Cream Horns, Gluten Free

Instructions

1. 1

   Mix the shaggy dough

   Whisk the gluten-free blend, xanthan gum, granulated sugar, and salt together in a wide bowl until the gum is evenly dispersed — clumps of xanthan turn slimy in the dough. Toss in the cold butter cubes and flatten each one between your thumb and forefinger into a rough coin, leaving visible slabs rather than crumbs. Stir the lemon juice into the ice water and add it all at once, tossing with a fork. Gluten-free starches drink more liquid than wheat flour, so this dough should look wetter than you'd expect at this stage.

2. 2

   Rest to hydrate

   Press the dough into a rough rectangle, wrap it, and let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes before you roll anything. This is the step that makes or breaks gluten-free pastry: the rice flour and starches need time to absorb the water, and skipping it leaves you with a gritty dough that cracks apart at every fold.

3. 3

   Build the layers with folds

   Roll the rested dough between two sheets of parchment to about 8 by 16 inches — the parchment keeps this fragile dough from tearing and saves you from adding extra flour. Fold in thirds like a letter, turn a quarter turn, and roll again, for four folds total. Patch any cracks at the edges by pressing them closed with your fingers as you go; without gluten the dough won't knit itself back together on its own. Wrap and chill at least 1 hour.

4. 4

   Prep your molds and oven

   Heat the oven to 400°F with a rack in the center. Line two sheet pans with parchment. Grease 14 metal cream horn molds lightly with softened butter or cooking spray, paying attention to the pointed tip where sticking is most likely. Beat the egg with the tablespoon of water for the wash.

5. 5

   Cut the strips

   Roll the chilled dough between parchment into a 12 by 14-inch rectangle, a scant 1/8 inch thick. Peel off the top sheet, trim the edges square with a pizza wheel, and cut fourteen strips, each 1 inch wide and 12 inches long. Work quickly and chill the dough for 10 minutes any time it softens — warm gluten-free dough tears rather than stretches.

6. 6

   Wrap the horns

   Start at the pointed tip of a mold and press the end of a strip against it. Wind the dough up the cone, overlapping each pass by about a third of the strip's width. Don't stretch this dough the way you would a wheat version; it has no elasticity and will simply snap. If a strip does break, press the two ends together and keep winding. Stop 1/4 inch short of the open rim and press the final end into the layer beneath it.

7. 7

   Chill, wash, and sugar

   Freeze the wrapped molds for 20 minutes — a little longer than the wheat version, since this dough warms up faster. Brush the tops and sides with egg wash, keeping it off the cut edges. Scatter sanding sugar over the top if you're using it.

8. 8

   Bake

   Bake 18 to 22 minutes, until the horns are deeply golden brown all over. Gluten-free pastry needs several extra minutes and noticeably more color than wheat pastry to crisp through; pulled at pale gold it will be soft and starchy inside. Unlike the wheat version, let these cool on the molds for a full 10 minutes before unmolding — the structure sets as it cools and twisting too early will crack the spiral. Then twist gently with a dry towel and slide the pastry free. Cool completely on a wire rack.

9. 9

   Whip the filling

   Beat the cream cheese on medium speed until perfectly smooth, scraping the bowl twice. Add the powdered sugar, vanilla, and salt and beat until creamy. With the mixer on low, pour in the cold cream in a slow stream, then raise to medium-high and whip to stiff peaks, about 1 to 2 minutes. Stop as soon as the peaks hold.

10. 10

    Fill and serve

    Pipe the filling into one end of each horn until it reaches the middle, then fill from the other end, finishing with a rosette at the wide end. Dust with powdered sugar. Gluten-free shells absorb moisture faster than wheat ones, so fill these no more than an hour before serving.

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Baker's Tips

• 1.

  Short on time? One 17.3-ounce package of thawed store-bought puff pastry (two sheets) replaces the homemade dough and gives you about 16 strips. Roll each sheet slightly thinner before cutting.

• 2.

  No cream horn molds? Wrap sugar cones tightly in greased foil, or use the old bakery trick of winding the dough around wooden clothespins for miniature horns.

• 3.

  Overlap the dough by about a third each turn. Less and the spiral gaps open as it bakes; more and the inner layers stay doughy.

• 4.

  Bake and cool the shells up to a day ahead and store them airtight at room temperature, but never fill them more than a few hours before serving or they'll soften from the inside out.

• 5.

  Swap in other fillings once you've got the shells down: pastry cream, lemon curd, or sweetened whipped cream stabilized with a pinch of cream of tartar all work beautifully.

• 6.

  If your kitchen runs warm, chill the rolled dough between every fold. Butter that melts into the flour makes bread, not layers.