Austrian Vegetable Strudel Recipes

SAVOURY VEGETABLE STRUDEL RECIPE

Steps:

• Boil 300g potatoes and mash them. If you prefer a finer texture, you can also use a potato ricer to process the boiled potatoes.
• Cut the pepper and the carrot into small cubes, mince the garlic and thinly slice the leek. Using a knob of butter, fry these vegetables for around 10 minutes. Briefly simmer the frozen peas and frozen sweetcorn kernels, then strain well and add to the fried vegetable mix. The vegetables should retain 'bite' and not be overcooked. Altogether, you should use about 500g of vegetables (fresh and frozen). Make sure there is no excess liquid left in the vegetable mixture by the time you set it aside to cool.
• Start by placing the butter in a pot to heat up, then add the diced onions.
• Fry for a few minutes - don't let the onions brown.
• Add the flour and stir thoroughly for a minute.
• Add the milk and nutmeg and continue stirring until the sauce has thickened.
• Take away from the heat and leave to cool.
• Combine the dough ingredients in a medium bowl and mix together. I do this with my hands.
• Knead well until you have a formed a smooth dough. Don't be tempted to add any more water to the dough. It will come together well, just give it some time.
• Shape dough into a ball, brush with a little oil, place back in the bowl and cover the bowl.
• Leave to rest for 30 minutes at room temperature. This helps the dough structure to relax and makes it easier to roll/shape later on.
• In a large bowl, combine the cooled Béchamel Sauce, curd cheese, crème fraîche, egg yolks, grated cheese, herbs and oats. Mix well.
• Add the vegetable mixture and mashed potatoes and mix well. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• In a smaller bowl, combine the egg whites and starch and whip until stiff.
• Carefully fold the stiff egg whites into the remaining filling. The filling should not be wet so it doesn't soak through the dough while you assemble the strudel.
• Preheat the oven to 175℃.
• Flour your work surface (ideally a large linen or cotton kitchen towel) and use your hands to form the dough ball into an even rectangle.
• Flour the dough rectangle to prevent it from sticking and - using a rolling pin - take care to roll out the dough into a bigger rectangle.
• Line a suitably big baking tray with baking paper.
• Distribute the filling across two thirds of the strudel dough, leaving at least 1 cm around the edges free.
• Brush the final third with butter.
• Fold in the sides of the dough slightly over the filling to seal the sides.
• Roll into a strudel and carefully seal all the ends. If you are using the linen or cotton towel, the rolling can be done just by lifting the towel to roll the dough.
• Place seam-side down onto the baking tray. Again, this process is easier if you are using the cloth, as you can lift the strudel much more easily like this and carefully roll it onto the baking tray.
• Brush with the egg and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
• Bake for 30 to 40 minutes until golden brown.
• Serve warm with a side salad.

AUSTRIAN VEGETABLE STRUDEL

Steps:

• Prepare the Filling: To speed up the cooking process, veggies can be boiled/ steamed or microwaved until crisp tender before adding to the skillet. I microwaved sweet potato, carrots and green beans separately and kept them ready before starting on the rest of the filling.
• Soak soy granules in hot water for 10 minutes. Drain and squeeze out the excess water and set aside.
• Heat 1tbsp olive oil in a large skillet; add red chili flakes, chopped onion, red pepper and minced garlic. Cook on medium flame until the onions are translucent and peppers are crisp tender, about 5 minutes.
• Next add the reconstituted soy granules, cook for 2~3 minutes, stirring frequently.
• Finally add the cooked veggies, basil, salt and pepper. Cook for another 3~4minutes. Remove from flame and let cool.
• Add grated cheese and mix well.
• Preheat the oven to 350°F.
• For the Phyllo pastry: Keep the phyllo covered with a damp cloth at all times to avoid drying out. Brush each phyllo sheet with melted butter and layer them one on top of the other.
• Spoon vegetable mixture lengthwise down the center of phyllo, spreading it to within 1 inch of edges. Fold in short edges about 1 inch; roll dough from long side, jelly-roll style.
• Place the roll, seam side down in a baking sheet. Brush the roll with the remaining melted butter and sprinkle the grated parmesan. Use a sharp knife to make 4~5 slits on the top.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes or until Phyllo is golden all over.

