I cannoli I’m a dolce typical of Sicily, now known all over the world, together with cassata, iris, almond paste. It is possible to find them everywhere, all over the island, they are also served in restaurants as a dessert to be enjoyed in their original format or in miniature version. Obviously the ones that are eaten in Sicily are unbeatable, but today we offer you a recipe to try to make them at home.
Cannoli – Ingredients
- Ingredients for about 30 cannoli.
- Farina 00 260 g
- Sugar 20 g
- Cold refrigerator lard 30 g
- Bitter cocoa powder 5 g
- Salt up to 1 tsp
- Eggs 20 g
- White wine vinegar 10 g
- Marsala 60 g
For the stuffing:
- Sheep ricotta (drained for at least 1 night in the fridge) 1 kg
- Sugar 130 g
- Dark chocolate chips 80 g
To brush:
For frying:
To garnish:
- Candied cherries qb
- Powdered sugar to taste
- Chopped pistachios to taste
- Candied orange qb
Cannoli – Preparation
To prepare the cannoli, start with the wafer: in a bowl pour the flour, the sifted cocoa, the sugar, the salt, the cold lard from the refrigerator; take the egg and beat it lightly, then use 20 g to put it in the bowl with the other ingredients.
Then pour in the marsala and vinegar. Start kneading with your hands, then transfer to the surface and knead for about ten minutes until you get a homogeneous mixture. It will take some patience and energy as the mixture is quite dry.
Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest in the fridge for about 1 hour, then take it out of the fridge and leave it at room temperature for 30 minutes.
After this time, take the dough, divide it in half. Take one of the two halves, leaving the other well covered, and lightly flour both sides. Press well with your hands and then insert the piece between the rollers of the pasta machine. At first it might tear, don’t worry just recompose and repeat.
As soon as it is very compact, fold the two ends inwards and pass again between the rollers starting from the widest thickness. Repeat 3-4 times, if it should also be used by turning the dough in the opposite direction.
As soon as it is smoother, close the pastry again this time not making two folds but only one and pass it between the rollers 3-4 more times. At this point fold the dough again, this time on the short side and pass it again between the rollers. Gradually lower the numbering, then the thickness. If you notice that the dough is getting too long, divide it before proceeding. Continue to pull until you reach number 8 on the machine or the one that corresponds to a thickness of 0.5 mm on yours.
All these steps will serve to make the dough more dilated, so that bubbles form during cooking.
Once you have obtained the dough of the indicated thickness, you can divide it in half for convenience. Trim the edges and add them to the other half of the dough you still have aside. With a smooth blade pastry cutter, cut squares 10 × 10 cm, then take each square of dough in your hand, slide your thumbs from the center outwards to enlarge it slightly and delicately; in the middle place a steel cylinder so that it goes from corner to corner.
Wrap a flap of dough on the cylinder, brush the other flap with the remaining egg before joining it with the other. Form the first cannolo and continue like this with all the dough. It is important that the cannoli are left to dry in the air for a while before cooking.
Heat the oil until it reaches a temperature of 180 °. Start frying the cannoli one at a time, placing them on a skimmer and keeping them immersed for a few moments. This way they won’t touch the bottom of the pot and won’t burn. It will take less than 1 minute, turn them over and over. Drain the cannoli, using tongs and transfer them to a tray lined with kitchen paper.
Then let them cool before pulling out the cylinder; to do this it will be sufficient to press it slightly, the two metal sheets will tend to return. Then make a slight movement in the opposite direction to the closing direction of the cone and remove gently. At this point the shells of the cannoli are ready, keep them aside until they cool completely and in the meantime prepare the filling.
Sift the ricotta into a bowl, pour the sugar and work the mixture with a spatula.
Then add the chocolate chips and mix again. Transfer to a piping bag and use it to fill the cannoli. If you like it, garnish with chopped pistachios, candied orange peels or cherries and sprinkle with icing sugar before serving your cannoli.
Cannoli – Useful tips
We recommend filling the cannoli at the moment. The cream can be stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days. Cannoli shells can be stored at room temperature for 4-5 days, covered with a cloth.
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