Shelly's Recipe

AUTUMN FRUIT STRUDEL

Category: Napoleons/Eclairs/Strudel/Baklava/Cream Puffs

12 sheets phyllo dough, thawed if frozen
8 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and cooled
7 tsp sugar
3 or 4 tart apples, peeled, halved, cored and diced (about 3 cups)
1⁄2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1⁄4 tsp ground cinnamon
1⁄8 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup mixed chopped dried fruit, such as
Sour cherries, apricots, cranberries, currants,
Golden raisins or nectarines

Position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat to 375. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Working with 1 phyllo sheet at a time and keeping the others covered with a barely damp kitchen towel to prevent them from drying out, place the first sheet on the parchment paper. Using a pastry brush, brush well with some of the melted butter. Lay a second phyllo on top of the first and brush again with butter. Sprinkle with 1 tsp of the granulated sugar. Repeat, brushing every sheet with butter and sprinkling every other sheet with 1 tsp granulated sugar, until all of the phyllo is used.

In a large bowl, toss together the apples, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and dried fruit. Arrange the apple filling along one long side of the phyllo stack, positioning it about 1 inch from the edge. Fold the edge of the stack over the filling, then carefully roll up the phyllo into a log with the seam side down. Brush the log with additional melted butter and sprinkle with the remaining 1 tsp sugar.

Bake the strudel until the phyllo is golden and the apples are tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, 45 to 55 minutes. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool for 30 minutes. Transfer the strudel to a long serving platter, cut crosswise and serve warm. Serves 8.

NOTES: Follow the instructions on the box for thawing. When working with phyllo, keep the unused dough sheets stacked under a piece of plastic wrap or a barely damp kitchen towel until you are ready to use them; otherwise, they may become brittle and tear easily. Frozen phyllo dough keeps well but not indefinitely; it becomes dry or sticky if stored for too long.