Ingredients
| 250g Italian 00 flour, plus extra for dusting | |
| 20g caster sugar | |
| large pinch of bicarbonate of soda/baking soda | |
| 1 teaspoon cocoa powder | |
| pinch of salt | |
| 40g unsalted butter | |
| 1 large egg yolk | |
| 30ml dry Marsala | |
| 1 egg white, to seal | |
| 1 litre sunflower oil | |
| icing sugar, for dusting | |
| FILLING | |
| 150ml double cream | |
| 300g strained ricotta | |
| 75g caster sugar | |
| 2 teaspoons vanilla extract | |
| grated zest of 1 lemon | |
| ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon | |
| OPTIONAL DECORATIONS | |
| 2 teaspoons mini chocolate chips | |
| 2 tablespoons chopped pistachios | |
| 2 tablespoons finely chopped candied orange peel |
The literal meaning of cannoli is ‘small tube’ and the tiny pastry is also associated with Siciliana Carnevale as a fertility symbol. I’ve really tried my hardest with this recipe to deliver the ultimate cannoli and made many tweaks along the way. I’ve decided to make a larger number here, so you only fry once, and they will keep well in an airtight box. If they are not crisp enough, they can be popped in a hot oven for 10 minutes to get the desired crispiness. We all love cannoli so much and often have them for breakfast in Sicily. They can even be made as a sweet canapé for a party.
View the recipe collection here
Instructions
| 1. | Mix all the dry ingredients together, add the butter and rub into the flour mixture until it resembles breadcrumbs. |
| 2. | Add the egg yolk and Marsala and mix well until smooth, adding a little more flour if the mixture is too wet. |
| 3. | Leave the dough covered in the fridge for 1 hour while you make the filling. |
| 4. | For the filling, whip the cream and add the strained ricotta, sugar, vanilla, lemon zest and cinnamon. |
| 5. | On a flour-dusted surface, roll out the dough to about 2mm thin (it is very important to roll as thinly as you can), then use a 10½cm cookie cutter to cut out 28 circles. |
| 6. | Wrap each circle around a cannoli mould, using the egg white to seal. |
| 7. | Heat the oil in a deep saucepan or deep-fat fryer to 180°C. |
| 8. | Working in batches, fry the dough wrapped around the cannoli moulds for 1 minute on each side until golden. |
| 9. | Drain on kitchen paper and repeat for all of the cannoli. |
| 10. | Spoon the filling into a piping bag and pipe into each cannoli. |
| 11. | Press the chocolate chips, pistachios or candied peel to the ends of the mixture, if liked. Dust with icing sugar, dive in and enjoy. |
| 12. | When they are filled, they become a little soggy so they should be eaten as quickly as possible (and certainly within 1–2 hours). |
This is an extract from
Dolci Italiani by Ursula
Ferrigno, published by
Ryland Peters & Small.
Photography by Clare
Winfield © Ryland
Peters & Small, NZ
agent bookreps.co.nz.