Homemade Polish Cream Horns, Rurki z Kremem (cream tubes), are a light, crisp, and irresistible dessert that feels special without much fuss. I’m making a batch for Mother’s Day, but these sweet little pastries bring joy to any gathering, holiday table, or afternoon coffee break.
For this recipe, I’m using homemade pastry dough inspired by Ania Gotuje, one of my favorite Polish-language food blogs. If you’d rather save time, store-bought puff pastry works beautifully too, and no one will complain.
A Little History of Cream Horns
Cream horns are delicate, rolled pastries filled with a creamy center, loved across much of Europe for generations. They’re believed to have originated in the 17th-century Vienna, then spread throughout Europe and eventually to the United States, where they’re sometimes known as Lady Locks or Clothspin Cookies. Early bakers shaped them around wooden clothespins before metal molds became common.
Polish Rurki z Kremem have deep roots in traditional Polish baking and are often linked to Compendium Ferculorum, one of the earliest known Polish cookbooks. Recipes really do travel across borders, and thankfully, this one did!
Cream Horn Variations
Cream horns are made by wrapping pastry dough, usually puff pastry or shorcrust pastry, around metal cone molds and baking until golden and crisp. Once cooled, they’re filled with something creamy and delicious.
Popular fillings include:
- vanilla pastry cream
- lightly sweetened whipped cream
- buttercream
- chocolate mousse
- strawberry cream
- mascarpone filling
No matter the filling, Rurki z Kremem are always elegant, festive, and impossible to eat just one.
Now that you are well-versed in all things Rurki z Kemem, let me ask this. Please send me a photo when you make them. I’d love to share your pastry with other readers.
Smacznego!
Lois
PS – I must have zoned out while whipping the mascarpone and cream. I ended up with a delicious, cheesy butter that was too dense to pipe into the pastry tube. I will probably use it on scones, or toast. Fortunately, I had more heavy cream in the fridge, so stabilized whipped cream is what you see in the photos.
I also dipped the opening of some horns into melted white chocolate and added some sprinkles.
Polish Cream Horns
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 dozen 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Polish
Description
Homemade Polish Cream Horns, Rurki z Kremem (cream tubes), are a light, crisp, and irresistible dessert that feels special without much fuss.
Ingredients
for the dough:
- 3 1/3 cups flour (400 g)
- 7/8 cup butter, cold, diced (200 g)
- 7/8 cup sour cream (200 g)
- 1 tablespoon sugar
for the filling:
- 8 ounces mascarpone chilled(250 g)
- 1 cup heavy cream, chilled (250 ml)
- 3/4 cup powdered sugar (90 g)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or paste
butter, softened, to grease metal cones
granular sugar (for unbaked shells) or powdered sugar (for baked shells)
Metal cone molds, 5 inches high
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F (200° C).
- Combine and knead flour, butter, sour cream, and 1 tablespoon powdered sugar. This can be done on a pastry board or in a mixing bowl with a dough hook. If the dough is too dry to come together, add ice-cold water, one tablespoon at a time. Once you have a smooth dough, wrap it in plastic wrap and refrigerate it for one hour.
- Divide the dough into thirds. Roll out to 1/16 inch (15 mm). Cut the dough into lengths 1/2-3/4 inch wide (1.5 cm).
- Butter the outside of the metal cone molds with softened butter.
- Starting with the narrow end, evenly wrap without covering the opening. Wrap strips of dough so that they overlap halfway. Do not cover the wide end with the dough. You’ll remove the dough from the cone by pulling it from the wide end. If the dough is too thick, stretch it as you wrap. If it’s too short, add a piece and trim to fit. If you need more molds, bake in batches, greasing before each batch.
- Place the wrapped cones on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving some space between them. Bake for 20 minutes or until lightly golden brown. Cool. Slide molds out of pastry tubes.
- For the filling, whip mascarpone, heavy cream, 3/4 cup powdered sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Start on a very slow speed, increasing speed until the filling ingredients are combined and light and fluffy.
- Add the filling to a pastry bag with a star tip. If you don’t have piping tools, cut a small zigzag opening in the corner of a ziplock bag. Push the pastry bag into the pastry shells, and squeeze the bag to fill the cream horn. Sprinkle with powdered sugar. Serve or refrigerate.
- See notes for storage tips.
Notes
How to Serve & Store Cream Horns
For best results, store the baked and cooled shells in an airtight container. Keep the filling refrigerated and fill the pastry just before serving.
Baked Unfilled shells:
-
- Freeze on a parchment-lined baking sheet for three hours. Wrap each pastry in plastic wrap and move to an airtight container. Keep frozen for up to a week. Freezing filled shells is not recommended.
-
- Store unfilled shells in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days.
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- If the shells have softened, bake for 1 – 3 minutes at 300° F (150° C) to recrisp.
Filled Shells:
-
- Place in an airtight container and refrigerate for no more than three days.
-
- Add a paper towel to the container to absorb moisture and reduce sogginess.
An accountant by trade and a food blogger since 2009, Lois Britton fell in love with Polish cuisine during the years she lived in Poznań, Poland. As the creator of PolishHousewife.com, she loves connecting readers with traditional Polish recipes. Lois has a graduate certificate in Food Writing and Photography from the University of South Florida. She is the author of The Polish Housewife Cookbook, available on Amazon and on her website.
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