Thursday, May 16, 2013

PASTRIES & VARIATIONS: Apple strudels, made in the traditional way with a "hand-pulled" thinly-stretched dough, is not easy to enjoy nowadays, maybe only in Austria. Hope you will try this recipe that was given to me by my pastry instructor who was from Vienna.



AUSTRIAN APPLE STRUDEL WITH VANILLA SAUCE:

 

 

 

 

4 cups all purpose flour                                              

1 tbsp. oil

2 ½ cups water, room temperature                              

pinch of salt

filling:

    5 to 6 apples                                                           
    1 tbsp. lemon juice
    ½ cup raisins                                                           
    ½ tsp cinnamon      
    ¼ to ½ cup brown sugar, or to taste

bread crumbs

melted butter for brushing                              

icing sugar for dusting

 

 

 

Peel, core and thinly slice apples into a large bowl and toss them with sugar, raisins and cinnamon.

 

In a large bowl, mix flour and salt together and add in ¾ of the total amount of water. Use a hand-held electric beater to beat mixture vigorously until well-mixed and smooth. Add the rest of the water gradually and continue beating until dough has a soft and sticky consistency.  Knead dough slightly to form into a ball.

 

Transfer dough to a large oiled dish, turning dough over to coat it with oil. Cover dough with an inverted large bowl and allow it to rest for 1 hour. This is a crucial step to relax the dough. After resting, the dough should have flattened out and become stretchy and pliable.  

 

Cover the work table with a large floured cloth. Transfer dough to the centre of the cloth. With floured hands, start stretching the dough by lifting it up from the centre and pulling and stretching from the centre outwards. Use the tip of the fingers in both hands to lift dough up and stretch it all the way to the edge in every direction.  Pinch any hole together that appears and stretch the dough out to as thin as possible, allowing it to rest on the floured cloth.

 

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Divide stretched pastry lengthwise into 2 rectangles. Brush each rectangle with melted butter liberally and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Arrange apple mixture along lower half of the rectangle and, using the cloth, lift up pastry and flip the whole thing over to the other half of pastry. Trim edges. Repeat process with the other rectangle of dough.

 

Lift and transfer strudel, using the cloth that the dough is resting on, onto greased baking sheets, bending dough into an S shape if necessary to fit.  Brush strudels with melted butter.

 

Bake in oven for 20 minutes, or until golden brown.  Cut into serving pieces, dust with icing sugar and serve warm.  Pastry may be baked ahead of time, and warmed up before serving.  Serve with Vanilla Sauce.

 

  

 

VANILLA SAUCE:

 


3 egg yolks                                                     

¼ cup sugar

2 cups milk                                                     

½ tsp vanilla extract or 1 vanilla bean

1 tsp cornstarch or arrowroot

 

 

If using vanilla bean, split it open. Warm milk and drop bean into it. Let it infuse for 30 minutes. Discard bean and strain milk into a large microwavable jug or glass measuring cup. Cover with paper towel and microwave on high for 2 minutes or until almost boiling. If using vanilla extract, add into scald milk.

 

In a heavy saucepan, whisk egg yolks with sugar and cornstarch/arrowroot. Pour a little of the hot milk into egg yolk mixture and whisk well to mix.  Pour this back into the saucepan and add the rest of hot milk. Cook sauce over medium heat, stirring frequently until bubbles form around the edges and sauce becomes thickened. Remove from heat. Strain and serve hot if desired. Or cool and chill before serving.

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