Apple Strudel is a delicious fall dessert best made when apples hit their peak season. This version uses store-bought puff pastry as a shortcut for the dough and is ready to eat in just one hour! A must make Fall dessert.
Buttery cinnamon and sugar coated apple filling stuffs inside this flaky, doughy puff pastry for a seriously delicious Fall dessert.
We're a huge fan of apple desserts in our home, and this is one of our top favorites. It combines Honeycrisp apples with Granny Smith for the perfect blend of sweet and tart.
For more highly requested apple desserts, try these Apple Turnovers with Phyllo Dough, Apple Pie Cinnamon Rolls, and Apple Blackberry Crumble.
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What is Strudel?
A dish that came from Austria. It is usually made from a homemade layered flaky dough (we're using store-bought for a short cut version). In Austria, it is stuffed with sweet or savory fillings. Sweet includes apple or grape filling and savory may include mushrooms, cabbage, and even meats.
The dough completely surrounds the filling and while baking, it rises until golden and delicious. It looks like a larger version of a rectangle shaped hand pie, or the McDonald's apple pie.
Why You'll Love This Apple Dessert:
- A Fall Favorite. Apples are in peak season in the Fall and a huge variety of apples are available. Take advantage of the season and make this yummy classic Fall dessert.
- Saves Time with Store-bought Dough. Save time and patience by buying the store-bought puff pastry and skip having to make your own from scratch.
- Quick Filling. In many recipes the apple filling has to be pre-cooked. However, in this recipe, the thinly sliced apples allow the apple to cook right in the oven.
- Easy. This recipe is super simple to follow with step by step instructions, photos and a video and even beginner bakers can make it!
For more Fall favorites, try this Pumpkin Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting, Apple Pie with Graham Cracker Crust, and Butternut Squash Red Pepper Soup.
Ingredients 📋:
Puff Pastry: Store bought saves on time and I like using the refrigerator version versus frozen, so I don't have to remember to pull it out and thaw before making the recipe. The Jus-Rol brand is my favorite and it can be found near the eggs at the grocery store. Try this Chocolate Hazelnut Puff Pastry too.
Apples: Peeled and sliced thin for the filling of the strudel. My favorite varieties are Honeycrisp or pink lady paired with one Granny Smith for this recipe. Make sure the texture is really crisp for the best results.
Lemon Juice: It's acidity assists with keeping the apples fresh and from turning brown.
Melted Butter: Helps to coat the apples in the cinnamon sugar mixture for baking.
Brown Sugar and Granulated Sugar: You can find a combination of these two in a lot of my recipes. They both bring such great features to the table. The granulated sugar is a must for it's bold sweetness, and I like the brown sugar for notes of caramel and molasses.
Cinnamon and Nutmeg: Added for a classic pair up for apples and bring in those warm, comforting tastes and wonderful smells of Fall.
Egg and Water: Creates a simple egg wash that takes the puff pastry to an even more golden brown finish.
Powdered Sugar: Optional. Sprinkled on before serving for garnish and extra sweetness.
*Full recipe ingredients and quantities can be found in the recipe card below.
Substitutions for the Recipe:
The apples can be substituted with any of your favorite varieties. I love Honeycrisp and Pink ladies and will usually pair one of those varieties with a green apple (Granny Smith) for a mixture of textures and flavors.
The refrigerated puff pastry can be substituted with frozen, but it needs to be completely thawed.
If you want to make two strudels, free free to just double the recipe.
Not big on Nutmeg? Feel free to leave it out.
How to Make Apple Strudel with Puff Pastry:
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Peel off the apple skin, then cut the apple into 4 large pieces and remove the core. Lay each piece flat and cut into skinny slices, about ⅛ inch thick. Transfer the slices into a large bowl and toss with lemon juice.
Step 2: Whisk together granulated sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon until combined.
Step 3: Into the large apple bowl, add the cinnamon sugar mixture, brown sugar, melted butter and toss to combine.
Step 4: Roll out the puff pastry dough onto a large piece of parchment paper. Fill the center portion of the long rectangle with apple filling, leaving a few inches of puff pastry border.
Step 5: (1) Next, just like you would fold a burrito, tuck the short sides of the pastry over the top of the apples and stretch the dough just a bit. (2) Fold the longer side close to you over the apple filling, stretching it as you pull it over. Fold the other side over that piece to close the dough. (3) Use the parchment paper to flip it over seam side down. Note: I tucked the brown parchment paper underneath the original parchment and just rolled it over.
