This is the pulled-dough strudel, stretched over a cloth until it is tissue-thin, and it depends on the hour-long rest under a warm bowl that keeps the dough elastic. The buttered, toasted breadcrumbs matter just as much: they absorb the apple juices that would otherwise soak the pastry from inside. Serve it barely warm, the way the recipe says, so the apples taste of apple and not only of sugar.
Strudel di Mele
Prep 50 min · Cook 40 min · Rest 1 hr 20 min · Serves 8 · Difficulty Hard
Method
Knead flour, egg, oil, salt, and about 100 ml lukewarm water into a soft, very elastic dough, 10 minutes. Oil it lightly, cover with a warm bowl, and rest 1 hour.
15 min
Toast the breadcrumbs in 40 g of butter until golden and nutty. Cool.
6 min
Toss the apple slices with sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice and zest, drained raisins, and pine nuts.
8 min
On a large floured cloth, roll the dough out, then slide your hands underneath and stretch it from the center outward with the backs of your hands until tissue-thin, about 60 by 50 cm. Trim the thick rim.
15 min
Brush with melted butter, strew the crumbs over two thirds, and lay the filling along the near long edge in a plump log.
6 min
Lift the cloth and let the strudel roll itself up, snugly but without squeezing. Pinch the ends, curve it gently onto a parchment-lined tray, seam down, and brush all over with butter.
6 min
Bake at 190 C until deeply golden, brushing once more with butter halfway, 35 to 40 minutes.
40 min
Rest 20 minutes, dust with icing sugar, and slice with a serrated knife. Serve barely warm.
Kitchen notes
Warm dough stretches. Resting under a heated bowl keeps the dough extensible. If it springs back or tears, give it ten more minutes rather than more force.
Crumbs are the moat. Never skip the buttered breadcrumbs; they hold the apple juices that would otherwise turn the pastry sodden from inside.
Apple strudel can also be made with shortcrust pastry. For this stretched-dough version, work gently until the pastry is thin enough for the filling to show through.
