In a little less than a week I am headed up to Door County (Wisconsin) for a couple of days. Partly for a much needed little getaway, but mostly because it's cherry blossom season. Orchards with rows and rows of cherry trees in full bloom in hues of whites and pinks are absolutely breathtaking. Besides doing some hiking, I will be endlessly wandering around the orchards taking as many photographs as possible. Just as there is no such thing as having too many photos of mountain landscapes, sunrises, sunsets, or aspen trees in the fall, one can never ever have enough photos of cherry blossoms. But for the record, this will only my second 'cherry blossom' trip up to Door County. And more than likely it won't be the last one.
While cherry season here in the midwest is several months away, this easy, unfussy Cherry Almond Strudel can be made year round using the best jar of cherry preserves you can find (see notes). By definition, a strudel is a type of cake made from fruit that is wrapped in a thin layer of pastry, baked to golden perfection, and finished with a generous dusting of confectionary (icing) sugar. With a history going back to the 17th century, the Austrians have laid claim to having created these mouthwatering confections. One of the defining characteristics of an authentic strudel is the almost paper-thin, slightly transparent dough. However, the availability of store-bought (frozen, then thawed) phyllo dough or puff pastry creates a 'strudel-like' buttery rich, crisp pastry without having to invest any time in the labor intensive process of making an authentic strudel dough. In other words, I am taking some liberty calling this, just as gorgeous, equally scrumptious, Cherry Almond Strudel a strudel.
Almost everything about this flaky layered Cherry Almond Strudel epitomizes the concept of a strudel. Which is why I am not shying away from calling this equally drool worthy puff pastry version a strudel.
Being able to create a confection rivaling almost anything store bought using readily accessible ingredients is actually pure genius. While this recipe uses cherry jam preserves, you could easily substitute them with your favorite peach, blueberry or apple preserves. However, if like me, you love all things cherry, you might want to consider sticking with the cherry jam/preserves the first time you make this strudel. And yes, I say first time, because this is the kind of pastry you might be putting into regular rotation. Especially for those of you who frequently have friends and/or family over for a weekend gathering or brunch.
The cream cheese and jam/preserve fillings are very similar to the one used in the Lemon Blueberry Breakfast Pastry. However, I have changed the ingredients amounts. And instead of rolling out a sheet of my favorite DuFour puff pastry, I used the two sheets of puff pastry from the Pepperidge Farm package as it had some benefits (cost being one of them). In addition to not having to roll out the Pepperidge Farm puff pastry, the two sheets (slightly overlapped), easily created the necessary 17" x 10" sheet base. Note: Assemble your pastry sheet on a large, rimmed, heavy bottomed, parchment paper lined baking sheet before spreading on the fillings.
After spreading the fillings down a 2 1/2"-3" center of the puff pastry (leaving at least an inch at the top and bottom of the pastry), you will make eight or nine 1" diagonal/angled cuts on the pastry. Starting at the top of the strudel, fold over the top piece gently folding over the fruit, then begin by gently alternating folding over each of the pastry strips over the filling to create a criss-cross pattern. As long as the pastry strips covers the filling, you are good! When you get to the end fold up the bottom piece of pastry and press down with your fingers (or use a fork) to seal the ends (you will do that for the top of the strudel as well). Try as best as you can to have each pastry piece overlap the one above it. If you have too may gaps in your pastry, the filling will ooze out (trust me, I learned that lesson).
Generously brush the strudel with an egg wash and sprinkle with sliced almonds. Place the baking pan in the refrigerator and let it chill for 20-30 minutes. Bake the strudel for 45-55 minutes at 350 degrees (F) or until it's a deep golden brown. You want your baked pastry layers to be crispy, not soft. So err on the side of baking longer without burning your strudel.
If some of your filling oozes out from the strudel, don't panic. As the strudel cools you can scrape it away. Carefully transfer the cleaned up, cooled strudel to a platter and generously sprinkle with confectionary sugar. It's then ready to be devoured immediately or, if left uncovered, will still be good for several hours.
When serving, cut the strudel into thick slices. About1 1/2" to 2" in thickness. You should be able to get 8-9 slices.
Served on a beautiful large platter or cutting board, this buttery, crispy, melt in your mouth Cherry Almond Strudel makes for an impressive presentation. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if anyone asked what bakery it came from. Even your friends who had previously enjoyed some authentic strudel in Vienna will be shockingly surprised at how scrumptious this unfussy version is. This Cherry Almond Strudel is definitely one of those pastries proving why it's always a good, or rather I should say, why it's always a great idea to have a few boxes of puff pastry in your freezer.
Recipe
Cherry Almond Strudel
Serves at least 8
Ingredients
1 package (17.3 oz/490g) puff pastry, thawed
4 ounces (114g) cream cheese, slightly softened
1 cup (120g) confectionary sugar, sifted (plus more for dusting the baked strudel)
Zest from half of a lemon
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/2 cup (138g) good quality cherry jam or preserves (or use a good quality blueberry, apple, or peach jam/preserve)
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 large egg
1 Tablespoon milk (or water)
1/4 cup (23g) almond slices
Directions
1. In a medium sized bowl, use a hand mixer to beat the cream cheese, confectionary sugar, lemon zest and lemon juice until creamy. Set aside.
2. In a small bowl, mix together the cherry jam and cornstarch. Set aside.
3. Line a large, heavy bottomed, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Unroll the puff pastry and place the two sheets, overlapping about 2 inches on the baking sheet. Press the seams together using your fingers. Cut away the pastry handing over the edge of the pan. You should end up with a sheet of pastry approximately 18" x 10".
4. Spoon the cream cheese mixture down the center of the pastry to a width of somewhere between 2 1/2" and 3". Leaving at least an inch open at the top and bottom.
5. Spoon the cherry jam mixture over the top of the cream cheese mixture.
6. Use a sharp knife to cut diagonal incisions into the pastry stopping short of the filling. Cuts should be spaced out about 1" apart. You will end up with 8-9 flaps of pastry.
7. Fold the top of the pastry over the filling and then gently pull over each flap of pastry over the fruit. Alternating between the right and light sides in order to create a criss-cross pattern. Try keeping the open spaces between flaps to a minimum.
8. When you get to the end, fold the bottom pastry over and press down with your fingers or use a fork (I liked using a fork to seal both ends).
9. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk. Liberally brush over the over pastry. Sprinkle the almonds over the egg washed pastry.
10. Place the baking pan in the refrigerator and chill for 20-30 minutes.
11. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees (F).
12. Remove the pastry from the refrigerator, place in oven and bake for 45-55 minutes or until beautifully golden brown. Check your pastry at the 45 minute mark. More than likely it will need to continue to bake for another 5-10 minutes. Remember, you want your pastry to be a deep golden color.
13. Remove from the oven and let cool.
14. Transfer the pastry to serving platter or large cutting board. Generously dust with confectionary sugar.
Notes: (1) I used Stonewall Kitchen's Bada Bing Cherry Jam for the filling. It's seriously good. But if you can't find it, then use a good quality jar of cherry jam or preserves from your favorite orchard. (2) For this recipe I used Pepperidge Farm's puff pastry and had great results! (3) Some of your filling may ooze from the pastry onto the parchment paper. Do not worry. Just scrape it away before transferring the baked strudel to a serving platter. The generous dusting of the confectionary sugar hides any imperfections!
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