Warm Bread and Honey Cake

SAVOURY CHEESE STRUDEL

This is put together in next to no time and makes a good appetizer, served in thin slices because of the saltiness of the cheese.
75 g/2¾ oz feta cheese*
small handful parsley (preferably flat leaf), finely chopped
125 g/4½ oz filo pastry – 5 sheets, 25 x 25 cm/ 10 x 10 in
25 g/1 oz/¼ stick butter, melted
Crumble the feta in a bowl. Add the parsley, mix and set aside.

SWEET CHEESE STRUDEL

This strudel is very easy to make as long you are not alarmed by the consistency of the uncooked filling and are bold enough to follow the instructions. Curd cheeses with a low moisture content are usually used in Austria and Central Europe, but ricotta makes a good alternative. The strudel can be served warm or cold, on its own or with prepared seasonal fruit as a dessert. You can add all kinds of extras to taste, such as chocolate sauce, vanilla sauce, and whipped cream.

APFELSTRUDEL

It is likely that the Turkish invaders introduced leaf pastry to Austria, just as they did in the Balkans. Then local bakers added their own touches, creating a simple but spectacular strudel that forever after came to be associated with Austria. There is a great variety of fillings – apricot, cherry, curd cheese and dried fruit, to name a few – but apple strudel remains by far the most popular. The pastry itself may sometimes be enriched with egg, and the technique used to create a paper-thin layer is what really sets it apart: leaf pastry is rolled out very thinly, usually on a floured tablecloth.