Apple Strudel with Filo Pastry
The apple season is here with flavourful, natural apples so that now we can prepare lots of apple treats - cakes, pies, strudels etc. You can find an apple strudel recipe (made with puff pastry) on my website but I've been struggling for some time to make strudel with fine layers of filo dough. And the thing is the recipe was very simple, the problem was finding the best pastry, which wouldn't tear apart or stick. I was about to give up.
Also, the dough needs to be thawed completely and make sure you don't leave it uncovered for too long - it will break and you won't be able to work it properly.
Of course, the filling may vary according to your likes - apple, pumpkin, cheese, cabbage etc.
Thaw the filo dough in advance - about 2-3 hours.
Meanwhile, wash and core the apples (and peel, optionally), cut into small pieces and place over heat in a skillet or pot. Add in sugar to your taste, you can also stir in some raisins or cinnamon.
Cook just a little bit, enough for the apples to soften, them remove from the heat and let cool completely.
Take a sheet of filo and brush one half of it with the melted butter/oil.
Fold the sheet in half and brush the top with butter again.
Arrange 1-2 tbsp cooked apples down the short side of the rectangle.
Fold over the lateral edges so that they meet in the middle of the future strudel. Brush the top once again with butter.
Roll the strudel up and place on a baking sheet greased with oil or lined with parchment paper.
Repeat the procedure for all the strudels, brush with egg yolks and bake in the oven at medium temperature, 180-200 degrees C.
They are done when when they are nice golden brown. The filling might come out a bit but it's not a big deal, just trim it carefully once it cools down.
Transfer to a big platter and serve, dusted with powdered sugar.
Or serve each one on a different plate.
Enjoy!
