Oh no! It is mid afternoon, your husband just called to inform you he had invited friends over for late afternoon coffee. The house is a mess and lacks any sort of snacking food. What on earth are you going to do? Don’t panic, With a quick flick of your wand you can have the house clean and apple strudel in the oven. This recipe is quick, easy, and a surefire way to impress any guests who happen to “pop” by.
Here’s what you need:
8 Cups Diced or Shredded Apples
1/2 Cup Sugar
1/3 Cup Raisins
1/4 Cup Chopped Walnuts
1 Teaspoon Cinnamon
3 Tablespoon Dark Spiced Rum
8 Layers of Phyllo Dough at Room Temperature
1 Whole Egg
Flour and Powdered Sugar for Dusting
I usually keep phyllo dough on hand in my freezer because there are so many different recipes you can make. Not to mention the frequency of unexpected house guests that “pop” by. Having prepared dough like phyllo and puff pastry in your arsenal can make life a little easier. You can make your own dough, but you had better expect to spend the whole day in the kitchen. although I enjoy cooking, ain’t nobody got time for that!
prep your apple filling by dicing up your apples. The strudel tastes best if the apples are of the sweeter variety, such as fuji or honey crisp. I use the food processing attachment on my Ninja blender. You can also use a cheese grater, but you want the apple pieces to be similar in size and consistency. Pour three tablespoons of dark spiced rum into a cup and add your raisins. Let them soak while you finish cutting up the apples. If you need the speed up the soaking process, you can heat up your rum prior to adding the raisins. The raisins should be plump prior to adding to the apple mixture. With your diced apples in a bowl, add 1/2 cup sugar, 1/3 cup walnuts and 1 teaspoon cinnamon to the bowl. Once your raisins are plump, add them to the bowl as well, stirring to combine all the ingredients. Let the apples set for a few minutes while you clean up your house, that floor won’t vacuum itself!
To make life easier, lay down a sheet of parchment paper, about the same size of your phyllo sheets or slightly larger. This will prevent the phyllo from sticking to the table if any of the juices from the apples seep through the dough. It will also make it easier to roll. You will be using four sheets of phyllo per strudel. Lay down your parchment, phyllo dough and dust heavily with flour. the flour prevents the juices from being absorbed by the dough, making a sticky mess. The phyllo is very fragile so you will need to work quickly. By the time you prepare the dough, your apples should be sitting in a good amount of their own juices. The sugar draws out juices from the apples.
spread the apple mixture over the phyllo dough, juices and all, an inch from the edges. Don’t drain or squeeze the juice out of the apples when spreading them over the dough. The flour will prevent the juices from dissolving the dough. Roll the dough from one end to the other to encapsulate the apple filling.
Fold the ends underneath and brush with egg. I used the whole egg. Using the whole egg will provide you with just enough sheen and crisp on the outside of the dough.
Place the un-baked strudel on a baking sheet and place in a preheated oven at 350 degrees. The strudel can be baked on the parchment to prevent it from sticking the the pan when juices escape from the strudel while cooking. Cook until the outer crust is golden brown and flaky. I cannot give you an exact amount of time it will take, because all oven’s are different, but it takes about 20-25 minutes to reach golden brown. Remove from the oven, let it sit to cool before cutting. Dust with powdered sugar and BAM, you are a hero. Your house is clean, filled with the smell of baked apple strudel and you’re ready for your house guests. Quick sneak a bite before they arrive!
Enjoy!