Cream Horns

I was reading through my dessert recipe book recently and came across this recipe. I have not made these in a while and figured I would give them a go. I used to make these a lot but I kind of forgot about them, to be honest. My dad gave me this recipe years ago and I would make them from time to time when he would visit or I would make them for family get together. Now, these are not that hard to make but they do require cream horn molds. I will leave a link to the ones I use for this recipe below.

Now if you have never had or even heard of a cream horn before ( which I’d like to think they are well known. lol) they are a flakey puff pastry in the shape of a horn with the most velvety sweet cream in the center. They are so good. Sometimes you can’t help but eat two…. or three… But who’s judging? Certainly not me. Now, with that being said this is certainly not a healthy dessert by any means but they sure are good.

Let me share with you how to make them.

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 Cup. Vegetable shortening (crisco)
1/2 Cup. (1 stick) unsalted Butter – room temp
4 Cups. Powdered Sugar – sifted
1 Tbsp. Vanilla
2-3 Tbsp. Cream or Milk ( more if needed)
1/4 tsp Salt
1 pkg. Puff pastry – thawed and slightly rolled out to keep the creases from breaking

DIRECTIONS:

1. Thaw the puff pastry a few hours before using or overnight in the fridge.
2. Preheat the oven to 400*. Line a sheet tray with parchment paper. Spray your horn molds with oil spray and set aside.
3. Cut the puff pastry into 3/4-inch wide strips and set aside.
4. Wrap a strip of the puff pastry around the horn mold being careful to wrap the puff pastry from the pointy end of the horn slightly overlapping the pastry all the way up to the wide end of the mold. When you reach the end of the mold gently press the edge onto itself so it does not pop open when baking. Place the pastry and mold onto the lined baking sheet while you finish the rest of the molds. Be sure to leave about 1/2-inch to 3/4-inch between the molds so the pastry can rise and bake evenly in the oven.
5. Bake for 12-15 minutes (depending on the temp of your oven. Some run hotter than others) or until golden brown and cooked through.
6. Remove and let cool for 10 minutes in the mold or until the molds are warm enough to handle without burning yourself. Carefully and gently pull the pastry from the molds and place them on a wire rack to cool completely.
7. While they are cooling you can make your cream filling.
8. Combine the shortening and butter in a bowl and beat with a handheld or stand mixer ( whisk attachment) until combined and creamy.
9. Continue to beat and slowly add in the powdered sugar about 1 cup or so at a time. Be sure to combine the powdered sugar well before adding in the next round of powdered sugar. Scrape down the sides of the bowl to make sure it all gets incorporated. This mixture may get a bit crumbly at first but it will come together.
10. Once the powdered sugar is combined with the butter mixture add in the vanilla, salt, and cream. Blend until the mixture is smooth, creamy, and fluffy.
11. Place half of the mixture into either a pastry bag fitted with a large round or star-shaped tip Or you can use a ziplock bag with the corner snipped off.
12. Once the puff pastry horns are cooled you can fill them up. Place the tip of the pastry bag as far into the horn and gently squeeze the filling into the party shell as you pull the bag out of the pastry shell. Leave about a 1/2 inch of the filling at the end of the pastry horn. Place back on the wire rack while you finish the rest of the pastries.
13. You can eat them right away or you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks. You can also freeze them as well. Just wrap them in plastic wrap, then in aluminum foil and place them in a ziplock bag and freeze them. Let them thaw for about 1+ hour(s) before you plan on eating them.

• You can dip the wide end of the pastry into melted chocolate before filling them if you like a bit of chocolate.
• Drizzle over melted chocolate when the pastries are filled for a pretty drizzle on top if you prefer.
• Dust with powdered sugar after filling if you prefer.
• If you are using the mold with both ends open just wrap them from one end to the other. Slightly overlap the pastry as stated above and bake the same as stated above. When filling with the cream just fill one side from the center out and then the other side from the center out.
• For the cream horns (using the horn mold) you can fill the tip with melted chocolate and let the chocolate harden before filling with the cream. You can place them on the side of the wire rack slightly at an angle so the chocolate does not spill out.
• Here is the link for the molds that I use. https://amzn.to/42egrwl