Apple Strudel Cake

Apple strudel cake or Apfelkuchen as we call it in Germany is a delicious mouth-watering treat to celebrate the change of season or any other occasion. ​

The French have their apple tart, in the United States we have our apple pie, and in Germany there is Apfelstrudel (apple strudel) or Apfelkuchen (apple cake).
​I combine the two and make apple strudel cake. This is the closest thing to an apple strudel without a tremendous amount of work, expertise, and the time it takes to make an apple strudel. The filling has cinnamon, apples, almonds, and raisins, just like an apple strudel. The crust is flaky and buttery and complements the filling nicely.  This cake is an old friend of mine, as I have baked it for many years. It is a treat that my family and friends always enjoy. My hubby loves eating it with vanilla ice cream. I prefer Schlag (whipped cream). The cake improves with age and is a great party or dinner pleaser. ​

My friend, Robert, has beautiful apples in his garden that I used for this cake. Any firm, tart, not-too-juicy apple will do. I used Gravensteins. ​

I enjoy making this cake by hand. It is like playing in the sand box, but if you don't want to get your hands dirty, you can make the dough in a food processor.  Just make sure you don't over mix the dough. Mix the dry ingredients first, add the butter and egg, and use the on/off control on the food processor to mix. Flatten the dough by hand into two disks, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour or overnight.

The rolled out dough

The filling

The cake is ready to be baked

Putting the ingredients on a slab

Mixing the dough

The dough

Print Recipe

Ingredients:
9-inch tart form with a removable bottom 

The dough:
1 3/4 cup (250g) flour 
½ cup (125g) sugar
9 TBS (125g) cold butter
1 egg at room temperature
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 TBS lemon zest
a pinch of salt

The filling:
1½-2 pounds of apples
juice of one lemon
3 TBS bread crumbs
3 TBS sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
½ cup (100 g) golden raisins
¼ cup (50 g) toasted & slivered almonds


For the glaze:
½ cup powdered sugar 
3 TBS lemon juice
​​

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375º Fahrenheit ( 200 degree Celsius).

To make the dough by hand, put the flour on a flat surface and make a bowl in the middle for the egg, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest, and salt. Cut the butter into ½  inch small pieces and place on top of the mound of flour. Think of a volcano with some butter on the ridge and a hole in the middle.  Starting from the outside, mix the ingredients into a ball. Use the palm of your hand to smear some of the butter. DO NOT OVER MIX. It is OK to have some pieces of butter left in the dough. Flatten the dough and make two disks, one a little bit larger than the other,  cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for ½ hour or overnight. The bottom piece needs more dough to build up the sides of the pan.

In the meantime, peel and core the apples and thinly slice them.  Sprinkle lemon juice over the apples.

To roll out the dough, cut out four 14-inch square pieces of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Put two pieces of plastic wrap on baking surface, sprinkle  flour on the plastic wrap . Put  the dough in the center and cover with the two other plastic wrap pieces and roll the disk into a 9-inch circle about 1/8-inch thick. Roll from the center. If the dough starts to stick, peel off the plastic wrap and put it back on,  continuing to roll out  the disk. Roll from both sides by flipping the dough over. This will prevent the dough from sticking to the wrap. Remove one sheet of plastic wrap and invert the dough into the tart pan. Then remove the remaining plastic wrap. Press the dough into the pan and up on the sides, cutting off any dough overhang.  Use the dough scraps to patch any cracks. 

Mix the sugar and the cinnamon in a bowl and set aside. 
Sprinkle the bottom of the dough with breadcrumbs, mix the apples with the raisins and the almonds, add to the cake and sprinkle with the sugar cinnamon mixture. Roll out the second disk of dough and cover the apple filling with it.  Make a cross slit in the center of the cake and put the cake on a cookie sheet (to catch any drippings).

Bake in the middle of the oven for about 45 minutes until the dough is lightly colored.

To make the glaze, mix the powdered sugar and lemon juice to make a smooth glaze.  Add some more powdered sugar if the glaze is too thin.

As soon as you take the cake out of the oven, remove the outer ring of the tart form.  Cool slightly and spread the glaze evenly over the cake.


Guten Appetit!
recipe by © Sunnycovechef