"An apple against the thirst" (een appeltje voor de dorst) is a Dutch expression. It doesn't mean an apple helps against the thirst but you have some money saved, money to help you through the bad times. Saving for later is what Dutch people are raised with for generations. Today it's different. Many do no longer save, do not have all kind of insurances to feel secure neither a pension for the time they get retired. The reason? More and more people are jobless since the past fifty years and all those pension-funds say they are broke. They are not but say they are. In reality, our apple for those thirsty time is gone given away to those who never cared, never saved, invested wrong.
The Netherlands is a country where apples grow. Apples, pears and we have plums and cherries. That's our fruit. The rest is imported. If your main fruit is an apple you need to find a way to make it taste good and different. An Apple is not the most exciting fruit and it's taste is frequently disappointing. Those apples we eat are rarely just picked from the tree. Apples are stored, can be stored for a very long time, even years in fridges. This means most apples are old, it's old fruit we eat. I never really liked to eat apples but I like apple pie, Apple sauce, pancakes with apple, apple beignets and more (mainly homemade) but I do not like most apples just so. It's not my taste. Only once in a while, I eat an apple just so. I cannot afford to buy the apple I like most which is the Pink Lady.
If it comes to apple pie or cake, baking with apples, you do not need to buy a special apple although the Goudreinet is the apple recommended for baking.
I bought apples to fill some rolls with. I am not familiar with the taste of the apples I bought just cared about the price.
I bought the "dough" as well. I call it dough because I have no idea how else to call it (I think it's a kind of 'filo' dough). It's not what I intended to buy. I bought it by mistake and it turns out not to be suitable for baking in the oven at least not with me. This means I'll fry it with the hope the apple remains inside and the roll won't break.
The dough is thin, looks and sounds like baking paper, it easily breaks and is dry. I guess it's great for making spring rolls. Like said I'll fill it with apple, small pieces of apple, cinnamon and raisins.
I remember years ago McDonald's sold some type of roll with apple. The apple was disgusting and if you ordered it they put it into the microwave. It tastes terrible.
I decided to cut (yes, I used a pair of scissors) each piece into two parts. It should be enough. For the first two rolls it worked but the next two needed more dough because it broke.
I just wrapped it in and used a bit of water at the end of the roll to stick it together. So no eggs, no melted butter or oil. With this paper-thin dry dough, some wet fingers can already make the roll break. The filling is heavy.
Because my filling tore the roll apart I had to wrap each roll in an extra piece dough. It's a pity I used all dough there is nothing left to try with cheese or minced meat.
I fried outside in the shed. It's pretty cold but it keeps my home clean. I was able to fry two rolls at the same time. I am not quite sure about how long it took. I looked at the colour of the roll and turned it several times.
Fryer: 180°C - sunflower oil - about 5 minutes
Once back inside the first rolls were not that hot. I used the air fryer for 2 minutes at 170°C to change that. The rolls look just fine.
I made some powder sugar and together with the roll it was a great treat. I should say meal since that was what it was our second and last meal of the day.
Nice recipe