flipWiener Apfelstrudel (Viennese Apple Strudel)
Wiener Apfelstrudel (Viennese Apple Strudel)
Why this dish? The sweet Mehlspeise is the pride of Viennese cuisine in which Meitner grew up before 1900. Strudel — its dough stretched so thin you should be able to read a newspaper through it — was the great dessert of Sundays and family celebrations. A recipe of precision and patience that would not have displeased a meticulous experimenter.
A hand-stretched dough until transparent, filled with apples, raisins, cinnamon and buttered breadcrumbs, then rolled and baked until it crackles under the tooth. Served warm, dusted with powdered sugar.
If you want to make strudel as we did at home in Vienna, you first need courage and patient hands. You stretch the dough on a large cloth, gently, with your fingertips, until it becomes so thin you could read the newspaper through it — my grandmother said you had to see the letters. The breadcrumbs browned in butter, slipped under the apples, absorb the juice and prevent the dough from getting soggy: it is a small physical principle, after all. We served it warm, on feast days, and everyone fell silent at the first bite.
- •Wheat flour, warm water, oil, one egg, salt — for a soft dough (stretched strudel dough)
- •Tart apples — a good amount (filling)
- •Soaked raisins — a handful (sweetness)
- •Breadcrumbs browned in butter — a plateful (absorbs juice)
- •Sugar, cinnamon — to taste (sweet seasoning)
- •Melted butter — as needed (brushing and baking)
Wiener Apfelstrudel (Viennese Apple Strudel)
A hand-stretched dough until transparent, filled with apples, raisins, cinnamon and buttered breadcrumbs, then rolled and baked until it crackles under the tooth. Served warm, dusted with powdered sugar.
Why this dish? The sweet Mehlspeise is the pride of Viennese cuisine in which Meitner grew up before 1900. Strudel — its dough stretched so thin you should be able to read a newspaper through it — was the great dessert of Sundays and family celebrations. A recipe of precision and patience that would not have displeased a meticulous experimenter.
If you want to make strudel as we did at home in Vienna, you first need courage and patient hands. You stretch the dough on a large cloth, gently, with your fingertips, until it becomes so thin you could read the newspaper through it — my grandmother said you had to see the letters. The breadcrumbs browned in butter, slipped under the apples, absorb the juice and prevent the dough from getting soggy: it is a small physical principle, after all. We served it warm, on feast days, and everyone fell silent at the first bite.
Ingredients (period version)
- Wheat flour, warm water, oil, one egg, salt — for a soft dough (stretched strudel dough)
- Tart apples — a good amount (filling)
- Soaked raisins — a handful (sweetness)
- Breadcrumbs browned in butter — a plateful (absorbs juice)
- Sugar, cinnamon — to taste (sweet seasoning)
- Melted butter — as needed (brushing and baking)
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour (T55) — 250 g (stretched dough)
- Warm water — 120 ml (hydration)
- Neutral oil — 2 tbsp (+1 for dough) (suppleness)
- Egg — 1 (binder)
- Tart apples (Boskoop, reinette) — 800 g (filling)
- Raisins — 60 g (sweetness)
- Breadcrumbs + butter — 80 g breadcrumbs / 60 g butter (absorbs juice)
- Sugar + cinnamon — 70 g sugar / 1 tsp cinnamon (seasoning)
- Melted butter for brushing + powdered sugar — 50 g + for dusting (finish)
Method
- Knead flour, warm water, oil, egg, and salt into a smooth, elastic dough; oil, cover, and let rest 30 min in a warm place.
- Brown the breadcrumbs in butter. Finely slice the apples, mix with raisins, sugar, and cinnamon.
- Stretch the dough on a floured cloth, by hand, from the center outward, until almost transparent.
- Brush with melted butter, sprinkle with browned breadcrumbs, place the apples on one third, then roll using the cloth.
- Place on a baking sheet, brush with butter, bake 35-40 min at 190°C until golden and crispy. Dust with powdered sugar, serve warm.
How it was made : Strudel descends from Ottoman baklavas that arrived in Vienna during the Empire: the transparent stretched dough is its direct heir. In bourgeois kitchens, stretching the dough on the large table was a skill passed from mother to daughter. Buttered breadcrumbs, an economical trick, turned stale bread into a barrier against fruit moisture.
The contemporary twist : A spoonful of warm vanilla sauce (Vanillesauce) alongside turns the strudel into the ultimate comfort dessert — exactly as in Viennese Kaffeehäuser.
Sources : Joseph Wechsberg, The Cooking of Vienna's Empire, Time-Life Books · Franz Maier-Bruck, Das große Sacher Kochbuch
Lise Meitner · Charactorium
