Reg wrote:
> Margaret Suran wrote:
>
>> Forget about making your own strudel dough. It is not worth the
>> aggravation you will have when you try to pull it until it is thin
>> enough. It dries quickly and tears and you have to start all over
>> again.
>
>
> You need moderate experience and the proper equipment to make
> it work. It helps to have the proper size table, etc.
>
> However, in the grand scheme of pastry techniques, making strudel
> is actually not that hard. The problems you mention are easily
> addressed if you have minimal competence handling pastry.
>
>> The frozen dough is better.
>
>
> Phyllo dough? You're joking right?
>
> Phyllo dough hardly resembles real strudel dough. Phyllo comes
> in small sheets, for one thing. Real strudel is made from one
> continuous sheet that gives the final product a completely
> different composition, texture, and appearance. It's integral
> to the very idea of "strudel".
>
> Real strudel cannot be made with phyllo. Shame on you!
>

The flour in the USA is different from the one in Europe and the dough
does not become elastic enough.

A couple of years ago, Rosie, a friend from Vienna came to New York
and stayed with me. One day she decided to make Apfelstrudel for
Marcel, my next door neighbor, Laura herself and me. We went shopping
for all the ingredients. I showed her the frozen Phyllo Dough at the
store, but she told me that making the authentic stuff was no problem.
None at all.

I was busily chopping and slicing apples while Rosie was kneading
the strudel dough. The large dinette table was covered with a fresh,
white all cotton tablecloth and my guest was wearing a protective
white apron, so that she could use her hands as well as her tummy to
stretch the dough. She rolled it out and started to stretch. The
dough would not stretch thinly enough before tearing and slivering.
Rosie gathered up the scraps repeatedly and tried again and again. I
want to mention that she makes Apfelstrudel or some other kind at
least once or twice a week when she is home. Finally, when the dough
no longer looked like anything remotely edible, she asked me go to the
store and get the frozen stuff.

At that time, the sheets of dough were quite large and were folded
several times to make them fit into the box. Each strudel was large
enough to be shaped into a "U" or horseshoe, so that it would fit on
to the cookie sheet on which Rosie baked it. The recipe she used made
two nice sized ones and they were really delicious. I will ask her
for the recipe, the next time I email her.

Until then, I will spend a fair amount of time standing in the corner
and feeling ashamed of myself. (