Mini Cream Horns

Mini Cream horns are a very easy, popular, bite size pastry. As long as you have the cream horn molds which are available at all good kitchen stores the options are endless. These are my favorites! I recently prepared them for my nephew's 21st birthday party. Prepared with old fashioned mock cream these delicious morsels can be frozen for up to a month before the special occasion. Or keep them on hand in the freezer for when guests unexpectedly drop in. With fresh whipped cream, strawberry jam and fresh strawberries you have a beautiful dessert for you next dinner party. Or why not try chocolate mousse? Children as well as adults will love these!

You will need:

Puff pastry sheets

Icing sugar

Milk

Strawberry jam

Dulce de leche 

Mock Cream:

250g butter (1 ½ c)

3/4 cup castor sugar

1 teaspoon gelatin

1/4 cup water

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar, optional

1/4 cup cold water, extra

Prepare the Mock cream first. This will make lots of cream but any left-over can be used to ice cakes or cupcakes or frozen for later use. Mix gelatin with 1/4 cup water, stand 5 minutes then heat gently to dissolve. Allow it to cool to room temperature. Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy. Very gradually add the gelatin mixture. Once this is incorporated gradually add the cold water and cream of tartar, if using. By this stage the cream should be white and fluffy.

You can refrigerate your cream until the cream horns are ready. The cream will need to be removed from the refrigerator for a few hours to allow it to soften to a creamy consistency. The time this will take will depend on your climate.

Heat the oven to 200C. Butter your molds well .Dust a sheet of thawed puff pastry with sifted icing sugar then cut into about 1cm strips.

Fold the pastry over the end of the mold wind the pastry around the mold overlapping slightly.

Place on a baking paper lined baking tray with the end of the pastry down so that it doesn't pop up during baking. Brush lightly with milk.

Bake for 10-15 minutes until crisp and lightly browned.

Remove and cool until ready to fill.

Using a teaspoon or a piping bag place a small amount of jam or dulce de leche in the bottom of the pastry horn then fill with cream mock or fresh. I like to top the jam horns with a red glace cherry and the dulce de leche horns with a choc chip.

Dust with icing sugar and they are ready to serve.

Enjoy the crunchy, creamy sweetness! Mmmmm!

 Recipe Source: http://marcellinaincucina.blogspot.com/2010/06/mini-cream-horns.html