Grandpa's Apple Strudel

During high school, I took German as my foreign language and of course joined the school German Club.  One of our projects was to learn to make authentic German Apple Strudel from german-born Mrs. Elsie.  It was a great recipe!  I started making it every Thanksgiving and Christmas, it was my teenage contribution to our big family get-togethers.  Best yet, the person whom loved it the most was my Grandpa.  He would ask weeks before each Thanksgiving and Christmas, "you gonna bring your apple strudel aren't ya?"  I was a Grandpas' Girl, so of course I'd bring it!  We lost Grandpa in 1995, and as the years have gone on, I misplaced/lost that recipe.  I've been reminiscing, been sentimental, and thinking that that Strudel would be great to make again, so I searched online recipes, and couldn't find the exact recipe - Mrs. Elsie had a one of a kind?!  I found several similar and just adapted to what I remember.   Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of flour
• 1/2 cup of hot water
• 4 tablespoons of shortening
• 1 dash of salt
• 6-7 firm apples
• 1/2 cup of sugar
• 1/4 cup of bread crumbs
• 1/8 cup of fine walnuts
• 1 teaspoon of apple pie spice (cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves)
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• melted butter

In a large bowl, mix the flour and salt.  Add the shortening to the hot water and let it melt.   Add the water/oil mixture to the flour and mix thoroughly, then knead it to make elasticy ball of dough.  Sit the dough aside under a wet cloth for about 30 minutes in a warm spot.

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.

After 30 minutes, take the ball of dough and roll it on a lightly floured surface.  Roll it to as thin as possible.  By hand, start stretching the dough to thin even more.  Use the back of your hands, finger tips, etc. to pull the dough and thin it out.  You want your dough to be about 16" x 24" (this is not exact, and also is not a perfect rectangle)

 


Peel and slice apples.  In a large bowl, mix apples, sugar, bread crumbs, walnuts, apple pie spice and vanilla.  Mixture will look dry.



Apple peeler/corer, slicer make
this easy.



Grandma Freda's nut chopper

Pour apple mixture on to on side of the stretched dough, begin rolling the dough to cover the apples,  Tuck the ends in as you go, roll until the last bit of dough will be on the bottom of the strudel.  Place the "strudel roll" (technical term here!) onto a buttered cookie sheet.  Then slice some slits into the top of the "strudel roll" - about every 2 inches.  Brush the outside of the "strudel roll" with some melted butter.   Place the strudel in the oven and bake.  Brush with more butter after 30 minutes of baking.  Bake a total of 45 to 50 minutes until light golden brown. 

You can dust the top of the strudel with powdered sugar or cinnamon and sugar.  You can serve your Apple Strudel warm or cold and/or with ice cream or whipped cream.  Just enjoy it!