Rustic Walnut Horns

Life, as usual, is busy.  I’m learning a lot in my EMT course, which gives me peace of mind.  In a previous post, I mentioned that I had signed up for a 12 week EMT training class, and I’m also looking into CERT training, which is available in a lot of jurisdictions.  CERT responders are citizens who go through special training to assist in the case of a major disaster.  After 9/11, and after seeing what happens when a natural disaster strikes (the 2004 tsunami, Katrina, Haiti, Chile), I decided to do something about a fact of life:  bad things happen to good people in places they thought were safe.

Needless to say, the 14-hour per week time commitment, plus LIFE, have interfered with a lot of the baking and cooking that I like to do.  I did, however, manage to bake these Rustic Walnut Horns from one of my favorite cookbooks, Great Coffee Cakes, Sticky Buns, Muffins & More: 200 Anytime Treats and Special Sweets for Morning to Midnight.  These pastries call for a versatile dough that you can whip up and freeze, to be pulled out the night before you want something freshly baked for breakfast.

After you make the dough and let it rise overnight, divide it in half, freeze one half, and use the remaining half for these horns.

The recipe for the dough is below, and I’ll post the rest of my adapted recipe by tomorrow, ’cause I forgot where I left my cookbook.  May be in the car because, you see, sometimes I cart cookbooks with me to my EMT class.  Just because.  To see what others have made in their kitchens this week, be sure to check out Susan’s weekly YeastSpotting!

Rich Sour Cream Dough

4 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 cup warm water (110 to 115 F)
1 package active dry yeast (2-1/4 tsp.)
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour, spooned in and leveled
1 tsp. table salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes. (Butter should be slightly firm when ready to use, not an oily, soft mess.)
1/2 cup sour cream (low fat is okay, but NOT non-fat)
3 large egg yolks
1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
softened butter to prep bowl

1. Add 1 Tbsp. sugar to the warm water. Sprinkle the yeast over the water. Do not stir. Cover the bowl with a saucer and let the mixture stand for about 5 minutes. Stir briefly with a fork

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, cover again, and let stand a few more minutes until bubbly. If there is no frothing or bubbling, your yeast may be old, and start again.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixture fitted with a paddle attachment, or in a food processor with the dough blade, mix in (low speed in the mixer, pulse in the food processor) the flour, remaining 3 Tbsp. of sugar, and the salt. Add the butter and continue to mix until small crumbs form, about 2-4 minutes, depending on the temperature of the butter.

3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, egg yolks, and vanilla. Add the milk mixture to the flour, along with the dissolved yeast, and mix on low for about 15 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Mix for another 30 seconds until a smooth dough forms. This is a soft dough. In the food processor, pulse until a ball forms, and then pulse about 4 or 5 more times.

4. Lightly butter a medium bowl. Empty the dough into the bowl, smoothing the top with floured hands. Spread a thin layer of softened butter on top. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. You have to do this, because the dough is very rich and hard to handle unless it has had a rest in the refrigerator.

5. You can keep the dough in the refrigerator for up to three days, or wrap tightly and freeze for up to 3 months.