

  3. After 20 minutes, stretch and fold the dough, more or less as follows. Moisten your hand with a little water, scoop your hand underneath the dough and gently grasp one side of the lump. Lightly stretch the dough away from the main mass, then fold it over. Repeat this motion on different sides of the dough three or four more times. Then flip the whole mass of dough such that the seams of your folds face down against the bottom of the bowl. You should see that the shaggy dough becomes considerably more smooth, which is the goal. If the dough looks as shaggy as before, use a visual guide and try again. Rest the dough for 1 hour. Preheat oven to 375 F.

  4. Add the breadcrumbs, sugar, and ground cinnamon to a medium bowl and mix well. Set aside.

  5. Add the chopped apples, raisins, and lemon zest to another bowl. Combine and set aside.

  6. Cover a table with a large clean cloth. The cloth should be similar to pastry cloth, canvas, or unbleached drill. Dust the cloth with flour. Place the dough on the cloth and dust it with a bit more flour. With a rolling pin, roll the dough into a flat rectangle measuring 8 by 12 inches.

  7. As you proceed, bear in mind that the important dimension is the width. You don't want a final width greater than 18 inches. The width of the dough will become the length of your strudel. A half sheet pan is only 18 inches long and you want your strudel to fit it. The length, however, should be as long as you can make it. You will roll the strudel along its length, so the longer your dough, the more layers you will have in your strudel. Now, with that in mind, stretch the dough with your hands, like pizza dough. Pick it up by the edge and allow gravity to stretch the dough. Lay it flat and gently pull it. Keep going until you can see through the dough. Try not to tear the dough, but if the dough does tear, it's not the end of the world. The strudel will be rolled and tears will be hidden. When you can see through the dough, you are ready to move on.

  8. The very edges of your dough will inevitably be the thickest. Trim these off, if you like, with a knife or pizza cutter. Spread the apple filling onto the dough along the width of one end. Your strip of filling should be about 16 inches long and 4 inches wide. Pour the melted butter over the remainder of the dough, reserving about 2 teaspoons. Gently spread the butter with a pastry brush so that it covers the entire surface of the dough. Sprinkle the bread crumb and sugar mixture over the entire surface, including the apple filling.

  9. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper.

  10. Fold the dough over the top and bottom of the strip of filling. Then fold the dough over the long side of the filling, then gently roll up the filling along the length of the dough to form a log. Transfer the log to your prepared sheet pan and brush with the remaining butter. Bake for 35 minutes or until golden brown.

  11. Remove the strudel from the oven. Allow it to cool. Dust the strudel with powered sugar. Slice and serve with ice cream or vanilla sauce.

Nutrition Facts (per serving)
277 Calories
15g Fat
37g Carbs
0g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 12
Amount per serving
Calories 277
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 15g 20%
Saturated Fat 10g 48%
Cholesterol 41mg 14%
Sodium 3mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 37g 13%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Protein 0g
Calcium 13mg 1%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)