Apple Strudel

Now here is a treat for any time of year but especially for Oktoberfest made with apples. The smell of apples baking in the house always tends to make the home more inviting to friends and family.

My strudel was made at Christmas using the apple slices that I had put up in the Fall that year. We always put up enough apples to last from September until Christmas.

I usually make my studel with my sweet yeast dough recipe, but this recipe is easier and doesn't involve letting the dough raise.

You can add raisins to the filling for this recipe but I'm not partial to cooked raisins except in those wonderful filled cookies. My preference for this recipe is to leave out the other fruits and just use the apples and nuts.

• 1 egg
• teaspoon salt
• cooking oil
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tablespoon warm water
• melted butter or margarine
• sugar

Mix egg, salt, 2 tablespoons oil and the flour. Add warm water and mix to form a soft dough. Knead on lightly floured board for about 15 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic. Brush top with more oil and cover with a warm bowl. Let stand 30 minutes.

• 1/4 cup seedless raisins
• 2 tablespoons water
• 6-8 apples, peeled and sliced
• 1 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup fine dry bread crumbs
• 1/3 dub butter or margarine
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

While dough is standing, prepare ingredients for filling. Soak raisins in water, peel and core apples and slice thin. Sprinkle with 1/2 cup of sugar. Brown crumbs in butter. Combine crumbs with raisins and liquid, nuts, cinnamon and remaining sugar.

Roll out dough as thin as possible on a large lightly floured cloth, about 36" square. Melt 1/2 cup butter and brush entire top of dough.

Pile apples in a row about 2" from the end of dough. Spread raisin mixture over the rest of the dough. Lift edge of cloth nearest the apples. Continue to roll dough over and over with the help of the cloth.

Put roll on an ungreased cookie sheet. Make into a "U" shape if roll is too long for sheet.

Bake in 400° oven for 30 minutes. During baking, brush 2 or 3 times with melted butter. During last 5 minutes before strudel is done, sprinkle with sugar.