Pear, chocolate & marzipan strudel

Pear, chocolate & marzipan strudel

By Good Food
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(5 ratings)
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Prep: 25 mins Cook: 45 mins plus cooling

Easy

Serves 6
Prepare ahead and freeze this rich filo pastry pud, then cook from frozen for the perfect fuss-free seasonal dessert

Nutrition and extra info

  • Freezable

Nutrition: per serving

  • kcal521
  • fat25g
  • saturates14g
  • carbs66g
  • sugars47g
  • fibre6g
  • protein5g
  • salt1.2g
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Ingredients

  • 85g butter, melted, plus a little extra
    Butter

    Butter

    butt-err

    Butter is made when lactic-acid producing bacteria are added to cream and churned to make an…

  • 5 pears, peeled, cored and chopped
    Pear

    Pear

    pair

    Like apples, to which they are related, pears come in thousands of varieties, of which only a…

  • 4 tbsp light muscovado sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
  • 1 tbsp Disaronno (optional)
  • 100g ginger biscuit, crushed
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 100g dark chocolate, broken into chunks
    Dark chocolate soup pots with double cream in spoons

    Dark chocolate

    dahk chok-o-let

    Dark chocolate means the shiny, dark-reddish brown treat produced from the cacao bean, theobroma…

  • 100g marzipan, chopped into small pieces
    Marzipan cake

    Marzipan

    mah-zuh-pan

    One of mankind’s oldest sources of sweet pleasure, marzipan needs to contain only ground…

  • 250g pack filo pastry (at least 6 sheets)
  • icing sugar and cream, to serve
    Cream

    Cream

    cree-m

    Fresh unpasteurised milk quickly separates and the fat rises to the top. This fat layer is then…

Method

  1. Melt a knob of butter in a large frying pan, add the pears and 1 tbsp sugar, and cook for 5 mins. Tip into a bowl and leave to cool. Then add the Disaronno (if using), biscuits, cinnamon, chocolate, marzipan, and 2 tbsp sugar and mix well.

  2. Line a tray with baking parchment. Lay a sheet of filo on it, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with a little sugar. Top with a second sheet of filo and keep going until you’ve used all the pastry. Pile the filling down one of the long sides of the pastry, then roll it up to form a sausage. Make sure it is seam-side down, then tuck the ends under tightly. Roll up in the parchment, wrap tightly in foil and freeze.

  3. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Put a tray in the oven to heat. Unwrap the strudel and place, seam-side down and still on its parchment, onto the tray. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle over 1 tbsp sugar. Bake for 35-40 mins, or until golden and crisp. Leave to cool for 10 mins, then dust with icing sugar.

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Comments, questions and tips

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flauffy
15th Dec, 2018
5.05
This is a great, indulgent winter dessert. The choc-pear-marzipan mix is really flavourful and I couldn't help but have a few spoonfuls before it went in the pastry. There is a lot of filling though and I was slightly worried about folding it all up in delicate filo but I think freezing it really helps. Nothing seeped during cooking, but on serving it was a bit of a gooey delicious mess. Made it two days in advance and cooked it straight out the freezer for a dinner party.
gdorrico
25th Nov, 2015
5.05
Having read the contents on this I nearly didn't make it but glad I did as it was delicious. I didn't overfill it, again taking into consideration the comments, and it looked the part and tasted great, plus it was easy to make.
valjohn
19th Jan, 2015
2.05
This tasted lovely but it looked terrible. I followed the instructions to the letter and unfortunately it stuck to the grease proof paper so half the pastry got left behind. I cooked it from frozen but the top cracked and some of the filling spilled out. It would certainly not win any beauty contests but neither would I bother making it again.
starlucy100's picture
starlucy100
21st Feb, 2014
4.05
This was lovely, I only made a third of the recipe as I didn't have much filo pastry but it was delicious. It is very rich and you only need a little. Next time I may put more marzipan in as I couldn't taste it.
joannepd
5th Jan, 2014
Very easy and enjoyable to make. Froze as advised. Looked good at that point but when it was cooked - even though I cooked it seam side down- it just burst apart. There was a lot of filling and in retrospect I wouldn't have used it all. Also this was far too rich and chocolatey for me and sadly wasn't enjoyed.
frick
17th Dec, 2013
My husband made this whilst I was out of the house, so the recipe is easy. There is no guidance on how large the pear pieces should be - he erred on the side of caution and chopped them small and, as a result, it wasn't so easy to discern the pear when eating. It looks impressive andif you like marzipan and chocolate you will not be disappointed. We froze portions of the cooked strudel and have since served up to admiring visitors.
marthaeve
7th Dec, 2013
made this for dinner party and all loved it, very rich, used the amoretto disaronno, more than enough for 6 people, careful not to overstuff as it did squelch out at one end. Made if from frozen and pastry was crisp. Give it a 5
suzanne3d
19th Dec, 2013
Would this work with milk chocolate for a slightly less rich pudding? Just think my children might find dark chocolate a little too rich. Can't wait to try it.
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