Serpentone, Italian dried fruit strudel

Ingredients

• 300 g of 00 flour
• 100 g of blanched almonds and a few bitter almonds, peeled and finely chopped
• 100 grams of sugar
• 12.5 cl of olive oil
• a small glass of Vin Santo
• 100 g of grapes
• 75 grams of walnuts
• 10 plums
• 10 dried figs
• Two apples
• 2 candied cherries, for the serpent’s eyes
• Azyme sheets for covering the plate
• 1 egg beaten for browning

Mix the flour with half of the sugar, half of the oil, and a few spoonfuls of water to create a dough that is soft and pliable.

Let the dough rest for at least 20 minutes.

While you’re doing that, soak the grapes. Chop the plums and figs, peel the apples, and slice them thinly.

Thoroughly drain the grapes, then mix them with the prepared fruits, along with the remaining sugar and oil.

Preheat the oven to approximately 140 °C.

Add the Vin Santo to the mixture, then let it rest for 30 minutes.

Roll out the dough very thinly on a clean dishcloth that has been washed without fabric softener. The dishcloth makes the process easier and prevents the dough from sticking.

Pour the filling onto the dough disc, leaving the edges clear so that you can close it up.

Lift the dishcloth to slowly allow the dough to fall back onto the filling, then roll the cake into a cigar shape.

Give it a circular shape, like a coiled snake. Place a whole almond in the area where the mouth would be, and two candied cherries as eyes.

Apply beaten egg to make it shine.

Cover the baking sheet with sheets of phyllo dough, place the cake on top, and bake for 40 minutes.