Lady Locks
Also called clothespin cookies, cream horns
Flaky pastry horns baked around clothespins and filled with a fluffy shortening cream.
From a family recipe sheet
Ingredients
Amounts are for the recipe. Sizes, times and temperatures in the method are not scaled.
Pastry
Filling
Amounts worked out from the other system are rounded.
Method
Pastry
Mix the cold water (235 g1 cup), a pinch of salt, the Crisco (24 g2 tbsp) and the egg yolks (3) well. Then add the flour (420 g3½ cups).
Knead the dough well, at least 5 minutes.
Divide the dough into three balls.
Roll one ball out, flipping the dough over several times as you roll. Use flour sparingly on the rolling surface so the dough doesn't toughen.
Spread Crisco generously over the top of the rolled-out dough. Fold it in half, then in half again. Pinch the open ends together so the Crisco doesn't ooze out, wrap in wax paper and refrigerate 2 hours. Do the same with the other two balls.
Repeat the rolling and Crisco-spreading three more times, refrigerating at least 2 hours between roll-outs.
On the last roll-out, roll on powdered sugar instead of flour.
Cut into strips and roll the strips around clothespins.
Bake at 400°F for 12 minutes. Take them off the clothespins while they are hot.
Filling
Beat the egg whites (3) until stiff and set them aside in another bowl. Cream together the oleo (113 g1 stick), Crisco (190 g1 cup), sugar (200 g1 cup) and vanilla (1 tsp). Add the egg whites to the creamed mixture, then the hot milk (120 g½ cup). Beat until fluffy, about 30 minutes.
Fill the shells and sprinkle powdered sugar on the crust.
Notes
- Plan on a full day. The dough is rolled out four times, with 2-hour chills in between.
- The egg whites in the filling are not cooked beyond the hot milk.