Italian Horns Recipes

ITALIAN HORNS

Steps:

• Combine cream cheese, ricotta, olives with pimiento and garlic in processor bowl and process until smooth.
• To make each horn, place a piece of prosciutto on work surface and spread with a layer of cheese, top that layer with a slice each of Genoa and ham layered next to each other. Spread more cheese over the salami and ham and place a bread stick and a celery stick at 1 end of the meats with ends hanging off to the side. Wrap and roll the meat forming a fancy Italian horn. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
• Arrange a platter with antipasti and garnish with a pile of Italian horns.

CLASSIC CANNONCINI

Steps:

• To make the dough, melt the butter in a bain-marie or double boiler and leave to cool. Measure out the water and add the salt. Place the flour in a bowl and pour in the water. Add the vinegar and melted butter. Work the ingredients with your hands to bring them together into a dough, then shape into a block. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours.
• To make the butter paste, sift the flour into a mound on a clean surface and make a well in the middle. Place the butter in the well. Rub the flour and butter together using your fingertips or a dough scraper, until you obtain a very soft paste.
• Place the butter paste between two sheets of parchment paper and roll it out with a rolling pin to form a rectangular block. Wrap in plastic wrap and let rest in the refrigerator for 2 hours. Using a rolling pin, roll the chilled dough out on a lightly floured surface to form a rectangle. ¼ inch thick with the short side of the rectangle facing towards you. Flatten the butter paste into a rectangle the same width as the rolled-out dough but a third of its length. Place the butter on top of the dough in the center.
• Take the short side of the dough closest to you and fold it up and over the butter paste. Fold the other short side of the dough up and towards you to cover the first fold of dough. Turn the dough through 90° so the folds no longer face you and roll the dough out again, to form a rectangle just under ½ inch thick.
• Take the short side of the dough closest to you and fold it up and over into the middle of the rectangle, then do the same with the other side, folding the dough up and over so the short sides meet in the center of the rectangle. Fold the rectangle in half again, wrap it in plastic wrap and let rest in the refrigerator for 2 hours.
• Position the dough with the short side closest to you and roll it into a rectangle ½ inch thick. Fold the lower third of the dough up and away from you, then fold the upper third up and towards you to cover the first fold of dough. Wrap the block in plastic wrap and let rest in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Repeat this stage a further 4 times, to make a total of 6 stages, and always leave the dough to rest in the refrigerator between each stage.
• Pour the cream into a bowl. Using an electric whisk, whip the cream to soft peaks.
• Add one-third of the whipped cream to the cooled custard and fold it in gently, using a silicone spatula.
• Add the remaining cream and fold it in again until you obtain a soft, even mixture.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F and line the baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Place ¼ cup (50 g) of the sugar in a small saucepan, add the water and bring to boiling point over medium heat to make a syrup. Continue to cook until all the sugar has dissolved then set aside to cool.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry dough into a 13 x 9-inch rectangle, that is ⅛ inch. Using a pastry wheel, cut the rolled-out dough into 16 strips, each measuring ¾ inch wide.
• Pour the remaining sugar into a bowl. Hold a metal cannoncini tube in one hand and, starting at one end, wrap it with a strip of pastry, overlapping each wrap slightly, so as not to leave any gaps. Brush each pastry with the sugar syrup and roll it in the remaining sugar, making sure it is completely covered. Place on the lined baking sheets and continue preparing the rest. Depending on how many metal tubes you have, make, and bake the cannoncini in batches.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry is puffed, golden, and starting to release from the cannoncini tubes. Leave to cool for 15 minutes, then slide the pastries off the cannoncini tubes and let cool completely on a cooling rack.
• To serve, fill a pastry (piping) bag fitted with a star piping tip (nozzle) with the chantilly cream and fill each cannoncini. To ensure the pastry remains crisp, fill the cannoncini immediately before serving.

ITALIAN SOUR CREAM HORNS

Steps:

• For dough: Dissolve yeast in warm water. Sift flour; add salt. Add butter, eggs yolks, sour cream.
• , vanilla and dissolved yeast mixture to flour mixture; work with hands until a moist dough forms. Cover and refrigerate 1 to 2 hours, or overnight.
• Divide dough into eight pieces. Dust rolling pin and work surfaces with powdered sugar. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll out dough to about 1/8 inch thickness (slightly thinner than pie dough, more like noodle dough).
• Cut dough into a circle approximately 8 inches in diameter. (You may want to use a stainless steel bowl and just press out a circle). Refrigerate dough circle. Continue rolling and cutting remaining dough, refrigerating circles as you go. Re-roll leftover dough pieces and cut into circles.
• Cut each circle of dough into 16 triangular pieces or wedges.
• For filling: Beat egg whites until foamy. Gradually add sugar; beat until stiff. Fold in pecans and vanilla.
• Spread 1/2 teaspoon filling on each triangle of dough; roll up, beginning with largest end. Place roll, small end down, on greased cookie sheet.
• Bake in a 350 degrees F oven 10 to 12 minutes, or until slightly browned on bottom. Immediately transfer to racks to cool.
• Sift powdered sugar over cooled cookies. Store in airtight container. Yield: About 10 dozen cookies.

ITALIAN HORN COOKIES

Steps:

• In a large bowl, cut butter into flour until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Stir in ice cream. Divide into 4 portions. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours. , On a lightly floured surface, roll each portion to 1/8-in. thickness. With a fluted pastry cutter, cut into 2-in. squares. Place about 1/2 teaspoon filling in the center of each square. Overlap 2 opposite corners of dough over the filling and seal. Sprinkle lightly with sugar. , Place on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 10-12 minutes or until bottoms are light brown. Cool on wire racks. If desired, dust with confectioners' sugar before serving.