Russian Walnut Horns

Walnut horns are yeast pastry, a Russian specialty. The cinnamon-spice ground walnut filling is partially covered. Make sure you pinch the corners of dough tightly or they will open up during baking, as that was what happened to my Russian horns.

They are delicious, nevertheless, and suffer an untimely disappearance. I may need to double the recipe when I bake them next time.:-)

All purpose flour 2¾ cups
+1/3 cup for rolling
Salt ¼ tsp
Unsalted butter, cold 1 cup, cut into pieces
+4 tsp, melted
Active dry yeast 2 tsp
Warm water (110 degree F.) ¼ cup
Eggs 2 large
Sour cream ½ cup
Ground walnuts 1 1/3 cups
Granulated sugar ½ cup
+1/3 cup for rolling
Ground cinnamon ¾ tsp
Confectioners’ sugar enough for sprinkling

Some ingredients for walnut horns

  • Stir together the 2¾ cups flour and salt. Cut in cold butter until mixture resembles coarsemeal.

  • Dissolve yeast in warm water. Separate eggs; Set aside whites and beat yolks until light and lemon color.

  • Add dissolved-yeast and half of the sour cream to beaten yolks, stirring until blended.


  • Stir this yolk mixture into flour/butter mixture.

  • Other ingredients for walnut horns
    In another bowl, beat egg whites until stiff peaks form. Fold in the remaining sour cream before adding it to flour/yolk mixture, blending thoroughly (dough will be sticky).

  • Cover dough tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (2 or 3 hours).


  • Prepare the filling by combining ground walnuts with sugar, cinnamon, and melted butter.

  • Just before you are ready to shape walnut horns, preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

  • Stir together 1/3 cup flour and 1/3 cup granulated sugar. Then sprinkle enough of the mixture over a clean work surface.

    Shaping

  • Divide dough into portions about the size of baseballs. Roll out one portion to a rectangle about 1/8-in thick (while keeping the rest refrigerated). Then cut into 2-inch squares with a sharp knife.

  • Place a scant teaspoon of filling in the center of each square. Fold 2 opposite corners into center, overlapping dough and pinching firmly to seal.

  • Place walnut horns slightly apart on prepared baking sheets. Repeat with remaining dough, sprinkling your work surface with more flour-sugar as necessary.


  • Russian walnut hornsBake for about 15 minutes or until lightly brown. Transfer to wire racks to cool slightly before sifting confectioners’ sugar over them and serve. Store any leftover in airtight containers. This recipe makes about 8 dozen irresistible walnut horns.


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