Cones, Cups and Wafers
Cooking Skills: Ice Cream 2
Chapter 6 · Cones, Cups and Wafers
Skill goal
Make four edible containers and shape thin wafers before they set.
Shopping list for this chapter
The basics
The vessel is part of the dessert. This chapter makes edible containers: a chocolate shell, a crisp meringue nest, a lacy tuile cup and a rolled waffle cone. The same two ideas turn up in every one: thin and even, and shape it before it sets.
The method
- Spread thin. A thick patch stays soft and a thin patch burns, so make every wafer an even circle.
- Bake until golden all over. A pale wafer goes soft; a dark one tastes bitter.
- Work fast, and bake a few at a time, so each is still pliable when you shape it.
- Cool in the mould, so the shape sets crisp as the wafer cools.
- Fill at the last moment, with cold cups and very cold ice cream.
| Container | Made from | Method | Fill with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chocolate cup | Melted chocolate | Painted in a case, chilled | Mousse, ice cream, berries |
| Meringue nest | Cooked meringue | Baked low and slow | Ice cream, fruit, coulis |
| Tuile cup | Batter of egg white, sugar, flour | Baked thin, moulded warm | Sorbet, gelato |
| Waffle cone | Batter of egg, sugar, flour | Baked thin, rolled warm | A scoop of anything |
Hot wafers, hot iron and keeping
Hot wafers burn fingers: a freshly baked wafer is much hotter than it looks and is very soft for only a few seconds. Use a clean, dry tea towel or oven gloves to hold it, wait about 20 seconds so it is cool enough to touch, then shape it quickly. Never press it with bare fingers straight from the pan, and keep children away from the hot iron or pan.Waffle iron or pan: a waffle iron, a pizzelle iron or a non-stick frying pan all work. Heat gets very high, so keep the lead and the iron away from the edge of the worktop and out of reach of children, and never put your hand inside while it is hot. Wipe the surface with a little oil on kitchen paper held in tongs, not your fingers.
Keeping: once completely cold, store cones, cups and tuiles in an airtight tin with baking parchment between them. Cones and tuiles soften within a day in damp air, so crisp them again for 5 minutes in a low oven. Fill chocolate cups and wafers only just before serving.
Try it
Level 1 · Start here
Chocolate cups
A chocolate shell is the easiest edible container: melted chocolate painted inside a paper case and chilled until hard. Two thin coats are stronger than one thick one.
Ingredients (8 portions)
- 150 g dark chocolate (about 70%), chopped
- 8 paper cake cases (a muffin tin helps)
- 1 small pastry brush or teaspoon
- Melt the chocolate gently and let it cool until just warm. Put the paper cases in a muffin tin to hold their shape.
- Brush or spoon a thin coat inside each case, going right up the sides. Chill for 10 minutes.
- Add a second coat, covering any thin patches, and chill for at least 30 minutes until firm. Peel away the paper gently and fill just before serving.
Melted chocolate, allergens and filling
Melted chocolate: melt it gently in a bowl over (not touching) barely simmering water, or in short microwave bursts, stirring each time. Keep water and steam out of the bowl or it will seize into a grainy lump.Filling: a scoop of very cold ice cream melts quickly in a warm cup. Chill the cups and serving plates in the freezer for 10 minutes, and fill at the last moment.
Allergens: ice cream usually contains milk (cream, condensed milk), and often egg, nuts, peanuts, soy (in some chocolate and cookies) and wheat (cookies and cones). Check labels, and never serve a nut-containing ice cream to someone with a nut allergy without telling them. Coconut cream or oat cream can replace dairy cream in some recipes, but the texture changes.
Level 2 · Meringue
Meringue nests
Meringue nests are crisp outside and a little chewy within, a classic holder for ice cream, fruit and sauce. The cooked-meringue method keeps them safe and glossy. Bake low and slow: they should dry, not brown.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 3 Lion-marked egg whites
- 150 g caster sugar
- 1 tsp cornflour
- 1 tsp white wine vinegar or lemon juice
- Heat the oven to 100°C (80°C fan). Make a cooked meringue from the whites and sugar (see the box) and whisk off the heat until very stiff, glossy and cool. Fold in the cornflour and vinegar.
- Spoon or pipe six mounds onto a lined tray, and make a hollow in the middle of each with the back of a spoon.
- Bake for 1 hour, then turn the oven off and leave them inside to cool completely, with the door shut.
