Cream Rolls (Puff Pastry Horns with Whipped Cream)
کریم رول
For many Pakistanis, cream rolls are a taste of childhood: horns of flaky, sugar-crusted puff pastry filled with sweet, fluffy cream, sold at every neighbourhood bakery. They're a cousin of European cream horns, adapted with a lighter, sweeter cream. Made at home with ready puff pastry, they come out crisper and fresher than most shop versions, and the pastry shells can be baked days ahead and filled just before serving.
- ⏱ Total: 50 min
- Prep: 30 min
- Cook: 20 min
- Medium
- Serves 12
Method
Tap a step when it is done.
Heat the oven to 200°C. Grease 12 cream horn moulds (or make cones from foil-wrapped card). Roll the pastry thin and cut into 12 long strips about 2.5 cm wide.
Starting at the tip, wind each strip around a mould, overlapping slightly. Brush with egg and roll in sugar.
Bake on a lined tray for 15–20 minutes until puffed, crisp and deep golden. Slide off the moulds while warm and cool completely.
Whip the cold cream with the powdered sugar and vanilla to stiff peaks. Pipe into the cooled shells just before serving.
Serve right away.
Kitchen notes
Fill the rolls shortly before serving; cream softens the pastry within a few hours.
No moulds? Shape cones from thin card wrapped tightly in foil and greased.
Unfilled shells keep crisp for 3–4 days in an airtight tin.
A bakery memory
Cream rolls have been sold in Pakistani bakeries for generations, often next to chicken patties and pineapple pastries. They’re cheap, sweet and fun to eat, and they remain a favourite for children’s birthdays and school tiffins.
Crisp shell, light cream
The pastry is wound around cone-shaped moulds, brushed with egg and rolled in sugar, which caramelises in the oven into a crunchy, glossy crust. Once cool, the shells are filled with whipped cream sweetened with powdered sugar and vanilla.
Shortcuts
Ready-made puff pastry makes this an easy bake. If you don’t have cream horn moulds, cones made from card wrapped in foil work perfectly.
Keeping the cream stable
In warm weather, whipped dairy cream can soften quickly. Whip it very cold, in a chilled bowl, and stop as soon as it holds stiff peaks. A spoon of milk powder or a little mascarpone whipped in helps it hold its shape for longer. Keep filled rolls in the fridge until just before serving, and fill only as many as you need.
Serving
Serve on the day they’re filled, with tea or as part of a tea party spread.
Questions people ask
What cream do bakeries use?
Many use a sweet non-dairy whipping cream, which is lighter and very stable. Fresh dairy cream tastes richer but softens sooner.
Can I add flavour to the cream?
Yes. A spoon of jam at the bottom, a little cocoa, or mango pulp folded in are popular.
Why didn't my pastry puff?
The pastry got warm. Keep it cold, work quickly and chill the shaped rolls before baking.
Nutrition (estimate, per serving)
- Calories
- 200
- Protein
- 2 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Carbs
- 17 g
