Italian Cherry and Pastry Cream Strudel Recipe

MAKE THE PASTRY CREAM

1. First, take a saucepan and pour in the milk. Add a large piece of lemon zest to the milk for flavor. Heat the milk gently until it’s very hot, but make sure it doesn’t start boiling. Once the milk is hot, remove the lemon zest from the saucepan.
2. While the milk is heating, take another saucepan and put the sugar and egg yolks in it. Use a whisk to mix the sugar and egg yolks thoroughly until they are well combined and smooth.
3. Next, add the flour to the egg mixture and mix well. When the milk is very hot, slowly pour it into the egg mixture, whisking constantly to blend everything together.
4. Step 4) - Place the saucepan back on the stove and continue to stir the mixture continuously with the whisk as it heats. Keep cooking and stirring until the mixture thickens into a creamy consistency. Be very careful not to let the cream boil at any point, as this can spoil the texture.
5. Once the cream has thickened, turn off the heat. Immediately pour the hot cream into a cold container to stop it from cooking further. Cover the surface of the cream directly with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming. Allow the cream to cool completely by placing it in the refrigerator.

MAKE THE STRUDEL WITH CHERRIES AND PASTRY CREAM

1. Wash the cherries thoroughly and dry them with paper towels. Use a cherry pitting tool to remove the pits and pulp. If you don't have a pitting tool, you can use a stiff straw. For larger cherries, cut them in half to remove the stones easily.
2. Roll out the puff pastry with a rolling pin until it’s as thin as possible. Keep a baking paper underneath the pastry. Prick the pastry evenly with a fork to prevent it from puffing up too much during baking.
3. Next, crumble some plain, dry cookies (without much seasoning) in the center of the puff pastry. If you don't have cookies, you can use breadcrumbs like in traditional apple strudel. This helps to absorb the juices released by the cherries while baking.
4. Take the pastry cream out of the refrigerator and spoon a generous amount into the center of the puff pastry. Then place the prepared cherries on top of the pastry cream.
5. Finally, add more pastry cream over the cherries. Sprinkle a little cinnamon powder and lemon zest over the cherries and cream for added flavor.
6. Use the baking paper to help fold the two long sides of the pastry over the filling. Seal the two shorter ends tightly to encase the filling completely.
7. Brush the surface of the strudel with a little milk. Make small incisions on the top to allow steam to escape during baking. Bake the strudel in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F) for about 30 minutes, until the top is golden brown.
8. Once baked, take it out of the oven and let it cool slightly before slicing. Dust with icing sugar before serving.