Spiced Apple and Cheese Strudels

Submitted by Janine Ross

"A delicious, light dessert for either summer or cooler days. The butterscotch sauce adds a different touch, making it special. From Notebook magazine."

 

• Ready In: 40mins
• Ingredients: 15
• Yields: 8 strudels
• Serves: 8

ingredients

• 16 sheet phyllo pastry
• 60 g butter
• 29.58 ml sliced almonds

• Apple filling

• 20 g butter
• 4 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and finely sliced
• 90 g sultanas
• 4.92 ml cinnamon
• 1.23 ml ground cloves
• 14.79 ml brown sugar
• 250 g cream cheese, at room temperature
• 55 g caster sugar
• 4.92 ml finely grated lemon rind

• Butterscotch sauce

• 70 g brown sugar
• 50 g butter
• 60 ml cream

directions

1. To make the apple filling, melt butter in a frying pan over high heat. Add apples, sultanas, cinnamon, cloves and brown sugar, and cook tossing occasionally for 5 minutes and set aside to cool.
2. Preheat oven to 180°C Use an electric mixer to beat cream cheese, caster sugar and lemon rind until well combined.
3. Line an oven tray with baking paper.
4. Place phyllo pastry on a work surface. Cover with a clean damp tea towel to prevent drying out. Brush a sheet with a little butter, top with second sheet. Fold in half. Top with one eighth of apple mixture and cream cheese mixture. Fold in sides and roll to enclose filling. Brush with extra butter and sprinkle with a little of the flaked almonds.Place on tray. Repeat with remaining phyllo, butter, apple, cream cheese mixture and almonds.
5. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Remove from oven and set aside to cool slightly.
6. To make butterscotch sauce; combine sugar, butter and cream in a saucepan and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes until butter melts and sugar is dissolved.
7. Place strudels on a serving plate, drizzle with sauce and serve with cream or ice cream.