Cooked meringue, low oven and keeping
Cooked meringue: raw egg white is not used. Whisk the whites and sugar in a clean heatproof bowl over a pan of barely simmering water (the bowl must not touch the water) until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture reaches about 71°C on a thermometer (general guidance), then whisk off the heat until stiff and cool. Use Lion-marked eggs, a spotlessly clean bowl, and keep steam and hot water away from your hands. Check current FSA advice if serving to pregnant women or other vulnerable people.Hot oven: use oven gloves, open the door away from your face, and don't leave the oven unattended while the meringue browns: it goes from golden to burnt in under a minute. Don't use a cracked or very cold glass dish in a hot oven.
Keeping: once completely cold, store cones, cups and tuiles in an airtight tin with baking parchment between them. Cones and tuiles soften within a day in damp air, so crisp them again for 5 minutes in a low oven. Fill chocolate cups and wafers only just before serving.
Level 2 · Wafer
Tuile cups
A tuile is a thin, crisp, lacy biscuit that is soft for a moment out of the oven, long enough to drape over a glass and set into a cup. Bake only two or three at a time so you can shape them all.
Ingredients (8 portions)
- 2 Lion-marked egg whites
- 100 g icing sugar, sifted
- 50 g plain flour
- 50 g butter, melted and cooled
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 upturned small glasses or a muffin tin
- Heat the oven to 180°C (160°C fan). Whisk the whites and icing sugar just until combined, then stir in the flour, butter and vanilla until smooth. The raw batter is not eaten: it is baked straight away.
- Spoon 2 tablespoons onto a lined tray and spread thin into a 10 cm circle. Make only 2 or 3 per tray.
- Bake for 5 to 7 minutes, until golden brown at the edges. Take out, wait 15 to 20 seconds, then lift with a palette knife and drape over an upturned glass or press into a muffin tin hollow. Cool for a few minutes until crisp.
Hot wafers, hot oven, allergens and keeping
Hot wafers burn fingers: a freshly baked wafer is much hotter than it looks and is very soft for only a few seconds. Use a clean, dry tea towel or oven gloves to hold it, wait about 20 seconds so it is cool enough to touch, then shape it quickly. Never press it with bare fingers straight from the pan, and keep children away from the hot iron or pan.Hot oven: use oven gloves, open the door away from your face, and don't leave the oven unattended while the meringue browns: it goes from golden to burnt in under a minute. Don't use a cracked or very cold glass dish in a hot oven.
Allergens: ice cream usually contains milk (cream, condensed milk), and often egg, nuts, peanuts, soy (in some chocolate and cookies) and wheat (cookies and cones). Check labels, and never serve a nut-containing ice cream to someone with a nut allergy without telling them. Coconut cream or oat cream can replace dairy cream in some recipes, but the texture changes.
Keeping: once completely cold, store cones, cups and tuiles in an airtight tin with baking parchment between them. Cones and tuiles soften within a day in damp air, so crisp them again for 5 minutes in a low oven. Fill chocolate cups and wafers only just before serving.
Level 3 · Cone
Waffle cones
A homemade waffle cone is crisp, sweet and still warm from the pan. It needs a fast hand: the wafer is bendable for less than half a minute. Use a waffle iron, or a non-stick frying pan for a flat version.
Ingredients (6 portions)
- 2 Lion-marked eggs
- 100 g caster sugar
- 100 g plain flour
- 50 g butter, melted and cooled
- 2 tbsp milk
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 clean cone former or a stiff card cone, wrapped in baking parchment, and a tea towel
- Whisk the eggs and sugar for 2 minutes until pale. Stir in the flour, butter, milk and vanilla to a smooth, thick batter. Rest it for 10 minutes.
- Waffle iron: pour a small ladle onto the hot iron, close and cook for 1 to 2 minutes until golden. Pan: heat a non-stick pan over a medium-low heat, spread the batter in a thin circle and cook for 1 to 2 minutes each side.
- Lift the wafer onto the tea towel, wait 20 seconds, then wrap it round the cone former, folding the towel over to hold it. Press the seam down firmly with the towel.
- Hold for 20 seconds, then stand upright in a glass to set and cool completely before filling.
