Fruit Cornucopia Food

CORNUCOPIA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly spray a 17x14 inch (or lager) cookie sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
• Tear off a 30x18 inch sheet of heavy duty aluminum foil. Fold it in half to 18x15 inch. Roll diagonally to form a hollow cone, about 18 inches long with a diameter of 5 inches at the widest end (Cornucopia opening). Fasten end with clear tape. Stuff cone with crumpled regular foil until form is rigid. Bend tail of cone up then down at end. Spray outside of cone with non-stick cooking spray. Place on cookie sheet.
• Beat the egg with the water to make a glaze. Open and unroll the first can of breadstick dough on work surface. Separate breadsticks. Begin by wrapping one breadstick around tip of cone. Brush end of next breadstick with Glaze and press to attach to end of first breadstick. Continue spiral-wrapping cone, slightly overlapping dough until there are 3 breadsticks left.
• Pinch one end of the 3 breadsticks together, then braid. Brush bread around opening of cornucopia with glaze. Gently press on braid. Brush entire cornucopia with glaze.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 minutes or until bread is a rich brown. (If parts start to darken too much, cover them with pieces of foil.)
• Remove from oven and let cool completely on cookie sheet on a wire rack. Carefully remove foil when cool. (If freezing, leave foil in bread for support. Remove when thawed.)

CHOCOLATE CORNUCOPIA

Steps:

• To make tempered chocolate, chop the chocolate into pieces and place 3/4 of it in a small glass bowl in a microwave for 20 seconds exactly. Stir the chocolate and continue to microwave for 20 seconds at a time, stirring in between, until the chocolate is smooth and shiny. Add the remaining 1/4 of the chocolate and stir until smooth. The chocolate should register 87 to 89 degrees F on a candy thermometer.
• Secure the mold halves together with the bulldog clips.
• Place the tempered chocolate in a measuring cup and pour half of it into the mold. Swirl the chocolate around to make sure all areas are covered and no air bubbles are visible. Pour any excess chocolate back into the measuring cup. Place the mold in the refrigerator, right side up, standing on the bull dog clips as feet, and allow to harden for one minute.
• Repeat and process, and pour the rest of the tempered chocolate back in the mold and swirl it around to coat into an even layer, pouring any excess chocolate back into the measuring cup. Place the mold back in the refrigerator, right side up, until it hardens and looks opaque, about 10 minutes. (Do not leave the mold in the refrigerator longer than 10 minutes or the chocolate will crack.)
• Meanwhile, fill 3 acorn and/or leaf molds with the extra chocolate, smoothing the top with a palette knife. Refrigerate for about 10 minutes to harden.
• Unmold the cornucopia. Using the remaining chocolate (which by now will be thickened) "glue" the acorn and/or leaf molds to the edge of the cornucopia and allow to set for a few minutes. Fill the cornucopia with truffles, chocolate dipped cashews or chocolate dipped fruits.