A lovely treat for the holidays are home made cream horns with a chocolate chestnut or a pumpkin filling.

Chocolate chestnut cream horns

Yield: 8-10 cream horns (with either the chocolate chestnut or the pumpkin filling)

Ingredients:

for the chocolate chestnut filling:

  • 1 cup chestnut puree *1
  • 3/4 cup soy milk (or rice, oat, almond milk)
  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 tablespoons vanilla, rum or brandy, (flavoring of choice)
  • 1/4 cup vegan chocolate

for the pumpkin filling:

  • 1 & 1/2 cups soy milk
  • 1 ounce fine corn meal (very fine like flour, not coarse polenta)
  • 1 tablespoon egg replacer (e.g. No Egg)
  • 1 tablespoon cornstarch
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla
  • 3/4 cup sugar or 1/3 cup date puree *2
  • 1&1/2 cups pumpkin puree
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
  • 1-2 teaspoons allspice (or 1/4 teaspoon cloves)
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon cardamom (optional but nice)
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

for the cream horns:

  • 8 sheets frozen vegan puff pastry, thawed
  • powdered sugar to dust

Pumpkin cream horns

Directions:

to make the chocolate chestnut filling:

  1. Place the soy milk and sugar in a saucepan and simmer to dissolve the sugar.
  2. Add the chestnut puree, chocolate and flavoring.
  3. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly to mix and keep from scalding.
  4. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. Place in the refrigerator to harden. The chocolate chestnut filling can also be used warm to fill German-style pancakes or crepes.

to make the pumpkin filling:

  1. Prepare the pumpkin puree in a bowl.
  2. Add the ginger, 1 teaspoon of the allspice, cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon salt and cardamom.
  3. Add the sugar or date mixture and mix well.
  4. Taste, and adjust the seasonings to taste, you may want more allspice or cinnamon.
  5. Pour the soy milk into a large pot.
  6. Mix in the corn meal, egg replacer, cornstarch and vanilla. Stir and mix well while the soy milk is still cold.
  7. Heat the soy milk mixture stirring constantly.
  8. As it begins to thicken and warm, mix in the pumpkin mixture.
  9. Keep stirring as the mixture heats and thickens.
  10. Be careful not to get splashed by the bubbles as they can burn.
  11. Stir the mixture vigorously, once it becomes very thick, remove from the heat and place in a bowl to cool down.

Making cream horns

to make the cream horns:

  1. Thaw the puff pastry sheets.
  2. Pre-heat the oven according to the instructions on the package about 375 F / 190 C.
  3. Slice each square of puff pastry into 6 even strips.
  4. Carefully wrap the strips around the cream horn molds.
  5. Bake the horns for 15-18 minutes or until they are lightly golden brown.
  6. Remove from the oven, carefully remove the form from the pastry and allow to cool on a rack.
  7. Once the horns are cooled, you can fill them with the chocolate chestnut or pumpkin filling. I used a cookie dough syringe, but a small spoon would work also. Fill each horn and dust with powdered sugar.

Notes:

*1 about 20-24 chestnuts, an X cut on the skin, roast in the oven, cooled and peeled, place in a saucepan, simmered for about 30 minutes until very soft, then puree.

*2 If a “Middle-Eastern” Import grocery is available, you can find pre-made date puree sold inexpensively in long bars. Otherwise it would be about 24 dates, de-seeded and chopped, in a very small amount of boiling water then pureed with a staff mixer or in a food processor.