Winter is in full swing and we all crave homemade strudel with crunchy apples. But what if the apples are already losing their firmness? With a few simple tricks from German households, you can keep apples fresh, juicy and perfect for desserts all winter long. You just need to know how to do it.
When you open the cellar in winter and look at the apples, they are often already soft and tasteless. In Germany, they have a simple trick for this problem that has worked for generations. They harvest firm, healthy apples and store them in often wrapped in paper or buried in sawdust to allow air to flow between them. Thanks to this, it stays firm and juicy for several months.
Watch the video with the recipe for apple bags from yogurt dough here:
The basis is sufficient cold
You can try a similar approach at home. A cellar or a cool room around 2-5 °C is ideal, or . Do not stack the apples directly on top of each other, each piece should have some space. Apples stored in this way are perfect not only for direct consumption, but especially for desserts, such as homemade strudel.
“It is best to store apples individually, ideally wrapped in paper, and put them in a cool, dark place. That way they will retain their firmness and taste and you can use them in strudel or pie even several weeks after harvest,” advises confectioner Marie Hašková.
Recipe for homemade strudel with apples
Raw materials:
- 6-8 firm apples
- 100 g of sugar
- 1 teaspoon of cinnamon
- 50 g of raisins
- 50 g chopped walnuts
- 1 package of puff pastry
- 1 egg for brushing
- powdered sugar for sprinkling
Procedure:
- Peel the apples and cut them into thin slices. Mix them with sugar, cinnamon, raisins and nuts.
- Roll the dough into a rectangle, spread the apple mixture in the middle and leave the edges free.
- Roll the dough tightly over the filling and press the ends.
- Transfer to a tray lined with baking paper, brush with egg and bake at 180°C for about 35-40 minutes.
- Leave to cool after removing and sprinkle with icing sugar. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream.
Tips for long-term storage of apples
- Separate the varieties, some accelerate the ripening of others.
- Wrap individual apples in paper to prevent possible rotting.
- Watch the temperature and humidity, as drafts and dry air are harmful to apples.
Thanks to these tricks, you can be sure that the strudel will remain delicious even in the winter and the apples will be firm even several weeks after harvest.
