Don't Stress Over Strudel

Who doesn’t love a good strudel but making a true strudel dough and rolling it out can be extremely labor intensive. Making strudel is such a culinary art form; I put it right up there with the small percentage of bakers who still make their own Phyllo dough. I have actually made strudel the traditional way, it was difficult to say the least but worth every last bite when it was done. I just don’t have the time or enough space in my kitchen to accommodate making strudel the old fashioned way. So here is a recipe for a very simple strudel dough where you make 4 smaller strudels (a little thicker than traditional) from one recipe. This dough is light, buttery and delicious, plus you do not require a huge surface for rolling out the dough. The fillings can be altered to whatever ingredients you prefer. You may also change this from a sweet strudel to a savory one just by adding meat or vegetables instead.

Helpful Tip - If you are really strapped for time just use store bought phyllo dough.


Less stress strudel

1/2 lb. butter
1 sm. carton commercial sour cream
2 cups flour
1 cup jam – any flavor you like. I usually do raspberry or apricot
1 cup raisins
1 cup chopped walnuts
powdered sugar

Blend together butter and sour cream; mix in flour to make a soft dough. Separate into 4 equal balls. Wrap in saran wrap or waxed paper. Refrigerate 1 hour.
Mix jam, raisins and nuts. Roll each ball of pastry about 1/2 inch thick. Roll up jelly roll fashion and lay on ungreased sheet. Bake in preheated oven, 350 degrees, about 40 minutes. Sprinkle with powdered (confectioners') sugar and slice to serve.