Homemade Cannoli
Homemade cannoli are crisp fried shells filled with sweet ricotta cream and finished with chocolate chips or pistachios. This version uses a Marsala dough paired with vanilla ricotta filling and a hint of citrus from orange zest.
Servings: 8 to 12 cannolis
Equipment
- Cheesecloth or Cheesecloth Mesh Bag
- Pot Large or Dutch Oven
- Round Cookie Cutter 3-Inch
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 2 ⅓ Cups all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ Teaspoon salt
- 3 Tablespoons unsalted butter cold, diced
- 2 eggs separated
- ¼ Cup marsala wine
- 2 Tablespoons water
- vegetable oil or canola oil, for frying, enough for 2 to 3 Inches depth
For the Filling
- 2 Pounds whole milk ricotta cheese 32 Ounces, dried by cheesecloth or ricotta bag
- 2 Tablespoons heavy whipping cream
- 1 Cup powdered sugar
- ½ Teaspoon vanilla extract
- ¾ Cup mini chocolate chips
- ¼ Teaspoon orange zest optional
For Garnish
- ¼ Cup pistachios chopped
- powdered sugar
Instructions
Make the Dough
- In a food processor place the flour, sugar and salt, pulse a few times to combine. Add the cold cubed butter and pulse a few times until the mixture looks like coarse sand.
- Add the egg and marsala wine and 1 Tablespoon of the water, then pulse again until a dough begins to form, 1 to 2 minutes. It will start to form and come together the longer it’s pulsed.
- Place the dough onto a lightly floured silicone mat and press together.
- Knead the dough a few times until smooth, then separate into 2 large rounds, pressing to a 1-inch thickness.
- Wrap the disks in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
Make the Filling
- Place the ricotta cheese in the center of a piece of cheesecloth or ricotta strainer bag and squeeze it to remove as much moisture as possible.
- Put the drained ricotta cheese in a large mixing bowl, add the heavy cream, powdered sugar, vanilla, ground cinnamon and orange zest.
- Mix until everything is combined and smooth.
- Fold in ½ Cup of the mini chocolate chips.
- Divide the filling into 2 disposable frosting bags and seal each at the top.
- Refrigerate the filling until the shells are ready to fill.
Prepare the Shells
- In a small bowl, beat one egg mixed with the remaining 1 Tablespoon of water to use for sealing the cannoli shell. Set aside.
- Heat 2 to 3 inches of oil in a large pan or Dutch oven until 325°F, while you roll out and form the cannoli shells.
- Working on one disk at a time, place the dough on a work surface or silicone mat. Roll the dough out with a rolling pin until it is very thin, about ⅛-inch thick.
- Using a 3 ½ inch round cutter, cut the dough into disks. You should get 5 or 6 pieces cut from each half of the dough.
- Repeat with the other half of dough.
- Discard any scraps. Although dough scraps can be re-rolled once, additional rolling can make the shells tougher so I recommend not using them.
- Tip: If you can’t roll the dough into ⅛-inch thickness, get it at least to ½-inch then press out with a cutter, you can then roll that single cut piece to the thinness required, but not too much so the dough doesn’t hang over the sides of the cannoli form.
- Wrap each dough circle around a cannoli form and brush both ends with the beaten egg wash.
- Fold over and set aside to wrap the remaining shells.
Cook the Cannoli Shells
- Add the vegetable or canola oil to a heavy bottomed pot or cast iron pot and heat to 325°F.
- Carefully add each shell with the form into the preheated oil, 2 or 3 at a time, and fry until golden brown, 2 or 3 minutes. Adjust the burner temperature if needed, so the outside doesn’t cook faster than the inside of the shell.
- Using tongs, carefully remove the cooked shells from the oil and set on a paper towel lined tray or plate.
- Once slightly cooled, carefully slide the shell off the mold using a towel or another pair of tongs.
- Set the form aside to cool completely and repeat with all the remaining dough circles. Note: the recommended cannoli form pieces are cut down their center, making it easy to press in that cut area to help twist and release each cooked shell. Just make sure they’ve cooled before handling.
- Once the shells have cooled to room temperature (15 to 20 minutes), they’re ready to be filled. Note: Don’t fill the cannoli shells until you’re close to eating them, otherwise they may get too soft. The cooked shells can be refrigerated at this point until ready to fill.
- Trim off a large piece of the end of the first filling bag and squeeze the filling a shell - don’t be afraid to fill the entire shell, pulling the bag out once the shell is filled in the center.
- Turn the shell around and press a little more filling to seal the end.
- Continue filling each shell until all are filled.
- Dip the ends of each cannoli in the remaining mini chocolate chips or chopped pistachios.
- Dust with powdered sugar and serve.
Notes
Drain ricotta thoroughly: Removing excess moisture keeps the filling thick.
Roll dough thin: Thin dough fries into crisp shells.
Seal the edges well: Proper sealing keeps the shells from opening during frying.
Cool before filling: Filling hot shells can soften the pastry.
Roll dough thin: Thin dough fries into crisp shells.
Seal the edges well: Proper sealing keeps the shells from opening during frying.
Cool before filling: Filling hot shells can soften the pastry.
Nutrition
Calories: 585kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 27g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 117mg | Sodium: 271mg | Potassium: 225mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 30g | Vitamin A: 804IU | Vitamin C: 0.4mg | Calcium: 275mg | Iron: 3mg
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