Make the best of cherry season this year and make our cherry strudel stuffed with cranberries and almonds. This strudel is a classic dessert and you can serve it warm – which we love – or cold as well. Precooking the cherries ensure that the fruits are tender and you get a rich and thick filling. The cherry strudel tastes delicious with whipped cream, vanilla custard and ice cream!
What cherries should I use?
We prepared our strudel with fresh, pitted and stemmed black cherries. You can also use frozen and defrosted or jarred cherries, or the same amount of canned tart cherries. In this case, simply skip the macerating of the fruits and instead cook the filling right away. If you prefer to make the strudel with sour cherries, you may omit the lemon juice and use 150 g (3/4 cup) sugar.
Cherry Strudel Recipe
Make the best of cherry season this year and make our cherry strudel stuffed with cranberries and almonds. This strudel is a classic dessert and you can serve it warm – which we love – or cold as well. Precooking the cherries ensure that the fruits are tender and you get a rich and thick filling. If you prefer, replace the cranberries and almonds with other dried fruits and nuts or omit them entirely – the strudel tastes scrumptious either way!
Ingredients
- 800 g (3.5 cups) fresh black cherries, cleaned and pitted (see tip above)
- 100 g (1/2 cup) granulated sugar
- 3 tbsp cornstarch
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- a dash of cinnamon
- juice and zest of 1 organic, unwaxed lemon
- 60 g (1/2 cup) dried cranberries
- 50 g (1/2 cup) slivered almonds
- 6 large sheets strudel or filo pastry
- 1 egg whisked with 1 tbsp milk or water for brushing
- powdered (icing/confectioner’s) sugar for decorating
Instructions
- Prep work. Preheat oven to 200°C (400°F/ gas mark 6). Line a baking tray (sheet) with baking (parchment) paper.
- Cook the cherry filling. In a small bowl, whisk together 3 tbsp of sugar and cornstarch until no lumps of cornstarch are showing. Add the cherries and the remaining sugar into another bowl and let macerate for an hour, until the sugar draws out some of the liquid of the fruits. Add the cherries, cranberries, almonds, cornstarch mixture, vanilla extract, cinnamon, lemon zest and juice into a saucepan. Simmer over medium-high heat until the mixture starts to thicken, which takes between 7 to 10 minutes. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
- Roll the strudel. Place the sheets of strudel or filo pastry on a clean, dry tea-towel. Arrange the cherry filling lengthwise on the pastry leaving a 2 – 3 cm (1 in) border along bottom and sides. Fold in the edges. Use the towel to lift and roll the pastry up tightly to enclose the filling. Tuck the ends in and transfer the strudel seam-side down onto the prepared baking tray (sheet).
Tip: If working with filo pastry, brush each sheet with melted butter to keep it from drying out. - Bake the strudel. Brush the top of the strudel with egg wash and bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the pastry has become golden brown and flaky. Serve slices of warm strudel dusted with powdered (icing/confectioner’s) sugar, custard and ice cream.
