Pasta Strudel (Crescia Sfogliata)
Yeah, that’s right, even in Italy it is possible to have pasta for dessert.
Crescia Sfogliata is sort of like strudel in that it involves paper-thin pasta sheets rolled up with things like fruit, nuts, spices, and a bunch of other yummy things that make this a pasta dish like no other. It takes a good deal of skill to make, especially since the dough sheets have to be stretched and rolled to a paper-thinness without tearing, but if you can pull it off then you will feel like the best baker in the world!
Today’s Crescia will be featuring some apples, walnuts, cocoa, and some other delicious ingredients rolled up in delicate, thin sheets of pasta for a unique dessert that your guests likely won’t forget anytime soon.
Crescia Sfogliata
Serves 12
Time: 2 hours plus overnight chilling
For the Sweet Pasta
1 egg
4 tablespoons of light olive oil, plus more for brushing (If you can help it, don’t use extra-virgin for this. The flavor can be overpowering.)
7 ounces of tepid water
1 teaspoon of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of salt
15 ounces of 00 flour, or all-purpose
For the Filling:
5 cooking apples (Gala, Grannysmith, or Honeycrisp are nice options)
12 ounces of walnuts
3 1/2 ounces of cocoa powder
4 tablespoons of sugar
1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
1 tablespoon of anise liquor such as absinthe (optional)
Zest of 1 orange
Zest of 1 lemon
7 ounces of sultanas or golden raisins, rehydrated in water then drained
Step 1: Make the Pasta dough
(For a cheat, I suppose you could boil some lasagna sheets and roll those up, but they won’t be quite as thin so you won’t be able to get as much filling in there.)
Combine all of the ingredients for the pasta except for the flour in a bowl.
Dump the flour into a mound on a worksurface, create a well in the center, then pour in the liquid ingredients. Use a fork to beat the ingredients in the well, making sure not to let anything spill, while slowly working in the flour to create a shaggy dough. Use your hands to knead the dough into a soft, smooth ball.
(Yeah, you could do this with an electric beater, but it’s not as fun.)
Place the dough into an airtight container with a lid and let it chill overnight. The next day, allow the dough to come up to room temperature for a few hours before rolling.
(Edit: I found that placing a damp paper towel on top of the dough helps keep the top from drying out.)
Step 2: Make the filling
Peel the apples and cut them into walnut-sized pieces. To stop discoloration, keep the apples submerged in water until ready to use. Just make sure you drain and pat the apples dry before you use them.
In a food processor, combine all of the ingredients except for the apples and raisins and blitz until you have a coarse texture, almost looking like pebbles. Stir through the raisins then set aside while you roll out the dough.
Step 3: Roll out the dough
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone mats. Also, you might want to clear off and make sure your kitchen table is clean, you’ll see why.
Take your rolling pin and begin to roll the dough as thin as you possibly can, thin enough that you can start to see your countertop through the dough. Smaller rolling pins will not do the trick here.
Roll the dough using back-and-forth strokes, going from front to back then from side to side. You’ll first want to get the dough to the same width as the rolling pin, then continue to roll. If your arms get tired, then it can help by picking up the dough with your fingers and letting gravity pull it even thinner, or even get your hands under there to gently pull the dough towards you.
There might be one or two tears in the ends of the dough, you can patch those up as you go.
In the end, the dough will have reached that thinness where it’s almost completely transparent.
Step 4: Fill, roll up, and bake
Use a pastry brush to brush the whole dough with oil, then scatter on the walnut mixture in an even layer, leaving four inches of space all around, then lay on the apples.
Grab one side of the dough and begin to roll it as tight as possible until it reaches the center, then do the same with the other side to create a double-spiral pattern. Brush the top of the dough with oil, then cut into two logs and place them onto the baking sheets.
Bake for 35 minutes, or until the pasta is browned and crunchy on the outside. If you have any form of self-control, then allow it to cool before slicing and serving.
This whole dessert took a good while to put together, but the results are outstanding!
the outside has these golden, slightly crisp dough sheets combined with soft, delicate rolled-up sheets on the inside. The flavor is almost a cross between apple pie and a brownie, with those bits of plump raisins to balance it all out.
It’s a special occasion dish that I could potentially see myself making again!
