A delicious alternative to traditional mince pies.
Christmas strudel
Ingredients
- 500g Granny Smith apples, cubed and tossed in lemon juice
- 25ml butter
- 15ml brown sugar
- 1 x 300g jar Christmas mincemeat, preferably homemade
- 75g cherries
- 35g pecan nuts, roughly chopped
- 20ml almonds, flaked and toasted, plus extra for sprinkling
- 150g fresh breadcrumbs
- zest and juice of 1 orange, grated
- 4 sheets phyllo pastry
- 120g butter, melted
- 50g almonds, ground
- cake flour, for sprinkling
- sliced peach jam or any chunky, good-quality jam, for brushing
- icing sugar, to dredge
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Place the apples in a roasting pan with the butter and sugar and roast until the apples are soft and golden, about 15 minutes. Allow to cool.
Place the cooled apple mixture in a bowl together with the Christmas mincemeat, cherries, pecans, almonds, half the breadcrumbs and the zest and juice. Stir well to combine.
Arrange a clean tea towel on a suitable surface, sprinkle with flour then lay a sheet of phyllo on top. Brush the phyllo with butter and repeat with the remaining phyllo.
Sprinkle the remaining breadcrumbs and the ground almonds evenly over the top of the final sheet of buttered phyllo.
Spread the fruit and nut filling on the pastry, leaving a 3cm border all around. Fold the borders on the long sides in over the filling. Start rolling up the pastry by turning in the border along the short edge nearest you. Then keep rolling, lifting up the tea towel to help form the roll. Reduce the oven temperature to 190°C.
Before completing the roll, lift the far edge of the tea towel over a paperlined baking tray. Finish rolling the strudel carefully on to the tray, ending with it seam-side down.
Brush all over with more melted butter and sprinkle with flaked almonds. Bake until crisp and golden, about 30 – 35 minutes.
Brush generously with warm jam thinned with a little water and dredge with icing sugar. Serve warm with pouring cream.
