Apple strudel is a traditional recipe from Austria and southern Germany. It is said to be a version of Armenian baklava and is characterized by a very thin pastry. In days gone by, it was said that the secret for success with this recipe was for the pastry to be so fine that a newspaper could be read through it once the dough was stretched.
Ingredients:
– Pastry:
- Puff pastry sheet (10cm x 10cm)
– Filling:
- 2 pippin apples
- 75g brown sugar
- 30g raisins
- 1 tbsp rum
- 1 vanilla pod
- 5g ground cinnamon
- Zest of 1 lemon
Preparation:
First, peel and chop the apple into 1.5 cm thick pieces and put into the vacuum bag with all the other ingredients, except the raisins which need to be soaked in the rum.
Then cook the apple at 65 oC for an hour. Thanks to the sous-vide, we’ll get apple which is tender but unbroken and flavours and aromas which are much more intense than those achieved through traditional methods. On a floured surface, stretch the puff pastry until it’s as thin as possible and cover one side with the (cold) filling. Fold the pastry over and roll it up.
Paint the strudel with beaten egg and bake at 180 oC for 30-40 minutes until golden in colour.
It is usually accompanied by custard or vanilla ice cream and sprinkled with confectioners’ sugar.
