Homey, hearty, and jam-packed full of fruits, the strudels that I’ve come to know throughout the years could hardly be described as delicate, or even the least bit elegant. Heavy with gooey apples and thick pastry to hold it all together, they certainly classified as comfort food, but it would be generous to describe these desserts as “rustic.” That’s why this latest Daring Baker challenge had me a bit puzzled at first… Until I realized that this recipe produced an entirely different sort of beast.
The May Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Linda of make life sweeter! and Courtney of Coco Cooks. They chose Apple Strudel from the recipe book Kaffeehaus: Exquisite Desserts from the Classic Cafés of Vienna, Budapest and Prague by Rick Rodgers.
With pastry so paper-thin that purists insist you can “read a newspaper through it,” this was much more similar to phyllo dough than the thin pie crust I typically encounter. Seeing that is what got me thinking of baklava, pretty much the best thing anyone could ever do with phyllo, in my opinion.
Merging these two sweet treats, a rich filling of walnuts and spices is encased in that flaky dough, and brushed with ample amounts of agave nectar while it’s still piping hot. Much easier to cut and serve than traditional baklava, it was definitely neater to eat, although I’ll admit right away that I could have definitely rolled the dough much thinner. Not quite perfect, but still a delicious treat that I would have never tried to make without this challenge. Served alongside a quenelle of vanilla ice cream and topped with a light dusting of powdered sugar, however, any number of imperfections can be easily overlooked.
For this variation, simply mix together the following in a large bowl…
2 Cups Chopped Walnuts
1/2 Cup Unsweetened Apple Sauce
1/2 Cup Granulated Sugar
1 Tablespoon Cornstarch
1 1/2 Teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
Pinch Cardamom
Pinch Salt
Spoon it onto the dough in a straight line, wrap, and bake just as written in the original recipe. Best eaten warm!
This is not your best effort?? OK, I’m throwing in the towel..LOL Your ‘less than best’ is still unbelievable! You are one talented chica. Your strudel looks amazing!
Looking good to me! Great job.
Mmmm, looks amazing! What a great idea to do a baklava filling!
Mmmm, so tasty!
I love your blog post title – LOL! Your strudel looks marvelous!
You have made a me hungry! The pics looks divine.
Good idea with the merging of two different desserts.
I love how it holds well together!
Always so beautiful
This certainly LOOKS good! I’m sure it was great.
Your strudel looks delicious! The idea of making a baklava strudel crossed my mind too, only I never acted on it ;)
True, once its done, ther’s no imperfection there. Great idea, your filling.
Great job! Hhhmmm, that strudel looks delicious! I love your choice of filling!
Cheers,
Rosa
You certainly did good. This strudel looks fantastic and the filing hmmmm! Great job!
mmmmmmmm! yum looks just like one of those Arabic desserts! great work!.
Nice take on baklava, I’ll have to try this out. Thanks Hannah!
I loved this dough. Your strudel looks so nice and cinnamony!
Making a baklava would have never crossed my mind. But now it’s galloping wildly…awesome! I loved the challenge too, & am all set to make it again!
Yum, it looks beautiful! And served with ice cream? I’m drooling.
Baklava can be too sticky dense for me, but your version looks so much better!!
Wonderful idea! My husband would have loved it – he’s such a baklava fan!
Love the idea of combining this with baklava. And a beautiful presentation!
ooh it sounds ace.
Looks and sounds awesome!!
Great job on this month’s challenge!
Mmm gorgeous strudel!
Great job, love the filling!
Fantastic twist on the strudel! Love those flavors and I have no doubt that you will give each monthly challenge the smackdown :) Looks terrific, sweetie.
WOW it’s look amazing !
Your baklava strudel looks and sounds fantastic. Great job.
HAHAHA the title of this post is so cute! these look good!
Looks fantastic to me!
Yum! Great job!
Delicious…amazing…scrumptious…lovely, as usual ;)
You do set high standards for yourself, don’t ya?
It looks great! Wonderful job!
It was my first challenge and so much fun! :)
Looks yummy Hannah!!
Oh, I’m such a sucker for baklava, drenched in honey syrup. Wow that looks good!
Great job on this month’s challenge!
Looks wonderful! I though about doing the savory Greek counterpart…Spanikopita, but just did something that I didn’t have to squeeze water out of spinach. :-) Yours looks fabulous!
Baklava Strudel- genius! Wish I had thought of that… I just did the apple kind ’cause I was craving it… Ok, it was because I was lazy- haha!
Hannah – You did a fabulous job on your strudel. The filling looks so tasty too. All those chunks of walnuts had me wanting to put my fork through the picture for a taste.
Natalie @ Gluten a Go Go
Wow, the baklava filling must have been incredible in this! What a great unique idea. Looks fantastic!
Your strudel looks absolutely perfect.
Again, your photo is so beautiful and tempting! I love the idea of using mostly walnuts in the filling. Great strudel!
aw yum baklava! very nice idea, and the pictures look tasty.
I think you did an amazing job!!!
Wow, I never would have thought of a baklava filling!
You taught me a new word: quenelle. I just looked it up. You’re so fancy.
Your strud’ looks amazing. I love baklava.
Oh, I love that you did a baklava-esque filling. How genius! Your strudel looks absolutely delicious. Great job! Another great DB challenge conquered.
Yum!! Your strudel looks amazing!! I love your picture =D.
Looks delicious. I love baklava, so think the filling is a great idea!
Wow this looks so amazing! I LOVE baklava!
Looks so good and I love walnuts.
http://www.ahacook.com
I love your filling! This challenge made me want to try making baklava too!
Love your variation!! I’ve missed DB… I’ve had to sit out the last two challenges. Maybe this month I’ll get back to it.
A strudel AND a baklava?? Wow… this sounds so divine.