Sicilian cannoli my simple recipe with guaranteed success. Today I want to tell you my simple recipe for preparing a dessert symbol of Sicilian pastry. Thin and crispy puff pastry shells strictly fried filled with an irresistible Ricotta Cream with chocolate and candied fruit. The preparation of the cannoli shells is a bit more time-consuming, but you can easily make them in advance and store them in a container for a few days. In fact, I recommend doing so. For the ricotta, I used the delicious sheep’s milk ricotta as per tradition, but you can also choose to use cow’s milk ricotta or a mix. The origin of this dessert is uncertain; it is attributed to cloistered nuns, or possibly has an Arab origin, or as a carnival-time dessert. However, whatever the truth, what we know for sure is that the cannoli is a dessert eaten at any time of the year, and with its shape and taste, it represents an excellence in Italian and Sicilian cuisine worldwide. Today, there are various versions of this dessert, though here I am sharing with you the original Sicilian cannoli recipe
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- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 20 Minutes
- Portions: For 14-16 Cannoli
- Cooking methods: Stovetop, Frying
- Cuisine: Italian
- Energy 204.22 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 25.50 (g) of which sugars 16.19 (g)
- Proteins 4.16 (g)
- Fat 9.77 (g) of which saturated 4.49 (g)of which unsaturated 4.97 (g)
- Fibers 1.46 (g)
- Sodium 48.67 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 85 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for Sicilian Cannoli
- 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsps sugar
- 1 3/4 oz lard
- 2 tbsps vinegar
- 3/8 cup white wine
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1 pinch salt
- 13 1/2 oz vegetable oil (for frying the cannoli)
- 500 g sheep's milk ricotta
- 9/10 cup sugar
- 2 1/8 oz candied fruit
- 4 1/4 oz dark chocolate
- as needed candied cherries
- 1 oz candied citron
- as needed powdered sugar
What you need to make the Cannoli
- Pasta Roller
- Pastry Cutter 10 cm in diameter
- Molds
How to Make Original Sicilian Cannoli
You can prepare the dough for the cannoli by hand or with the help of a mixer. In a bowl, mix the flour with a pinch of salt, sugar, and cinnamon. Add the lard and vinegar. Mix.
Add the white wine little by little in amounts sufficient to make a soft but not sticky dough. You may need a bit more than the 100 ml indicated in the recipe. Knead well. Form a ball, wrap it in plastic wrap, and let it rest in the fridge for about an hour.
To roll out the dough very thin, I recommend using a pasta roller machine. Divide the dough into small portions and roll it out first to a larger thickness and then gradually to a very thin thickness. I used the penultimate notch of the pasta machine.
From the sheets, cut out disks about 10 cm in diameter using a pastry cutter, or simply a small bowl. Wrap the dough disks around a cannoli mold. Simply brush with water at the seam to make the dough stick and press well. Prepare all the Cannoli Shells in the same way.
Heat plenty of vegetable oil in a small deep pan or pot. Dip a few cannoli at a time into the hot oil and let them brown well on all sides. Remove them and let them drain on paper towels. Once cooled, gently slide them off the molds with slight pressure.
The ricotta for the filling must be well-drained; if necessary, let it drain first in a sieve. Mix the ricotta with sugar well in a bowl. Add the dark chocolate and small pieces of candied fruit. Mix.
Now all you have to do is fill the Cannoli Shells with the ricotta cream. You can do this with the help of a piping bag or simply with a small spoon. Finish by adding a cherry and/or a strip of candied citron. Dust with plenty of powdered sugar.
See you tomorrow with a new recipe, hugs, Loredana
Loredana’s Tips
If you don’t like candied fruit, you can simply omit them
I recommend filling the cannoli no more than 2-3 hours before serving because the shell with ricotta tends to soften and will no longer be so crispy
In the dough, you can replace lard with butter
If you want to make slightly darker shells, you can add 1 tablespoon of cocoa powder to the dough
In the most classic Sicilian recipe, white wine is replaced with Marsala
Don’t miss also the recipe for my Ricotta Cake