VEGETABLE STRUDEL RECIPE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400F.
• PREPARE AND SAUTE VEGETABLES/FRUIT: Dice onions, sweet potatoes and peppers finely (1/4-1/2 inch). Shortcuts: Chop vegetables in food processor in 2-3 batches. For easier peeling and dicing sweet potato, microwave it first (pierced with knife) for 4 minutes, peel and dice. If you do this, saute other veggies first, then add sweet potato as it will take less time. Heat oil in large skillet to medium high. Add onions, peppers and sweet potatoes. Saute for for 6-9 minutes until sweet potatoes are almost soft. Add apples, garlic and seasonings. Saute another 2-3 minutes until potatoes are soft (not mushy). Mix in spinach until wilted, one minute. Turn off heat. Mix in crumbled goat cheese. Taste and adjust seasonings. Set aside.
• MAKE STRUDEL: Unfold puff pastry sheet onto flat lightly floured surface. (If puff pastry is not pre-rolled, roll it on floured surface to approximately 12 x 10 inch rectangle.) Spoon vegetable mixture into center, leaving enough room to fold dough over like an envelope. Wrap vegetable mixture by overlapping dough from sides and ends. Pinch dough together to secure.
• BAKE: Place strudel seam side down on pan lined with parchment paper. Use pastry brush to brush egg wash on top and sides. Make 8 evenly spaced small horizontal slits to allow steam to escape. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until golden brown. Let cool 5 minutes before slicing.
• SERVE: Slice strudel into 8-9 pieces and serve as a side dish or as a main dish with soup or salad. Garnish with a dollop of sour cream if desired.

EXPERIENCE AUSTRIAN CHEESE STRUDEL

Steps:

• 1. Pastry: Knead the ingredients thoroughly until you get an even round ball. (10 minutes) Brush with a little oil, cover with cling wrap and place in a nice spot to rest at room temperature for one hour.
• 2. Quark Cheese: Heat the milk in a large pan to 160 F for 40 seconds. Place the lid on the pan of milk and let the milk cool to room temperature. Whisk the buttermilk into the milk, then let it sit for 18 to 24 hours. After the milk has soured and curdled, strain it. Layer a sieve with cheesecloth or a clean cotton woven towel. Pour the milk mixture into the sieve or towel and allow it to drain overnight in the refrigerator. You will want to occasionally stir it to get the cheese to drain thoroughly.
• 3. Filling: Preheat oven to 200C and lightly grease your cookie sheet. Strain the quark and the sour cream in a fine sieve. Next, beat the egg whites until they form firm peaks and set aside. In a second bowl, beat the yolks with the sugar, vanilla sugar and butter until creamy. Add the lemon zest, corn flour, strained quark and sour cream and mix well. Set aside until needed.
• 4. Assembling: If you use filo, simply lay out the sheets to form a square, making sure the sheets overlap. It doesn't matter if you use the strudel pastry or the filo pastry, just make sure to work quickly to prevent the dough from drying out.
• 5. If making the strudel pasty: roll out the dough on a tablecloth that has been well dusted with flour. When it is about 50cm in diameter, you are ready to start stretching. Place your hands underneath the center of the pastry and keep moving your hands outwards. Don't worry about apply any force, gravity will make the dough stretch. If you get holes you can fix them by trying to stick them together. (by stretching the dough into another direction)
• 6. Once your dough is ready (the thinness and the size of the pastry you want) you will need to finish the filling for the strudel by folding in the reserved beaten egg whites.
• 7. Spread the filling evenly over 2/3 of the pastry, making sure not to touch the pastry with your spatula. Leave the edges free to fold in the filling. Drizzle some vegetable oil onto the remaining 1/4.
• 8. Rolling up: Working from the end with the filling, fold in the pastry by lifting the table cloth, then lift the whole roll into your baking tray. Drizzle a little oil on the top and bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown.

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.