Dry Fruit Strudel As Made In Assisi Recipes

RUSSIAN STYLE MIXED/DRIED FRUIT STRUDEL

Steps:

• Put the flour in the bowl of an electric mixer. On slow, mix in the butter until it looks like very coarse meal. Mix in the sour cream until it masses together to form a dough. Pat into a rectangle, wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
• Filling:
• Coarsely chop the prunes. In a small saucepan, cover the prunes with the prune juice and sugar. Bring to a simmer for 3 minutes. Place in a food processor with the vanilla and puree to a paste. Mix in the raisins, cherries and walnuts. Refrigerate for 1 hour. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a square 16 by16 inches. Place the filling in a log running along the bottom and roll up. Pinch the ends closed. Place on a parchment lined cookie sheet, seam side down. Mix the egg and water together to form a wash and paint the strudel. Bake for 30 minutes until crisp and golden. Let cool on a rack, then slice into 1 inch pieces.
• This was my Grandma Bessie's baking specialty. I haven't had this since she died but my brothers and I talk of it often, trying to re-construct what was in it. I re-discovered it at the Golden Key in Brighton Beach. Can be made on a rainy day with items in the pantry

DRIED-FRUIT STRUDEL WITH APRICOT PRESERVES

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F. Butter rimmed baking sheet. Roll out crust on floured surface to thin 16-inch square. Spread all of preserves over pastry, leaving 1-inch plain border. Sprinkle dried fruit and nuts evenly over preserves. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Fold about 1 inch of each pastry side over filling. Starting at bottom, roll up pastry jelly-roll style, enclosing filling. Using large spatula, transfer strudel to prepared baking sheet, seam side down. Bake strudel until golden, about 35 minutes. Cool completely. Cut strudel into 1-inch slices.

PEAR AND DRIED FRUIT STRUDEL

Steps:

• Dough: Mix flour, sugar, and salt in food processor fitted with steel blade. Add butter; pulse 5 times. Add shortening; pulse until butter bits are no larger than small peas and flour resembles cornmeal, about 4 more pulses. Mix sour cream with 1/3 cup cold water; add to flour mixture. Pulse until dough begins to clump, adding more water, 1 teaspoonful at a time, if dough does not start to come together.
• Gather dough together and transfer to lightly floured surface; turn pastry Wrap folded dough in plastic and chill at least 1 hour. (Can be refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 6 weeks.).
• For the Filling: Combine dried fruits and citrus zests in large bowl. Pour brandy over fruit and stir to combine. Set aside to soak for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
• Toss lemon juice with pears to prevent browning. Add pears to dried fruit mixture along with honey, gingersnaps, and spices. Stir gently to combine.
• To Assemble the Strudel, roll out pastry on a lightly floured surface to form a 14-by-16-inch rectangle about 1/8-inch thick. Trim off rough edges. Divide rectangle in half, forming two 14-by-8-inch rectangles. Working with one rectangle at a time, brush short edges lightly with cold water. Spoon half of filling in a narrow strip down center of rectangle, leaving about 2 inches uncovered at short ends .
• Fold one long side of pastry up and over filling. Brush upper edge lightly with cold water, then bring other side up, overlapping slightly; press gently to seal With sides of your palms, press filling toward center to keep it compact. Trim off ends of pastry if necessary, leaving about 1 1/2 inches at each end. Bring ends of pastry up and press gently onto top surface.
• Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 375 degrees. Place a baking sheet covered with parchment next to pastry. Gently ease strudel, seam side down, onto sheet Repeat process with other strudel, spacing them at least 3 inches apart. Chill briefly while oven preheats.
• Brush strudels with cream, then sprinkle with granulated sugar. Bake until pastry is golden brown, about 45 minutes. Cool strudels on baking sheet set on a wire rack until no longer hot. (Strudel can be baked up to 3 hours before needed and warmed at serving time.).
• To serve, dust with confectioners' sugar and cut into 2-inch slices. Place slices on plates.

FRUIT STRUDEL

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350º.
• Put the flour, sour cream and butter in a large zip lock bag. Mix until combined. Let sit in the refrigerator overnight, or put in the freezer for 1 ½ hours.
• After the dough is well chilled, divide into four parts.
• Flour work surface.
• Take one part and roll into a fat snake like shape with hands.
• Then with a rolling pin, roll into a rectangle about 1/8 inch thick.
• Spread jam evenly onto dough, leaving an small edge without jam.
• Roll up like a jelly roll.
• Press seams together and seal.
• Lay seam side down on a cookie sheet.
• With a sharp knife, cut slits across the strudel in a diagonal pattern.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes.
• To make icing, combine the powdered sugar and milk. You want it to be thick.
• While strudel is still warm, drizzle powdered sugar mixture over strudel.
• Cut into bite size servings to serve.
• Feel free to add nuts with the jam.

DRY FRUIT STRUDEL AS MADE IN ASSISI

Steps:

• A day before baking the cookies, prepare the fruit: Mix the chopped dried fruit and chopped apple in a bowl, toss with 1/2 cup of the sugar, pour in the vin santo, and stir. Cover with plastic wrap, and macerate overnight in the refrigerator.
• The next day, strain the fruit, catching and reserving the juices in a small saucepan. Return the fruit to the bowl, and toss with the chopped nuts.
• To make the dough: Stir together the flour, the remaining 1/4 cup sugar, and a pinch of salt in a large bowl. Drizzle in the olive oil, tossing the dry mix with a fork to form coarse crumbs. Beat the egg with 1 tablespoon water, and pour over the crumbs, tossing and mixing them into a slightly sticky dough. Wrap the dough in plastic, press it into a small flat block, and let it rest briefly.
• Arrange two racks in the oven, and heat it to 375°. Line the baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Unwrap the dough, place it between two other pieces of parchment paper, and roll it into a thin rectangular sheet, 12 by 15 inches. Remove the top parchment, and spread the fruit-nut filling on the dough, leaving a 1-inch margin uncovered on all sides. Gently pat the filling so it adheres to the dough.
• Roll up the dough like a jelly roll, starting at one of the longer sides, into a cylinder or log about 15 inches long. You can lift the bottom parchment to support the dough sheet as you fold it over into a spiral, enclosing the filling. When the log is finished, wrap it fully in the parchment paper (so it doesn't stick to the table), and roll it back and forth a few times to make it more compact (and easier to cut).
• Unwrap the log, and trim off the ends with the serrated knife. Next, slice the log crosswise every 1/2 inch or so, into disk-shaped spiral cookies. (If these begin to crumble as you cut, re-form the log into a compact shape, and start cutting again.) Lay the cookies flat and spaced apart on the lined baking sheets.
• Place the sheets on the two oven racks, and bake for about 15 minutes, then rotate the pans-top to bottom rack, and back to front-and bake another 15 minutes or so, until the dough is golden brown and the filling is bubbling.
• Meanwhile, heat the reserved fruit juices to the boil in a small saucepan, and cook until syrupy and reduced to about 1/4 cup. Remove the baking sheets from the oven onto wire racks, and while the cookies are still hot, drizzle the fruit syrup over them.
• Let the cookies cool completely. They will keep for a week or two if well wrapped or in a cookie tin.