BY KAREN BOSSICK

Fred Pendl boarded the Queen Mary in 1966 bound for Sun Valley Resort where he had been tasked with starting up The Konditorei restaurant and pastry shop. He made a brief stop in Chicago where the resort handed him $28,000 to buy furniture and pots and pans for the restaurant, which opened in January 1967.

And then it began—years and years of making apple strudel for Sun Valley tourists—or, as Fred says, eight miles worth of strudel that he had learned to bake in his native Austria.

The pastry chef, who later opened his own bakery in the heart of Ketchum, recently showed Marie Gallo how to make his famous Apple Strudel and you can see the action in today’s Eye on Sun Valley video. You can also catch the show on Cox Cable Channel 13 daily at various times between 4 and 8 p.m.

FRED PENDL’S APPLE STRUDEL

2-3 Granny Smith apples, cut in thick slices

½ stick butter

1 teaspoon cinnamon

½ cup raisins, soaked overnight in rum

½ cup bread crumbs

¼ cup sugar, or less if you prefer

Zest of lemon

Chopped nuts, optional

Puff pastry, found in the supermarket

Confectioner’s sugar

Whipped cream

Brown the butter in a stainless-steel pan at medium high heat. Turn the heat down to low as it starts browning and set aside when brown.

Dust the puff pastry, which has been warmed to room temperature, with flour on both sides. Roll out and set on a baking sheet.

Mix together the apple slices, cinnamon, raisins, sugar, lemon zest and nuts. Sprinkle the bread crumbs over the pastry and pile the apple filling on top.

Fold the dough at the top and bottom over the filling, then roll up the strudel from the short side. Pinch together edges and make a couple stabs with a fork to let the steam escape.  Brush the strudel with the melted butter and place in a preheated 425-degree oven.

Cook for 15 minutes, then brush the pastry with more butter. Turn the oven to 325 degrees and bake another 15 to 20 minutes.

When finished, dust with confectioner’s sugar and serve with whipped cream.

ead over the pastry.