Quick Apple Strudel 

Is it just me or does the winter season make you think of a warm pudding too?

At our house we have really tried hard to eliminate those dreadful carbs during the week day evening meals – no mashed potatoes or roast potatoes for us. Instead of spaghetti noodles I am diligently making courgette zoodles and proclaiming them to be just as nice. And for the most part with a very tasty sauce they really are pretty good.

Definitely no pudding for either of us either as we try very hard to be good and consider our diet. A nice cup of tea with no cookie is as good as it gets.

However after several carb-free dinners, and another cold wet winters day, avoiding the call of a hot pudding was too much to resist! Talk about comfort food cravings I had left home in the dark to ensure I avoided the worst of the Auckland traffic whichususally grinds to a slow halt when the weather is bad (which it was..) By the time I got home in the evening it was, you guessed it, dark and still raining.

It was like an emergency moment in time; What ingredients were in the pantry that I could rustle up a hot and yummy pudding with? Ah! A tin of apples, dried fruit, a drawer of spices, dried fruit and some filo Pastry – I knew these few things alone could create something that would not only taste divine but create an aroma that would make you forget your diet

Ingredients:

• 3 sheets of filo pastry
• 1/4 cup soft breadcrumbs
• 1 x 415grams apple slices
• 1/4 cup sultanas
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1/4 teaspoon mixed spice
• 1/2 tablespoon melted butter
• 1/2 teaspoon icing sugar

Mix apple, sultanas, ground cloves, mixed spice together.

Lay pastry sheets under a damp tea-towel, sprinkling breadcrumbs between each sheet.

Spread apple mixture down centre of pastry to within 3 cm of the ends. Mix melted butter and icing sugar together and brush around edges of pastry. Roll one long end of pastry layer over filling and roll as far a sponge. Place on a baking tray.

Brush with remaining butter mixture. Slash the strudel top with a knife.

Bake for 15-20 minutes at 200 C or until pastry is lightly golden and cooked.

Serve warm with a dollop of something low-fat!

Using Filo Pastry should be considered a low-fat option when it comes to pastry. It is a great option to be fair and you don't lose anything with the flavour with the crunchy texture more than making up for taking the healthier option. Filo, which means 'leaf' in Greek, tissue-thin sheets of dough that have very little fat. Because it does not have much fat, the sheets are usually brushed with melted butter or oil and then layered together. When it bakes up, the layers get airy, crisp and flaky.

Quick, easy and very scrummy – this is a dish that makes the traditional Apple Strudel acheiveable any week night for the family. The children will enjoy it, and they can indulge with a nice smooth custard sauce. You and me?  Well it's a nice dollop of low fat Greek yoghurt

Happy strudelling xx