Step 6: In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and water to form the egg wash. Carefully run a paring knife to create about 6 slits on the top of the dough. Brush with egg wash and bake on the middle rack for 35-40 minutes, until golden. I suggest 40 minutes, as long as the top isn't getting too brown. Keep an eye on it towards the end of baking.
Step 7: Transfer the strudel from the cookie sheet to a baking sheet and allow it to cool for 10 to 15 minutes.
Step 8: Dust with powdered sugar, if desired, then slice, serve and enjoy!
Expert Tips:
- Don't pull the pastry out before 35-40 minutes because the inside won't be cooked. We did a lot of tucking, and that takes time to cook through. After 35-40 minutes, even if it looks a bit gooey, it is good to eat.
- If the top starts to get brown more than golden, tent a piece of aluminum foil over it.
- Use a rimmed cookie sheet, because the apple juice will pour over the sides if it's flat without edges.
- Transfer to a baking rack once it comes out of the oven to cool and to avoid a soggy bottom from leaking juices.
Big on recipes using Puff Pastry? Try these Berry Puff Pastry Tarts, Strawberry Turnovers with Puff Pastry, and Blueberry Puff Pastry Galette.
Recipe FAQs:
The puff pastry is flaky and doughy at the same time. Certain portions where the puff pastry was folded are thicker dough. If you're looking for a lighter dessert, with thin, flaky layers from phyllo dough, I suggest my apple turnovers with phyllo dough.
Allow it cool a bit, for at least 10 minutes, then slice carefully with a serrated knife. It can be tricky, so take your time.
I like to cut my leftovers in serving portions and wrap in foil. Then, I can pop them right into a 350 degree oven to warm up, then unwrap and enjoy.
More Fall Desserts You Will Love:
If you tried this Apple Strudel using Puff Pastry Recipe or any other recipe on my website, please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it goes in the 📝comments below. I love hearing from you!
PrintRecipe
Apple Strudel with Puff Pastry
- Total Time: 60 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
Description
Apple Strudel is a delicious fall dessert best made when apples hit their peak season. This version uses store-bought puff pastry as a shortcut for the dough and is ready to eat in just one hour! A must make Fall dessert.
Ingredients
- 13 ounce puff pastry dough (from refrigerator section or if frozen, allow to thaw completely, but it still should be cold and easy to work with)
- 3 medium sized apples or 2 large, I prefer 2 Honeycrisp and 1 Granny Smith
- 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ⅔ cup granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons salted butter, melted
- ⅓ cup brown sugar, packed
- 1 egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- Optional: ⅛ cup powdered sugar for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Peel off the apple skin, then cut the apple into 4 large pieces and remove the core. Lay each piece flat and cut into skinny slices, about ⅛ inch thick. Transfer the slices into a large bowl and toss with lemon juice.
- Whisk together granulated sugar, nutmeg, and cinnamon until combined.
- Into the apple bowl, add the cinnamon sugar mixture, brown sugar, melted butter and toss to combine.
- Roll out the puff pastry dough onto a large piece of parchment paper. Fill the center portion of the long rectangle with apple filling, leaving a few inches of puff pastry border.
- (1) Just like you would fold a burrito, tuck the short sides of the pastry over the top of the apples and stretch the dough just a bit. (2) Fold the longer side close to you over the apple filling, stretching it as you pull it over. Fold the other side over that piece to close the dough. (3) Use the parchment paper to flip it over seam side down. Note: I tucked the brown parchment paper underneath the original parchment and just rolled it over. *See photos in directions if needed.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and water to form the egg wash. Carefully run a paring knife to create about 6 slits on the top of the dough. Brush with egg wash and bake on the middle rack for 35-40 minutes, until golden. I suggest 40 minutes, as long as the top isn't getting too brown. Keep an eye on it towards the end of baking.
- Transfer the strudel from the cookie sheet to a baking sheet and allow it to cool for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Dust with powdered sugar, if desired, then slice, serve and enjoy!
Notes
- Don't pull the pastry out before 35-40 minutes because the inside won't be cooked. We did a lot of tucking, and that takes time to cook through. After 35-40 minutes, even if it looks a bit gooey, it is good to eat.
- If the top starts to get brown more than golden, tent a piece of aluminum foil over it.
- Use a rimmed cookie sheet, because the apple juice will pour over the sides if it's flat without edges.
- Transfer to a baking rack once it comes out of the oven to cool and to avoid a soggy bottom from leaking juices.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: dessert
- Method: bake
- Cuisine: Austrian
George
This was so tasty and way easier than making homemade dough! Thanks for the recipe.
Tara Smithson
Thanks George and totally agree!