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Enlightened Austrian Cooking

Mix things up for your customers by adding these classics with a twist, some from famed chef Kurt Gutenbrunner.

By Joanna Pruess

"To create contemporary versions of classic dishes you have to understand their basis and ingredients," says Kurt Gutenbrunner, the acclaimed Austrian-born chef-owner of restaurants such as Wallsé and Café Sabarsky, in New York City. "Then you can try to use alternative ingredients to modify them without losing the purity and tradition."

Gutenbrunner sees cooking as analogous to classical music. "As a conductor, you don’t rewrite a Strauss piece, but you choose to add your own style through the arrangement of instruments, and thus the music has its own interpretation," he explains. "I view our cuisine as Mozart meets Lou Reed," he adds with a smile.

Here are three modern twists on classic Austrian dishes, with some of the recipes provided by Chef Gutenbrunner.

Apple Strudel

Yield: 3 (2-pound) strudels or 24 slices
Preparation time: about 1 hour
Shelf life: best in 1 day

Apple strudel came into being in the 17th century during the reign of the Habsburg Monarchy, influenced by the dessert baklava. This recipe is from Chef Kurt Gutenbrunner. If you brush the phyllo sheets lightly, you will not need all of the butter. Serve with a dollop of lowfat honey-vanilla yogurt, if desired.

1 pound + 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons + 1 cup granulated sugar
2¼ cups + ¾ cup panko bread crumbs
1½ cups light sour cream
3 tablespoons dark rum
3 pounds (about 6) Granny Smith or other tart-sweet apples
1 cup chopped walnut pieces
1 cup raisins
¾ cup dried currants
Confectioners sugar
15 sheets phyllo

1. Clarify the pound of butter and set aside.

2. Heat remaining 6 tablespoons of butter in a pan over medium-high heat. Stir in 6 tablespoons of sugar, cook until sugar is melted; add 2¼ cups panko and vigorously stir until crumbs are well coated and there are no clumps. Pour onto a cookie sheet and let the sweet bread crumbs cool.

3. In a large bowl, blend sour cream and rum. Peel, core and very thinly slice the apples; combine them with sour cream mixture, the remaining cup of sugar, ¾ cup panko, walnuts, raisins and currants and mix well.

4. Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Line cookie sheets with parchment and dust with confectioners sugar.

5. Divide filling in thirds. For each strudel: place one sheet of phyllo horizontally on the work surface and lightly brush with clarified butter. Sprinkle on a thin layer of sweet bread crumbs. Repeat for a total of five sheets. Do not brush the top sheet with butter. Spoon the filling about 3 inches from the bottom, forming it into a compact cylinder and leaving about 1 ¼-inch border on either side. Tightly roll up the strudel, turning in the sides and place it seam side down on the pan. Brush the top with butter. Repeat for the two remaining strudels.

6. Bake until the strudels are golden brown, about 45 minutes. Remove and let cool. Cut each into 8 slices crosswise with a serrated knife or angel food cake server.

NUTRITIONAL DATA (per slice): Calories: 430; Cholesterol: 55 mg; Sodium: 170 mg; Fat: 27 g; Dietary Fiber: 2 g

Click here to view the ingredient cost worksheet for this recipe.

Mixed Bean Salad with Pistachios (Gemischter Bohnensalat)

Yield: 24 (5-ounce or ¾-cup) portions
Preparation time: 25 to 80 minutes, depending upon which type of beans are used
Shelf life: 3 days

A combination of different beans in this side dish adds texture, color and appeal. (Fava, edamame, garbanzo or green beans work well.) Along with chopped pistachios and shallots, the beans are tossed with a light yogurt-sour cream-pistachio oil dressing and garnished with julienned basil leaves. The recipe is based on one by Chef Kurt Gutenbrunner. You can use all yogurt in place of the sour cream; Gutenbrunner often does. You could also substitute Styrian pumpkin seeds and their oil. Gutenbrunner notes that many Austrian chefs have begun using this oil to finish dishes. The seeds are a good source of antioxidants, vitamins and essential fatty acids.

6 pounds mixed beans, such as young green beans cut into 1½-inch lengths, shelled fava and edamame beans and garbanzo beans
1 cup plain lowfat yogurt
¾ cup light sour cream
¾ cup pistachio oil
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon sugar
2 to 3 teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper or to taste
3 cups shelled roasted pistachios, chopped
4 ounces finely chopped shallots
Small basil leaves, preferably opal basil, to garnish

1. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Fill a large bowl with ice water.

2. Add beans to pot and cook until just tender, 3 to 4 minutes, or longer for favas. Drain, shock in the ice water, drain well and pat dry.

3. In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, sour cream, oil, vinegar, lemon juice, sugar, salt, pepper and cayenne. Add beans and toss to coat. Drizzle on the pistachios and shallots, toss and transfer to a platter. Garnish with basil leaves.

NUTRITIONAL DATA (per 5-ounce portion): Calories: 390; Cholesterol: 0 mg; Sodium: 25 mg; Fat: 18 g; Dietary Fiber: 11 g

Click here to view the ingredient cost worksheet for this recipe.

Lake Char with Fennel Vinaigrette

Yield: 24 (6½- to 7-ounce) portions of fish including fennel-tomato topping
Preparation time: 45 minutes
Shelf life: 2 to 3 days

This light main course may be enjoyed warm or at room temperature. It is based on a recipe from the Imperial Hotel in Vienna, Austria.

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
24 (5- to 6-ounce) lake char or brook trout fillets with skin
Salt
1½ (750 milliliter) bottles dry white wine
6 ounces shallots, chopped
3 ounces + 1 ounce fresh lemon juice
12 ounces extra virgin olive oil, divided
2¼ pounds fennel bulb, finely julienned, fennel fronds reserved
3 cups water
1½ tablespoons dried basil
Freshly ground black pepper
3 ounces balsamic vinegar
3 pounds plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded and finely chopped
1½ cups fennel fronds, chopped + 24 small fronds to garnish (from above)

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Butter a large, deep baking dish or dishes large enough to hold the fish in a single layer.

2. Lay the fillets in the pan, skin side down, season with salt, add wine, shallots and 3 ounces of lemon juice; poach in the oven until just cooked through, about 9 minutes. Do not let the liquid boil.

3. Meanwhile, in a large, deep sauté pan, heat 3 ounces of olive oil until hot. Add fennel and quickly sauté over medium-high heat until it starts to soften, about 3 minutes. Add water, raise the heat and boil until fennel is tender but still slightly al dente.

4. In a small bowl, combine remaining olive oil, basil, pepper, balsamic vinegar, remaining lemon juice, tomatoes and chopped fennel fronds. Stir vinaigrette into the skillet with the cooked fennel; season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve each char fillet on a plate and spoon the fennel mixture over it. Garnish each fillet with a small fennel frond.

NUTRITIONAL DATA (per 6½-ounce portion): Calories: 210; Cholesterol: 95 mg; Sodium: 80 mg; Fat: 12 g; Dietary Fiber: 1 g

Click here to view the ingredient cost worksheet for this recipe.

Joanna Pruess is a regular contributor to Specialty Food Magazine.

This article was featured in the January/February 2011 Issue of Specialty Food Magazine. See other articles in this issue at:
January/February 2011 Specialty Food Magazine.