Hot iron, hot wafers, raw egg and allergens
Waffle iron or pan: a waffle iron, a pizzelle iron or a non-stick frying pan all work. Heat gets very high, so keep the lead and the iron away from the edge of the worktop and out of reach of children, and never put your hand inside while it is hot. Wipe the surface with a little oil on kitchen paper held in tongs, not your fingers.Hot wafers burn fingers: a freshly baked wafer is much hotter than it looks and is very soft for only a few seconds. Use a clean, dry tea towel or oven gloves to hold it, wait about 20 seconds so it is cool enough to touch, then shape it quickly. Never press it with bare fingers straight from the pan, and keep children away from the hot iron or pan.
Eggs: use eggs with the British Lion mark and wash your hands after handling raw egg. This course never serves raw egg: custards are cooked, and the no-churn and sorbet recipes have none. Pregnant women, babies, older people and anyone unwell should check current FSA advice before eating egg dishes, even cooked custard.
Allergens: ice cream usually contains milk (cream, condensed milk), and often egg, nuts, peanuts, soy (in some chocolate and cookies) and wheat (cookies and cones). Check labels, and never serve a nut-containing ice cream to someone with a nut allergy without telling them. Coconut cream or oat cream can replace dairy cream in some recipes, but the texture changes.
Keeping: once completely cold, store cones, cups and tuiles in an airtight tin with baking parchment between them. Cones and tuiles soften within a day in damp air, so crisp them again for 5 minutes in a low oven. Fill chocolate cups and wafers only just before serving.
Experiments
Experiment
Batter thickness
Thin or thick.
- Bake one tuile spread very thin and one spread about twice as thick.
Look for: The thin tuile is crisp and lacy but fragile; the thick one is sturdy but chewy. Aim for just thicker than a coin.
Experiment
Rolling speed
At once, after 20 seconds, after a minute.
- Shape three wafers from the same batter: straight away (use a towel), after 20 seconds and after 1 minute.
Look for: The first is too hot and floppy; the 20-second wafer rolls well; the last has cracked as it set. Practise the timing.
Experiment
Baking time
Pale, golden and dark.
- Bake three wafers for 4, 6 and 8 minutes. Compare colour, snap and taste.
Look for: The pale wafer bends and goes soft; the golden one snaps crisply; the dark one tastes bitter. Colour is the clock.
Experiment
Cooling over a mould
Over a glass or flat.
- Mould one tuile over a glass and leave another flat on the tray.
Look for: The first keeps its cup shape; the other sets flat. The mould is what makes the shape, so always cool the wafer over it.
Tasting notes
| What I tried | Method or amount | What I saw | What I thought | Will I do it again? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chocolate cups | ||||
| Meringue nests | ||||
| Tuile cups | ||||
| Waffle cones | ||||
| Batter thickness | ||||
| Rolling speed | ||||
| Baking time | ||||
| Cooling over a mould |
Troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Wafer cracks when shaped | Left too long, or too thin | Shape within 20 seconds; bake a few at a time |
| Wafer is soft and floppy | Underbaked | Bake until deep golden |
| Wafers stick to the pan | No lining or no oil | Use baking parchment or a non-stick pan with a little oil |
| Meringue nests brown or crack | Oven too hot | Bake at 100°C (80°C fan) and cool in the oven |
| Chocolate cup breaks | Shell too thin | Add a second coat |
| Cones go soft | Damp air | Store airtight; re-crisp in a low oven |
Hot wafers, hot oven and allergens
Hot wafers burn fingers: a freshly baked wafer is much hotter than it looks and is very soft for only a few seconds. Use a clean, dry tea towel or oven gloves to hold it, wait about 20 seconds so it is cool enough to touch, then shape it quickly. Never press it with bare fingers straight from the pan, and keep children away from the hot iron or pan.Hot oven: use oven gloves, open the door away from your face, and don't leave the oven unattended while the meringue browns: it goes from golden to burnt in under a minute. Don't use a cracked or very cold glass dish in a hot oven.
Allergens: ice cream usually contains milk (cream, condensed milk), and often egg, nuts, peanuts, soy (in some chocolate and cookies) and wheat (cookies and cones). Check labels, and never serve a nut-containing ice cream to someone with a nut allergy without telling them. Coconut cream or oat cream can replace dairy cream in some recipes, but the texture changes.
Checkpoint: can you do this now?
- I can make a chocolate shell and a meringue nest.
- I can bake a wafer thin and golden.
- I shape wafers within 20 seconds, using a tea towel.
- I store cones and cups airtight and fill them last.
- I keep children away from the hot iron and pan.
Next chapter
Cooking Skills: Ice Cream 2, chapter 7 is Shakes, Floats and Frozen Drinks: ice cream you can drink.