MAKES: About 12 servings
TIME: About 1 hour
An impossibly crisp and many-layered crust wrapped around warm, tender filling is your reward for making the dough yourself. It’s fun, but involved, so you might not do it every time you crave strudel, but when you do, use this recipe. You can also use any of the filling variations, multiplying the ingredients by 1½ since the strudel dough makes a pastry that serves about 12. For a shortcut version, see the recipe that follows.
1. Heat the oven to 400°F. Peel and core the apples, then grate them in a food processor or on the coarse side of a box grater. Toss with the sugar, lemon zest and juice, cinnamon, and salt and put everything in a strainer while you prepare the dough.
2. Once the dough is completely stretched into a rectangle as directed in the recipe, spread it all over with melted butter. Starting about 6 inches from the short side of the dough and leaving a couple inches of border along the other remaining edges of the dough, sprinkle the bread crumbs in an even swath. This absorbs some of the juices in the filling so the crust doesn’t get too soggy or heavy. Press down on the apple mixture to squeeze out any excess juice, then pile it over the breadcrumbs.
3. Using the cloth underneath, lift the 6-inch edge of dough and fold it over the next 6 inches of filled dough (see illustrations, page 495). Tuck in the side borders, then keep using the cloth to roll the dough over itself into a log.
4. Once you finish rolling the strudel, use the cloth to move it onto the parchment underneath, then lift the parchment to transfer it to a baking sheet; if necessary, curve the strudel to fit on the sheet. Brush the top with melted butter. Bake until golden brown, 40 to 50 minutes, and serve warm or at room temperature.