Italian Classic Apple Strudel: A Popular Dessert From Alto Adige Region
This classic apple strudel recipe is steeped in history and blends local flavors like apples and pine nuts.
Ingredients
For the Dough:
- 150 g all-purpose flour
- 40 g butter
- 2 g salt
- 20 g sugar
- 80 ml lukewarm water
For the Filling:
- 700 g Rennette apples
- 50 g raisins softened and squeezed dry
- 30 g pine nuts
- 1 lemon juice
- Ground cinnamon to taste
- Ground cloves to taste
- 20 g butter
- 80 g sugar
- 30 g breadcrumbs
To Complete:
- Melted butter
- Powdered sugar
Instructions
- In a mixing bowl, combine the flour with the lukewarm water, butter, sugar and salt. You can mix this by hand or with a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mixing until combined and finishing with the dough hook. The result should be a smooth, elastic dough.
- Form it into a ball and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes in a covered bowl.
- While the dough rests, prepare your filling. Peel and cube the apples, then transfer them to a bowl.
- Add raisins, pine nuts, lemon juice, cinnamon and cloves. You can add the cloves by finely grating just the rounded part of the seed and not the stem. Mix everything together well and let it rest at room temperature.
- In a non-stick pan, melt butter with sugar. Add the breadcrumbs and brown them. Once ready, transfer to a bowl to cool.
- Roll out your dough to 1 cm thickness on a tea towel, without using extra flour. Continue rolling with your hands to 2 mm in this way: thin it out with the tips of your fingers, pulling it outward and being careful not to tear it.
- Combine the apple mix with breadcrumb mix.
- Spread this filling over the dough, leaving a border. Using the towel, carefully roll the dough around the filling. Fold in the ends and brush with water to seal.
- Preheat your oven to 180 °C (356 °F).
- Transfer the strudel to a parchment-lined baking sheet, compacting it with your hands to give it a regular shape. Make small incisions on the surface and brush with melted butter.
- Bake for about 40 minutes until golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and let it cool. Once cooled, dust with powdered sugar.
- Serve the strudel slightly warm, accompanied by a scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of unsweetened whipped cream.