Strudel di mele (apple strudel)

For ➍-➏

 for the dough:*

150 g flour 

a pinch of salt 

2-3 tbs granulated sugar 

1 egg 

2-3 tbs olive or vegetable oil (or melted butter) 

water

for the filling:

750 g (1-2) apples 

75 g granulated sugar

handful of raisins, pre-soaked in rum 

handful of pinoli (pine nuts), or slivered almonds 

1-2 tbs cinnamon 

75 g breadcrumbs 

a good nob of butter 

for baking and finishing: 

more flour 

melted butter 

powdered sugar 

If using homemade dough, prepare it by mixing the dry ingredients, then the egg and oil, then finally just enough water to form a ball. Knead briefly until the dough is soft and elastic. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap, then in a towel, and let rest for a good 30 m or more. 

While the dough* is resting, peel, core and slice the apples as thinly as you can. 

Add the sugar, cinnamon and raisins, drained and squeezed dry, and the pine nuts or almonds.  Mix things all together, moistening the mixture with a bit of the rum in which the raisins have been soaked. Set aside. 

Sauté the breadcrumbs in the melted butter over very gentle heat until they are lightly browned. Do not over-brown the crumbs. When the dough* has rested at least a good 30 m, mold it into a flat, rectangular shape and place it on a well-floured cotton dish towel. 

Roll the dough* out as thinly as you can manage into a large, rectangular shape. Older recipes tell you to stretch it further with your hands, as you might a thin-crust pizza.

Brush the dough* liberally with melted butter, leaving the edges dry.  Spread the sautéed breadcrumbs in a thin layer all over the dough, leaving the edges clear. 

Pour the filling over the breadcrumbs and spread it out even, again avoiding the edges. 

With the aid of the towel, roll up the dough into a large lozenge-shaped loaf. 

Once the strudel is fully rolled up, tuck the edges under and, very gently, transfer this loaf onto a baking pan or sheet. Brush the loaf liberally with melted butter. If you prefer a ‘shiny’ surface to your strudel, brush the surface with milk or egg wash instead. 

Bake the strudel in a hot (200°C) oven for a good 30-45 m, until golden brown all over. (I find it helps browning if you brush it once or twice with more melted butter while it bakes.) Let the strudel cool entirely. Top with powdered sugar before serving in thick slices, perhaps with a nice side of whipped cream or ice cream if you’re feeling decadent.

*If using store-bought pastry dough, just lay it out flat on the sheet it is usually attached to and lay the breadcrumbs and filling out on top, then roll it up as usual. You won't need to brush it with butter, as pastry dough already has a high fat content, [although brushing it with milk will help it brown]. Use puff pastry or phyllo dough, which makes a particularly delightful Strudel, lay out one sheet, brush it with melted butter, then repeat until you have 4 or 5 layers of dough, before laying on the breadcrumbs and apple filling.

Friuli winter salad

For ➍, ➏ as a starter
230 g (green) leaves, a mixture of radicchio*, watercress & endives
150 g speck or raw bacon in 1 piece
150 g spicy Italian sausage
125 g cooked chestnuts
1½ tbs groundnut oil
30 g toasted walnuts
seeds from ½ pomegranate**
dressing:
½ tbs balsamic vinegar
4 tbs extra virgin olive oil
salt & pepper

Cut the speck into cubes, about 2 cm square. Take the skin off the sausages. Break the sausage meat up into little chunks. Cut the chestnuts in half. (When already broken into chunks, leave them alone.)
Make the dressing by mixing all the ingredients together. Tear the radicchio leaves into pieces and pull the leaves off the endives. Put them into a broad shallow bowl.
Heat 1 tbs oil in a frying pan and cook the speck and sausage over a high heat until well coloured and cooked through. Throw this onto the leaves.
Heat the remaining ½ tbs oil and quickly sauté the chestnuts until they are hot. Season with salt and pepper.
Throw them, and the walnuts onto the leaves. Add the dressing and toss.
Sprinkle the pomegranate* seeds over the top and serve immediately.

*Replace with (purple) endives.
**Pomegranate seeds can be replaced by a fried egg.

The (Süd-Tiroler) speck is a juniper-flavored ham from the Tyrol region, now split between Italy and Austria. Speck bears both the tradition of Mediterranean salt curing and central European smoking.
Read more Friuli recipes: Friuli cherries' strudel, Trieste beef stew.
More pomegranate salads: pomegranate,endives & feta, pomegranate, tomatoes & garlic, warm lamb salad with pomegranate & mint, pomegranate & cucumber salad, pomegranate & quinoa salad, pomegranate fruit salad

Gulyas alla Triestina (Trieste beef stew)

For ➍
750 g lean beef, cut into 5 cm cubes
1½ tbs sweet paprika
6 tbs olive oil
125 g pancetta, 0.5 cm thick, cut into 0.5 cm strips
2 large brown onions, chopped
½ ts cayenne pepper
1 ts cumin (fresh if possible)
2 tbs minced garlic
15 cl red wine
150 g seeded, chopped canned plum tomatoes with juice
1 sprig of rosemary & marjoram each, 1 bay leaf
grated zest of ½ lemon
salt & freshly ground black pepper

Rub the meat with ½ tbs paprika, 1 tbs salt and 2 tbs of olive oil. Cover and marinate overnight in the refrigerator.

Remove from refrigerator 1 h before cooking.

Preheat oven to 130°C.

Heat a large pan to medium. Add some oil (4 tbs for the whole process). Add pancetta and let it render its fat (7 m). Remove pancetta and put on a plate.

Raise the heat to high. Brown beef cubes, adding olive oil as needed. Remove meat.

Reduce the heat to medium, add the 2 onions and fry, add more oil as needed, until softened.

Stir in 1 tbs paprika, cayenne, cumin and garlic. Boil for 5 m.

Add the beef, pancetta, wine, tomatoes and their juice, herb sachet, and lemon zest. Stir for 5 m. Transfer to an oven-dish, cover and simmer for 2 (to 2,5) h*.

Discard herbs. Season stew to taste. Tastes best refrigerated overnight, then reheated.

Serve with buttered pasta, mashed potatoes, polenta or rye bread and a strong ruby wine like Trieste refosco or some Carso rosso.

*Alternatively, cook on stove-top in cast iron cookware. Cover tightly and simmer for about 1 (to 1.5) h on low heat. Uncover during last half hour for a thicker version.

The Adriatic city of Trieste came into bloom as the only sea-port of the Austro-Hungarian empire, and, being a frontier city for ages, about as great a melting-pot of nationalities as the capital Vienna. After the defeat of Austria in World War I, the Free-State Trieste became part of Italy.  After World War II and Yugoslavian occupation it finally became an Italian city, keeping the heritage of Slavian and Austrian influences alive.
This fusion gulyas (goulash) is close to the Viennese version of an originally Hungarian dish.