Pumpkin strudel with pecan streusel

Recently, my ex-friend coffee and I got back together. It wasn't a painful break-up since coffee tends to have a negative impact on my life, but I did miss him when I was eating pastries. Sometimes the flavor of tea just isn't right.

When a friend shared this recipe with me, I was excited to try it for one simple reason - COFFEE. It's called a "streusel", but my Googling tells me that streusel is a topping, and strudel is a pastry. So I guess this is pumpkin strudel with pecan streusel. As is my custom, I followed few of the instructions.

The finished product

I skipped the maple brown sugar glaze and drizzled honey over the finished product instead. I wasn't looking for super-sweet cake - just something to go along with my friend coffee.

The braid in the background, the pecans on the left, and the leftover filling is center

The next thing I changed was the streusel - it's a topping. I didn't like that it went inside the braid, so I sprinkled it over the top before baking (this was a mistake. more on that below)

Close-up of the baked braid - the pecans burned a bit

As you can see, the streusel burned. I should have baked the braid for a bit before adding the topping.

There are lengthy instructions at the source, which you should follow if you decide to make this. My spices are different, and I doubled the butter for the streusel topping, but I made the dough to the letter. Maybe I rolled it too thick, or maybe I just don't like it, but I think it's the wrong type of dough for this type of pastry. It's too pie crust-y for me. The filling was okay, but the pecan streusel was delicious.

Close-up of the finished product

What I appreciated most about the recipe were the details for making the braid. It was remarkably easy and fun, and I want to try something similar again with my own, improvised ingredients and toppings. I definitely think it was a mistake to have the pecans on the outside of the braid. I would try a different pastry, roll it thinner, add more filling, and make the glaze.

The bottom line is that you should try the original recipe - I'm sure it's great! Don't be like me or else you'll end up with an enjoyable-but-disappointing, pastry/pumpkin/nut thing.