Today I present to you a CHOCOLATE and RICOTTA STRUDEL a bit different from the classic apple strudel.
Before I dive into the recipe, I would love to introduce to you the origin of the classic strudel that represents the pastry par excellence in the Trentino Alto Adige, a region of northern Italy bordering Austria and Switzerland.
Where does the strudel come from?
The strudel seems to be a variant of the ancient Turkish dessert “baklava”, which is very good.
A Turkish colleague of mine, Gizem ❤️ delighted me one day with these sweets, my goodness!!! I cannot describe the delicacy, I would have eaten an infinite amount. And she promised me that she’ll soon provide me the original baklava recipe.
Returning to the origins of the strudel, in 1526 Hungary underwent an Ottoman domination by the sultan Suleyman. When Austria conquers Hungary, the recipe of baklava changed with the introduction of apple ingredients, taking the name strudel (vortex).
In 1660 it also spread to Italy becoming the typical dessert of our time in Trentino Alto Adige.
Baklava is generally prepared with filo dough, while strudel is made with puff pastry, in fact, an eighth-century BC manuscript was found which spoke of a dessert that had been prepared for the Assyrian court and which appeared as a series of thin layers of puff pastry stuffed with nuts and honey.
I wanted to make a change to the original recipe, presenting a filling of ricotta cream with chocolate and pine nuts flavored with cinnamon and lime.
Chocolate and Ricotta Strudel
Ingredients
- 1 pkg frozen puff pastry thawed in the refrigerator
- 300 g sieved ricotta 1 1/4 cups
- 100 g powdered sugar 3.53 oz
- chocolate drops
- powdered cinnamon
- grated lime zest
- 1 beaten egg
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- pine nuts
Instructions
- In a bowl put the sifted ricotta with the sugar and blend until the mixture becomes a smooth cream.
- Add the chocolate, the cinnamon, and the grated lime zest and amalgamate all very well.
- Gently unroll the puff pastry, spread it lightly with a rolling pin, and spread the ricotta cream evenly and pine nuts on the top of the ricotta.
- Roll the dough over itself, being careful not to spill the ricotta on the sides.
- Seal the edges well on the fork. brush the surface with the previously beaten egg and sprinkle it with granulated sugar.
- Bake at 180°C (350°F) for 35-40 minutes in a preheated oven.
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