What pud comes to mind when you think of Germany? Strudel and Stollen!! (as we already made three Stollens this post is all about the humble Strudel ) As we are delving into the traditions surrounding Weihnachten I wanted to make a desert for our Christmas lunch that reflected German cooking, in particular Bavaria (Daddy aka Jon has a strong passion about the food from this region of Germany!) Thankfully our Bavarian Cook Book has some wonderful recipes..and the Munich Apple Strudel is the one that I was drawn to.
“In contrast to the famous Apple Strudel of Vienna which is baked on baking sheet, it’s Munich relative is a juicy affair and is prepared in a baking pan or a fireproof dish” – Bavarian Cooking by Olli Lebb
Now to me this “juicy affair” is right up my street, honestly I don’t think you can go far wrong with the deliciousness of apples wrapped in dough – yum! The recipe below is taken from the book, I made this today and have stored it in the freezer until it’s needed on Christmas Day – perfect not much faffing around for dessert then on the joyous day!!
Ingredients
Strudel Dough
1/2 lb flour
2 eggs
pinch of salt
2 tablespoons oil
1/2 cup water
Filling
3 lbs tart apples
juice of 1 lemon
5 oz raisins
5 tablespoons rum
3 oz butter
1 cup thick sour cream
sugar
cinnamon
1 cup milk
1 cup heavy cream
My top tip! before you embark on you Strudel making extravaganza soak your raisins in the rum for as long as possible 
How to make
- Sift your flour onto a pastry board (or in our case a clean work surface), make a well in the center
- Break eggs into the well add the salt, oil and water
- Mix together working outwards from the center
- Knead the dough until smooth and silky
- Allow to rest for 1/2 hour covered in a warm place
- Pre-heat oven 200ºC
- Turn the dough out onto the work surface and “pull out” until you get to your desired thickness (the dough should be very thin!)
- Peel, core and quarter apples, using a veggie slicer cut them into thin slices and sprinkle lemon juice over to avoid discoloration
- Brush the pulled out Strudel Dough with warm melted butter, dab the sour cream over the butter to cover the dough evenly
- Spread apple slices over the dough in an even layer – stopping about 1 inch from the edges
- Sprinkle rum-soaked raisins, sugar and cinnamon over the apples
- Fold the edges of the dough and roll the Strudel up loosely
- Slide the strudel into a well greased baking tray
- Bring milk and cream to a boil on the stove/cooker, pour over the Strudel
- Bake in the middle of the oven for 45-60 mins
- If you intend to freeze the Strudel just make sure it is completely cold before wrapping in foil and placing in the freezer, you will also need to let it thaw completely before warming it back up.
A little bit of Strudel history for you to enjoy!
The Strudel is typically associated with Austrian cooking, although it is also worth noting that some Austrain cooking uses a combination of many European influences – especially German 
The oldest Strudel recipe dates back to 1696! The word Strudel is German, meaning ‘whirlpool’.
Reference
Bavarian Cooking by Olli Lebb
How lovely!