Apfelstrudel, Apple Strudel
A dough stretched until transparent, rolled around tart apples, raisins, cinnamon, and buttered breadcrumbs, then baked golden. Served warm, dusted with powdered sugar.
A dough stretched until transparent, rolled around tart apples, raisins, cinnamon, and buttered breadcrumbs, then baked golden. Served warm, dusted with powdered sugar.
Ah, the strudel! For that one, you need a clean tablecloth and room on the table, because the dough is stretched by hand until it is as thin as a sheet of letter paper — we say at home that you should be able to read the newspaper through it. The apples must be a little tart, otherwise the whole thing becomes bland; a hint of cinnamon, plumped raisins, and breadcrumbs toasted in butter to soak up the juice. Warm, with a cup of coffee, it's the whole Viennese afternoon on a plate. I won't hide from you that I always return to it with childish pleasure.
- •Fine flour, warm water, a little oil and egg — for a supple dough (stretchable dough (Strudelteig))
- •Tart apples — a good amount (filling)
- •Raisins — a handful (filling)
- •Cinnamon, sugar — to taste (sweet flavor)
- •Breadcrumbs toasted in butter — one bowl (absorbs juice)
- •Melted butter — generously (brushing and glazing)
Apfelstrudel, Apple Strudel
A dough stretched until transparent, rolled around tart apples, raisins, cinnamon, and buttered breadcrumbs, then baked golden. Served warm, dusted with powdered sugar.
Why this dish? Apple strudel is the emblematic dessert of the Vienna where Freud lived for nearly half a century. A festive and Sunday pastry, it represents the Austro-Hungarian Mehlspeise (flour-based desserts) that punctuated the Jause, the coffee-and-pastry ritual at the heart of Viennese life.
Ah, the strudel! For that one, you need a clean tablecloth and room on the table, because the dough is stretched by hand until it is as thin as a sheet of letter paper — we say at home that you should be able to read the newspaper through it. The apples must be a little tart, otherwise the whole thing becomes bland; a hint of cinnamon, plumped raisins, and breadcrumbs toasted in butter to soak up the juice. Warm, with a cup of coffee, it's the whole Viennese afternoon on a plate. I won't hide from you that I always return to it with childish pleasure.
Ingredients (period version)
- Fine flour, warm water, a little oil and egg — for a supple dough (stretchable dough (Strudelteig))
- Tart apples — a good amount (filling)
- Raisins — a handful (filling)
- Cinnamon, sugar — to taste (sweet flavor)
- Breadcrumbs toasted in butter — one bowl (absorbs juice)
- Melted butter — generously (brushing and glazing)
Ingredients
- All-purpose flour (T45) — 250 g (dough)
- Warm water — 120 ml (dough)
- Neutral oil — 2 tbsp (dough suppleness)
- Egg — 1 (dough)
- Tart apples (Boskoop or Reinette) — 1 kg (filling)
- Raisins — 60 g (filling)
- Sugar — 80 g (filling)
- Cinnamon — 1 tsp (flavor)
- Breadcrumbs — 60 g (absorbent)
- Butter — 100 g (brushing and breadcrumbs)
- Powdered sugar — for dusting (finishing)
Method
- Knead flour, warm water, oil, egg, and a pinch of salt into a smooth, elastic dough; oil it, cover, and let rest 30 min in a warm place.
- Toast breadcrumbs in a little butter until golden. Peel and thinly slice apples, mix with sugar, cinnamon, and raisins.
- On a floured cloth, stretch the dough by hand, using the backs of fists, until nearly transparent, then brush with melted butter.
- Sprinkle with buttered breadcrumbs, spread apples over one third, then roll up tightly using the cloth.
- Brush with butter, bake at 190°C for about 40 min until golden brown, serve warm dusted with powdered sugar.
How it was made : Strudel descends from the stretched filo-like doughs of Ottoman tradition (cousins of baklava), adopted and sweetened by the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Stretching the dough by hand was a domestic art passed from mother to daughter; a good housewife was judged by the fineness of her Strudelteig. For lack of a precise oven, it was often baked in the neighborhood baker's oven.
The contemporary twist : A quenelle of vanilla ice cream or a cloud of lightly sweetened whipped cream — the "Apfelstrudel mit Schlagobers" version of today's Viennese cafés.
Sigmund Freud · Charactorium