Tuesday, July 12, 2011

An Apple Cake and an Apple Strudel








I got a few more Oratia heirloom apples (and a few garden lemons too) from Sue, this is still the season for apples in New Zealand! First I made an apple cake, I like to eat apple cake for breakfast, and I took advantage of the fact that I had a German wwoofer staying with us to indulge: she also liked cake for breakfast, something that in New Zealand is not really done!


Apple and Sultana Cake with Rum




The base for this cake comes from my book Sweet As..., it is the base for most of my fruit cakes, and the original recipe is on page 28, where is used for a cherry berry cake. I start by mixing 4 eggs with 200 g of sugar, then I add 150 g of melted butter (salted), 250 g of self-raising flour, and the zest of one lemon (optional). In the meantime I peeled and cut 4 apples and splashed them with lemon juice. I also soaked 2 tbsp of sultana in a little Guatemalan Rum (Ron Botran, the best!).





I added the sultana and apples for last, and folded everything. I poured the mixture in a 23 cm round baking tin lined with baking paper, and baked the cake at 180°C for approx. 45 minutes. 





When the cake was cool I decorated it with icing sugar and homemade sugar flowers, the German girl and my daughter really liked it, I guess that it was very 'girly'! Also it was perfect for breakfast (the rum is just a taste, no alcohol remains really!), probably I would not make it for a dessert or a special occasion, but definitely for more breakfasts (or after school snacks) to enjoy with a hot drink. There was some left when Kiwi blogger Sasa came to visit, I hope she liked it, she must be used to European having apple cake for breakfast!








Dolomiti Apple Strudel


This is my favourite apple strudel, once again from my book Sweet As..., page 20. I learned to make this from my mother, and I like it because it is 'rustic', not fancy like the patisseries' versions, and barely sweet: a real Dolomiti mountain food. In fact I prefer this to any other apple pie or cake or flan!
For the filling peel and slice 4 apples, add 1 tbsp of sultana, a few chopped walnuts (mine were from the South Island) 5 to 10 cloves (according to taste), 1 stick of cinnamon broken into two pieces, 4 tsp brown sugar, and the juice of 1 lemon.



For the pastry mix 200 g of flour with 50 g of butter (cubed, vegans can use margarine), 2 tsp brown sugar and 100 ml cold water. Mix well by hand and shape into a bowl. Refrigerate for 30 minutes then roll out into a large oval, as thin as you can manage. Spread the apples on top and roll up. Pinch both sides of the strudel and turn them in to resemble a gigantic croissant.  Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake at 180°C for almost one hour.




When the strudel is almost done the juices from the apples will start to come out: remove the strudel from the oven and with a spoon collect the juices and used them to coat the crust. Then place back into the oven for 5 or 10 more minutes (or until you are satisfied with it, I like it not too brown, my mother likes with a really crispy crust). The two little ends are quite dry (just pastry) and possibly I wouldn't offer them to guests, but when I was a child my brother and I used to get one each: we loved them, and we still do (although he is in Italy, so I can eat both ends!!). 



Serving tips: my husband (the Kiwi) likes this strudel for pudding, with cream, but for me this is, once again, the perfect breakfast (no cream!).


Photos and Recipes by Alessandra Zecchini ©

34 comments:

  1. Alessandra I love both recipes, look delicious!! gloria

    ReplyDelete
  2. Indeed we're on the same tune baking with apples ;)
    Both the cake and the strudel look delicious. And lucky Sasa who could enjoy the cake ;)

    ReplyDelete
  3. Both looks delicious ....nice pics

    ReplyDelete
  4. Non saprei cosa scegliere dei due. Semplicemnte adoro i dolci con le mele. Ciao, buona giornata

    ReplyDelete
  5. Federica, per me sempre il secondo, non e' bello a vedersi, ma rimane sempre il mio preferito :-)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Sarà che amo le mele nei dolci, ma trovo stupendi sia lo torta che lo strudel, appena tornano le mele anche qui mi sa tanto che te le replico tutte e due :)

    Un bacione Ale!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sono bellissimi tutti e due....ma i dolci legati ai ricordi dell'infanzia, hanno qualcosa in più !! Ciao, Franci

    ReplyDelete
  8. Vero Franci, devo mettere anche questo nell'equazione :-)

    ReplyDelete
  9. I dolci con le mele sono la mia passione e ho preso appunti per entrambe le ricette. Non ho mai inserito le noci nello strudel, mi piacerà tantissimo, sono sicura!
    A presto!

