Cherry and Pear Strudel ala mode

Ingredients:
2 1/2 large sticks of un-salted butter
3 tbsps lemon juice
1 pkg. Fillo Dough
1 medium sized bag fresh cherries, seeded and halved
2 pkgs Pectin
5 cups sugar
1 pear, cored and sliced large
Breadcrumbs
1 tub of Vanilla ice cream
1 hard dark chocolate bar
1 lemon

For the Jelly:

Add half of the cherries to your food processor and pulse a couple of times. Put the mixture into a saucepan with the sugar, pectin, lemon juice, and the rest of the cherries. Simmer for 14 minutes over low-medium heat, using the spatula to stir occasionally. Let cool in the fridge. WARNING: Thick concentrations of sugary jam that are sufficiently heated are essentially Napalm Death. Don’t talk with your hands 🙂

For the Strudel:

Melt the two large sticks of butter in a small saucepan. Bring the butter to a boil, stirring constantly. Lower the heat to it lowest setting. Lay the entire roll of Fillo Dough out flat on a clean counter and cover with a wet paper towel. You’ll work one sheet at a time, using a pastry brush to cover the top of each layer of dough with melted butter. Sprinkle breadcrumbs over the top before adding another sheet of filo dough and repeating. On the second layer, add a small, well-distributed pinch of kosher salt. Lay down 3 layers of dusted fillo dough per strudel.

Add a small amount of the jelly onto the fillo dough stack, then top with 3 halved strips of the sliced pear. Wrap it up burrito style. Cover every exposed surface of the dough with melted butter and bread crumbs as you go. Put one of the pear slices on top and set aside on an oven rack or something equivalent, preferably over a baking sheet. Repeat until you have enough Strudels.

Bake at 400 degrees until golden brown, about 15 minutes. Keep an eye on them! Let the pastry’s cool to room temperature, especially if you wish to photograph the dessert once the ice cream has been placed on top.

Add one well placed scoop of the ice cream atop the pastry with a little left over jam and shaved chocolate.