Cannoli is one of the most popular Italian desserts in every city. If made with the right ingredients and proper measures, this tubular pastry can satisfy all your sweet cravings and bring the taste of Italy to your fingertips. If you have been looking for a dessert recipe for a special occasion at home, this is a great option to consider.

If you haven’t tasted cannoli before, you should check out an authentic Italian pastry shop or cafe such as Brunetti Cafe to experience the heavenly flavours of the freshly baked dessert. While it is difficult to replicate the exact flavours and texture of an authentic cannoli at home, it is not impossible.

The butter and white wine make the cannoli shell extremely tender and crispy. The cream inside is thick and sweet, with hints of cinnamon and vanilla. Preparing this dessert involves two major steps: making the shells and filling them. Now, let’s learn how to make the perfect cannoli at home.

Ingredients Required

To make cannoli at home, you need the following ingredients:

For Cannoli Shells:

• 2 cups of all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar
• ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon of kosher salt
• ¼ teaspoon of baking soda
• ⅓ cup dry of Marsala or white wine
• 2 tablespoons of cold unsalted butter (cut into small pieces)
• Vegetable oil
• 1 large egg yolk

For Filling:

• 2 ½  cups of ricotta cheese
• ½ teaspoon of orange zest
• ¾ cup powdered sugar; will need more for dusting
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla extract
• ⅓ cup grated bittersweet chocolate (about 1 ½ ounces); additional chocolate for cannoli ends
• ¼ teaspoon of almond extract

The portion size of cannoli made from these ingredients will be sufficient for 12 people. If you follow all the instructions correctly, the recipe you are about to read will take around 2 hours and 30 minutes to complete.

Instructions

Step 1: Make Dough for the Cannoli Shells

Get your food processor and add the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon. Use the pulse function 5 to 6 times until the ingredients are combined. Now add the butter and pulse again 3 to 4 times until thoroughly combined. Add the Marsala and egg yolk to the mix and process until the dough can be gently pressed into a ball. Put the dough on a piece of plastic wrap and shape it into a flat disc. Let it stand at room temperature for an hour.

Step 2: Prepare the Oven

Pour the oil to a depth of 2 inches into a large Dutch oven. Heat it on medium to 350°F.

Step 3: Roll the Dough to Make Circles

While the oven is heating, roll half of the dough into a thin circle. Do not forget to lightly flour the surface before rolling the dough on it. Cut the dough with a 3 ½-inch round cutter. Reroll the dough scraps once and cut as many circles as possible. You can discard any remaining dough scraps. Repeat the same process with the remaining half of the dough.

Step 4: Create the Shells

Take the dough circles and wrap one around the cannoli tubes. You will have to lightly moisten one edge of the circle with water and then press the edges together so that they firmly seal. If these dough circles are not properly sealed, they will open during frying. Fry the dough and cannoli tubes in the hot oil until they turn golden brown. It generally takes about 45 seconds. Carefully remove them from the hot oil once done using tongs. You will have to remove the tubes from the shells. Place the shells on a paper towel-lined baking sheet to help drain the oil. You can then put them on a wire rack to cool off.

Step 5: Create the Filling

Start by draining the ricotta in a fine wire mesh strainer for about half an hour. Then, add ¾ cups of powdered sugar, vanilla, orange zest, and almond extract to the drained ricotta in a bowl. Keep stirring until the mixture becomes smooth. Lastly, stir in the chocolate.

Step 6: Fill the Shells with Ricotta Mixture

Fill the ricotta mixture into a pastry bag using a spoon. Make sure the bag is fitted with a ¼-inch round tip. Then, take each cannoli shell and pipe the ricotta mixture into it. Arrange them on a platter and dust them with powdered sugar before serving.

Tips to Perfect Your Homemade Cannoli

While introducing new dishes to your family, you want them to be perfect. Even though cannoli-making can be a complex task, you may be able to get close to perfection with the tips below:

Thicken the Cannoli Filling

One of the most crucial aspects of making cannoli is getting the consistency of the filling right. Once you drain the ricotta by using a strainer, let it sit in the refrigerator for at least an hour (preferably 2 hours). How much liquid drains out will depend on the ricotta quality. Better-quality ricotta will drain less liquid. Also, you must let the filling chill in the refrigerator until the cannoli are ready to serve.

Fry Cannoli Ahead of Time

For most fried items, it is recommended to serve hot. Cannoli is an exception to that rule. You can fry them up the day before serving if you want. Just make sure the shells are cooled completely before storing them in an airtight container. That way, they will hold their crispness. Even if you want to fry the shells right before serving, you can make your dough early and keep it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

How to Make the Cannoli Shells Crispy?

While the recipe already gives you the answer, you can take some additional measures to ensure your cannoli shells are extra crispy. Here’s what you can do.

• Make sure the butter is extra cold while you mix it to make the dough. The cold butter will give your shells layers, ensuring they are crispy and flaky.
• The frying oil should be heated to 350°F. The right temperature is crucial. At lower temperatures, the shells will take longer to fry and soak up more oil. If the oil temperature is too high, it will burn the outside of the shells.
• Once you have made the dough, let it chill until the butter is nice and cold again before you roll it out. One hour in the refrigerator is enough.
• Moisture and thinness of the dough are important. Roll the dough to ⅛“ thin. However, if you feel it is not thin enough, you can roll it further to make it thinner. The dough usually bounces back to slightly thicker after cutting into circles.
• After you have fried the cannoli shells, you should pipe the filling just before serving. As mentioned earlier, leaving the filling inside the shells for too long will get soggy.

Wrapping Up

Making cannoli at home can be a fun experience. And if you have a sweet tooth or someone in the family who strongly likes well-made desserts, you will end up using this recipe more often than you think. While it is difficult to match the perfection of a well-trained Italian pastry chef while making cannoli at home, regular practice can do wonders.

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