    ReplyDelete
  10. @ Dana, penso che inserire le noci sia una cosa molto 'dolomitica' :-) mia madre e' del Feltrino, sono famosi per le noci!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Bella battaglia..ma lo strudel è sempre lo studel!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. per me basta che ci siano le mele, qualunque impasto va bene, strudel, torta, crostata, bauletti, tutto....sulle noci sono d'accordo, sebbene io in inverno le aggiungo, ma io le metto anche nel pesto, mi piacciono le noci....lo sai che ho avuto un fidanzato di Feltre?...un abbraccio

    ReplyDelete
  13. Davvero Tam!!! Magari era un mio parente! :-)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Cioe'... e' un mio parente, non volevo usare l'imperfetto! lol

    ReplyDelete
  15. What a lovely cake. I must try it. I hope all is well and that you have a great day. I'm looking forward to your book. Blessings...Mary

    ReplyDelete
  16. ma che cosa è venuto fuori? Onu, io non ho scritto Onu ho scritto: ho avuto un fidanzato di Feltre, era un pilota miliatre ma l'Onu non c'entra per nulla....che cavolo è successo?

    ReplyDelete
  17. ??? Tam???? Dov'e' scritto Onu? :-)

    ReplyDelete
  18. spettacolo veramente, ogni volta che apro le tue pagine resto piacevolmente colpita dal tono delle tue parole, calme e misurate, dolci e reali, e dalle ricette semplici e di effetto.
    questo è buonissimo ci scommetto....farò qualche modifica ma per ora non posso provarlo....solo l'idea di accendere forno o fornelli mi fa star male da me ci sono 36° circa ^^
    Bibi

    ReplyDelete
  19. Bibi sei sempre troppo carina! Lo strudel comunque e' quasi vegano, basta usare margarina vegetale invece del burro, l'ho gia' fatto e funziona benissimo :-). Goditi il caldo anche per me!

    ReplyDelete
  20. I'm not familiar with this kind of apple, but your strudel and cake look delicious! Apple is not my top 10 fruits (I think) but I love apples in baked goods!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Both your apple cake and strudel looks delicious! Apples are so fabulous, great in most anything! Have a nice day, Alessandra!

    ReplyDelete
  22. Ciao Alessandra, grazie di essere passata da me. Così mi hai permesso di scoprire il tuo meraviglioso blog :) le tue ricette sono proprio belle, poi io adoro le torte di mele e anche lo strudel quindi queste te le copio subito!!

    Caspita da Sestola alla Nuova Zelanda ce ne è di strada da fare ^__^ sai che la nuova zelanda mi ha sempre attirato? deve essere un posto bellissimo.

    ReplyDelete
  23. That looks fantastic! I'm all about apples and pears lately too! :D

    ReplyDelete
  24. Is that the apple cake I ate some of!? Molto delicioso ;P

    ReplyDelete
  25. Mi piacerebbe farti assaggiare la super Confettura di Mele allo strudel di mia sorella... utilizziamo frutti antichi e le mele.. hanno il sapore di Mela! =) buona giornata.. Valeria

    ReplyDelete
  26. Sarebbe fantastico, e poi le mele antiche sono perette per lo strudel :-)

    ReplyDelete
  27. le torte alle mele sono le meglio

    e lo strudel è il meglio del meglio!

    ReplyDelete
  28. Apple cake with rum soaked raisins for breakfast!? Love it!

    ReplyDelete
  29. sei bravissima nelle foto passo passo, si capisce tutto alla perfezione! Un bacione grande...

    ReplyDelete
  30. The recipe looks awesome. I will have to try it. Your photos are gallery worthy! Especially the initial shot of the apples. Incredible.

    ReplyDelete
  31. Mmmm I love baking with apples, they are so wonderful. Love the look of your cake and strudel. Both look delicious!

    ReplyDelete
  32. @ Eddie, well, coming from you what a compliment, but I need to thank my iPhone for them :-).

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails