Apple Walnut And Currant Strudel Food

APPLE STRUDEL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• In a bowl, combine apples, raisins, currants, cinnamon, sugar and bread crumbs. Stir well.
• Spread several sheets of pastry generously with melted butter and lay them on atop the other on a baking sheet. Spread the fruit mixture evenly over the top sheet, then roll the sheets up to form a log shape. Brush with melted butter again.
• Bake in preheated oven 30 minutes, until pastry is golden brown and fruit is tender.

CLASSIC APPLE CRUMB PIE

Steps:

• Make the crust: Whisk the flour, granulated sugar and salt in a large bowl. Rub the butter pieces into the flour using your fingers until pea-size pieces form. Drizzle in the vinegar and ice water; stir gently with a fork to combine. If the dough doesn't hold together when you squeeze it, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time. Turn out the dough onto a piece of plastic wrap and form into a disk; wrap tightly. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a 13-inch round. Ease into a 9-inch pie plate. Trim the edges, leaving a 1-inch overhang, then tuck the overhanging dough under itself; crimp the edges with a fork. Refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour or overnight.
• Meanwhile, make the crumb topping: Mix the flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt in a medium bowl. Rub the butter into the mixture with your fingers until no longer floury and crumbs form. Freeze until ready to use.
• Make the filling: Place a foil-lined baking sheet on the lowest oven rack; preheat to 400˚. Mix the apples, melted butter, both sugars, flour, lemon juice, cinnamon and salt in a large bowl. Spoon the filling into the chilled pie crust. Pat the crumb mixture on top.
• Bake the pie on the hot baking sheet until lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 350˚ and bake until the apples are completely soft when pierced with a paring knife, 60 to 80 more minutes. (If the topping is getting too dark, cover loosely with foil.) Transfer the pie to a rack to cool completely.

APPLE, WALNUT AND CURRANT STRUDEL

Steps:

• Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 400°F. Combine first 5 ingredients in heavy medium skillet over low heat. Cover and cook until apples are just tender, stirring occasionally, about 20 minutes. Uncover and mix in apricot jam. Increase heat to high and boil until juices thicken, stirring frequently, about 3 minutes. Place in freezer and cool 10 minutes. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
• Cut off about 1/3 of pastry dough, making sheet approximately 6x12 inches. (Save dough piece for another use.) Roll dough out on lightly floured surface to very thin 9x18-inch rectangle. Arrange apple filling lengthwise in center of dough in 12x3-inch log. Press walnuts over filling. Fold short ends of dough over filling. Fold 2 long sides over filling and then roll up to enclose. Arrange strudel on unbuttered baking sheet seam side down.
• Bake strudel 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 375°F. and bake until deep golden brown, about 25 minutes longer. Immediately slide long spatula under strudel to loosen from baking sheet. Transfer strudel to platter. Let stand 10 minutes. Cut away 1 inch from each end of strudel. Serve warm or at room temperature.

FRESH APPLE WALNUT CAKE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan. Sift together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
• Combine the apples and the white sugar; set aside. In a large bowl, mix together the brown sugar, oil, eggs and vanilla. Stir in the apple mixture, then the flour mixture. Fold in the walnuts.
• Pour batter into prepared pan. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. Allow to cool.

OLD VIENNA APPLE STRUDEL

Steps:

• Combine apples, sugar, cinnamon, and raisins in a medium saucepan. Add 1/4 cup water and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cover and let cook for about 5 minutes. Uncover, increase heat to high, and cook until thickened, about 2 minutes. Pour filling into a baking dish and stir in the walnuts; let cool to room temperature.
• In a small saute pan, melt 5 tablespoons butter and add breadcrumbs. Cook over medium-low heat, stirring often, until toasted and golden brown, about 5 minutes. Set aside to cool. Wipe pan clean and melt remaining 3 tablespoons butter; set aside to cool.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack positioned in the middle of the oven. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with a double thickness of parchment paper.
• Lay a large, clean cloth or sheet (at least 3 feet long and wide) on a work surface, and sprinkle well with flour. Remove strudel dough from bowl without folding it over on itself and set it in the center of your work surface. Use the palms of your hands to flatten the dough. Dust dough lightly with flour and roll it in all directions, as well as rolling over the edges, making it as thin as possible. Lightly brush entire surface with oil.
• Slide both hands, with slightly curved palms facing down, under dough toward the center. Holding this position, lift the dough off the cloth with your knuckles, and begin stretching from the center out to the edges until it is too large to stretch easily with your hands. Carefully set dough back on cloth, spreading it to smooth out any wrinkles or folds. Starting in the center again, continue to stretch out the dough in all directions, maintaining a rectangular shape, until the dough is almost translucent everywhere except the edges, which should be thicker. If the dough tears while stretching; you will be able to patch any holes with some of the excess stretched dough.
• Once dough is stretched, let dry for 10 minutes.
• Using a pizza wheel or kitchen scissors, trim all the thick edges until the dough is approximately 24-by-30-inches. With the 24-inch edge facing you, scatter the breadcrumbs on a 12-by-4-inch rectangle of dough centered about 3 inches in from the 24 inch side so the 16 inch side of filling is parallel to the 24 inch side of dough. Scatter the cooled filling on the same space.
• Use a brush to drizzle the remaining 3 tablespoons of cooled butter all over the unfilled portions of the dough, reserving a little to brush the strudel with once it has been rolled.
• Roll strudel by folding 3 inches of dough from the 24-inch side of dough over the filling, then fold the unfilled dough in from each side. Lift the cloth and roll the strudel, stopping to fold the edges inward as you roll. Transfer to prepared pan, seam side down, positioning diagonally if necessary.
• Brush the top of the strudel with remaining butter, and snip vent holes in with sharp scissors.
• Place strudel in oven. Bake, rotating pan halfway though, until deep golden brown and crisp, about 30 minutes. Transfer to wire rack to cool for at least 30 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature, cut on the diagonal into slices. Dust lightly with confectioners' sugar and serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream.

CINNAMON STREUSEL APPLE CIDER MUFFINS

Steps:

• FOR STREUSEL: Stir brown sugar, flour, and cinnamon in small bowl. Cut in butter with a pastry blender. Set aside.
• FOR MUFFINS: Lightly oil twelve 2 1/2-inch muffin cups or line with paper baking cups; set aside. In a medium mixing bowl stir together flour, granulated sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center. In a small mixing bowl combine egg, apple cider, and oil; add all at once to flour mixture. Stir just till moistened. (The batter should be lumpy.).
• Spoon about 1 tablespoon of the batter into each prepared muffin cup. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon of the brown sugar mixture over each. Fill with remaining batter. Sprinkle tops of muffins with remaining streusel.
• Bake in a preheated 400° F oven until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Remove muffins from pans; cool slightly on racks.