Gluten-Free Apple Strudel Recipe

If you are a lover of apple desserts, this Gluten-Free Apple Strudel is a must have recipe! The filling is all about tender slices of apples, fresh lemon juice, a sprinkle of oats, coconut sugar and cinnamon.

For the thin pastry, I used rice paper and a brush of butter or light olive oil. This Apple Strudel is insanely delicious, a bite of autumn well on its way.

What is Apple Strudel?

Apple strudel is one of my most favourite desserts each time I visit Vienna. The authentic strudel dessert is a pastry made with delicate thin layers of dough and an apple filling made with thinly sliced apples, light oil, fine bread crumbs, cinnamon and white sugar.

The dessert is super light because all you taste is delicious apples with thin layers of dough to hold them together.

The classic strudel may seem simple to make….NOT! Before I became gluten-free, I made the apple strudel from scratch, including the Philo dough.

I can thank my grandmother for teaching me how to spread the dough over my kitchen table until it became super thin. Then the dough was filled with apples and rolled. Not an easy task, but well worth the effort.

Is this gluten-free apple strudel recipe easy?

Today I will show you how to master the gluten-free apple strudel with step by step instructions. This recipe is super easy, and the results are outstanding.

I wanted to keep the recipe simple enough for even novice cooks, so instead of rolling the strudel, I made it in a baking pan with the same results.

You will love it, I promise you, and just in time for Thanksgiving…a perfect gluten-free dessert to impress your family and friends!

Are apples for baking all the same?

When making any dessert with apples, you want to make sure you are using the right baking apple. My three favourite apples for baking are Honeycrisp, Braeburn or Granny Smith. These apples are sweet and with enough tartness giving flavour and sweetness to apple desserts.

Although I like Red Delicious and Gala apples, however, they are not good in desserts that need baking. The apples can become mushy if overcooked, and they are overly juicy, making the filling too liquidy and the dough soggy.

How to replace philo dough and keep it gluten-free for apple strudel?

I used gluten-free rice paper wrappers for the dough, a super easy substitution for the classic Philo dough. The rice paper wrappers are made with white rice flour, tapioca flour, salt, and water.

The wrappers are super thin and are excellent to use in this gluten-free apple strudel recipe. To keep the rice paper from becoming soggy, I brushed each piece with melted butter.

Step by step instructions for Gluten-Free Apple Strudel

1 → make the apple filling

2 → soak the rice paper wrappers in warm water 1 – 2 minutes

3 → place the rice paper on a clean dish cloth to remove excess water

4 → layer the baking dish with 4 softened rice paper wrappers overhanging on the sides and brush with butter or for plant based diet use light olive oil

5 → spread half the apples in the pan and fold the rice paper over the apples. Brush the rice paper with butter and repeat step 4 and 5 with the remaining half of the apples

place two remaining sheets over the apples, tucking excess rice paper in the sides of the dish and brush with remaining butter and bake

With Thanksgiving just around the corner you may also enjoy the Maple Caramel Apple Tart or the Apple Cinnamon Frittata 🙂

If you make this Gluten-Free Apple Strudel recipe, please leave me a comment what you thought or if you would change anything. I always love to hear from you, and I especially love to hear if you changed anything and how the recipe turned out. You can find my latest creations on Facebook. Thank you!

Kristina xx