A strudel or a stroodle is a type of pastry that originated in the Habsburg Empire. It is most often associated with Austrian cuisine, but is also traditional in Hungary (known locally as Rétes). The best known kinds are Apfelstrudel (with apple) and Topfenstrudel (with Topfen soft cheese, also called "Quark"), others include Weichselstrudel (sour cherry strudel) and Mohnstrudel (poppy seed strudel); there are also savoury strudels incorporating spinach, sauerkraut and so on.
The Strudel with apple is also typical in some regions of northern Italy, like Trentino-South Tyrol and the northern part of Veneto.
Strudel pastry is very elastic. It is made from flour with a high gluten content, little fat (butter) and no sugar. The pastry is rolled out and stretched very thinly over the back of the hand. Purists say it should be so thin that a newspaper can be read through it. The tale is told that the Emperor's cook decreed that it should be possible to read a love letter through it. Then the pastry is laid out on a tea towel and filled. Then it is rolled with the help of the towel and baked in an oven.
Traditional strudel pastry is different from strudels served in other parts of the world that are often made from filo or puff pastry. It probably had its origins in Byzantine or Middle Eastern pastries (see baklava), and is related to Balkan Burek.
The American company Pillsbury markets a version of strudel called Toaster Strudels. These are somewhat similar to Pop Tarts.
The word itself derives from the German word Strudel, which literally means "eddy" or "whirlpool".
In 2003, the strudel was named an official pastry of Texas (along with the sopaipilla)
Thanks Wikipedia
Sun Apr 27, 2008 1:07 pm
