How to make authentic South Tyrolean apple strudel from scratch with soft shortcrust pastry, golden delicious apples, and crumbled cookies
To be honest, I’ve always somewhat looked down on apple strudel made with South Tyrolean shortcrust pastry, preferring the lighter, crunchier version made with pasta matta over this buttery, cookie-like variation.
That was all true until my most recent vacation spent in Alta Badia, around the San Cassiano area, where I completely changed my mind.
I was lucky enough to stay in a Maso (traditional mountain farmhouse) where you could truly feel the love for local products and gastronomic culture.
I tasted alpine butter, flavorful and fragrant speck, various wild vegetables, and of course, the quintessential apple strudel made with shortcrust pastry!
The fundamental difference from the Austrian version comes down to lightness: the shortcrust pastry of the Italian version is certainly more substantial, but decidedly more decadent.
Shortcrust strudel has a full, rich flavor, and the dough pairs wonderfully with apples, pine nuts, raisins, and cinnamon—the classic strudel ingredients—giving this dessert a wonderfully crumbly texture.
Like all traditional sweets, there are countless versions of this recipe. The one we are preparing today—along with many others on my blog of South Tyrolean origin—was, so to speak, “gifted” to me by a chef
I met in San Cassiano, and it features a very simple trick that will give your strudel that extra edge.
The South Tyrolean shortcrust apple strudel recipe is very simple to make: the process follows a classic shortcrust, though its texture is closer to a sablé dough—soft and buttery. Because of this, it is quite sticky right after mixing and requires a brief rest in the refrigerator before being rolled out.
The filling is the classic apple, raisin, and pine nut mix, flavored with cinnamon alongside the “secret” ingredient recommended by the chef, which I’ll explain in the recipe.
Did I peak your curiosity? The only thing I regret is that you can’t smell the aroma lingering in my house right now as I’ve just pulled the strudel out of the oven, but there’s a solution… make it yourself and you’ll smell it too, while enjoying this super indulgent treat!
South Tyrolean Apple Strudel: The Original Recipe with Shortcrust Pastry
Ingredients
For the Shortcrust Pastry:
For the Strudel Filling:
For the Topping:
Tools
Instructions: South Tyrolean Apple Strudel
Note Before Starting You can prepare the dough either by hand in a bowl or using a stand mixer. Just remember to take the butter out of the fridge at least 30 minutes before using it so it has a soft consistency, and leave the raisins to soak in warm water or rum to soften.
Making the Shortcrust Pastry
Place the softened butter and sugar in a bowl and begin beating until creamy and fluffy. Add the sifted flour and baking powder, and continue mixing. Finally, incorporate the lemon zest, whole egg, egg yolk, vanilla bean seeds, and a pinch of salt.
Kneading and Resting
Work the dough until smooth and homogeneous. Don’t worry if it feels slightly sticky—that is completely normal! This is precisely why it needs to rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes wrapped in plastic wrap before being rolled out.
Preparing the Filling
While the pastry rests, tackle the filling. Peel the apples, remove the cores, and cut them into bite-sized cubes of about 1 cm. In a bowl, combine the apples with brown sugar, drained raisins, pine nuts, lemon zest, a dusting of cinnamon, and the crumbled shortbread cookies (this is the chef’s secret trick replacing traditional breadcrumbs, which I guarantee makes all the difference).
Toss the mixture to evenly distribute all the ingredients.
Rolling Out the Pastry
After the resting time, take the dough out of the fridge, knead it for a few seconds to make it more malleable, then place it on a sheet of parchment paper lightly dusted with flour.
Roll it out with a rolling pin to form a rectangle roughly 35×25 cm. You can eyeball the dimensions; the important thing is that the pastry thickness is about 3 mm.
Assembling the Strudel
Transfer the rectangular pastry sheet—along with the parchment paper underneath—onto your baking sheet so you won’t have to risk breaking it by moving it later.
Distribute the apple and raisin filling down the center of the rectangle, lightly compacting it with your hands. Fold the pastry over the filling from both long sides using the parchment paper to assist you, and seal the strudel.
Fold over the ends as well and press gently with your fingers to seal.
Baking
Preheat your static oven to 180°C (350°F). While waiting for it to reach temperature, let the assembled strudel rest briefly in the refrigerator.
Optionally, you can brush the surface with 1 beaten egg mixed with a tablespoon of milk for a richer golden finish (I personally skip this step, but it’s entirely up to you—it doesn’t change the flavor).
Bake at 180°C (350°F) for about 35–40 minutes until the shortcrust is cooked through and lightly golden. Remove from the oven, let cool completely before serving, and dust with powdered sugar.
Notes and Substitutions
Shortcrust Pastry:
If you are short on time, you can substitute the shortcrust pastry with store-bought puff pastry, though the texture and authentic flavor won’t be quite the same.
Filling Proportions:
This recipe features a remarkably generous amount of filling compared to what you might normally see. The master pastry chef designed this to highlight the flavor and balance between the pastry and the apples. You can reduce the apples and raisins slightly if desired, as long as you maintain the proportions.
Storage
You can store the apple strudel in the refrigerator, enclosed in a covered container, for up to 3 days. When ready to serve, simply warm it up for a few seconds in the microwave. Alternatively, if you used fresh ingredients, you can freeze it—preferably pre-sliced into individual portions.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. Which apples are best for strudel?
While many varieties exist, not all are suited for baking or filling a strudel. Personal preferences vary between Rennet and Golden Delicious, but I personally find Golden Delicious superior: they are firm, don’t release excessive water during baking, and won’t turn to mush.
2. What pasta should traditionally be used for strudel?
To be strictly authentic, the word to use is Strudelteig, which literally translates to “strudel dough.” This first appeared in 1827 in a Viennese cookbook by cook and writer Anna Dorn. It relies on a very thin elastic dough—known today as pasta matta—made simply with flour, water, oil, and a pinch of salt for a light, flaky result.
Varied doses for servings