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Ingredients
- 1 cup all purpose flour, plus more for dusting dough and work surface
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons lard plus several cups for frying;
- may be replaced with vegetable shortening, exact amount will depend on size of your pot
- 2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
- 2 extra-large eggs
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 3 cups cannoli cream
- Powdered (10x) sugar for dusting cannolis
Details
Preparation
Step 1
Makes 10 cannolis.
Put the flour, granulated sugar, 2 tablespoons of the lard, vinegar, 1 egg, cinnamon, and salt into a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment and mix on low-medium speed until well combined, approximately 10 minutes. (There is no need to stop the motor to scrape the sides because this dough will pull together into a ball when it's ready.)
Remove the dough from the bowl, wrap it in plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes or up to 3 hours, to soften the dough and make it less elastic.
Lightly coat the dough with flour and roll it through a pasta machine set to the thickest setting (usually Number 1). If you do not have a pasta machine, use a rolling pin to roll the dough out as thinly as possible on a lightly floured surface to no more than 1/8-inch thick. Cut 5-inch-long ovals from the dough (see How To). Gather up the excess dough, knead it together, roll it out, and cut ovals again. You should have 10 ovals.
Wrap 1 oval lengthwise around a 6-inch-long wooden dowel with a diameter of 3/4-inch to 1-inch. Be very careful to wrap it loosely, leaving a little space between the dowel and the pastry dough so that, when fried, the inside will be cooked as well.
Beat the remaining egg in a small bowl and use a pastry brush to paint one end of the shell with the egg. Pull the egg-brushed end over the opposite end, and press them together, sealing the shell around the dowel.
Line a large plate or platter with paper towels.
Fill a wide, deep, heavy pot two-thirds full with lard and set over medium-high heat. Heat the lard to a temperature of 350°F to 375°F.
Carefully lower the dowel into the oil and let fry until golden-brown, turning it as it fries with a slotted spoon, approximately 10 minutes. Use the spoon to very carefully remove the dowel from the lard and transfer to the paper-towel lined plate to cool.
When the shell is cool enough to touch, approximately 10 minutes, pull the dowel out.
Repeat steps 8 and 9 until all shells have been fried and removed from the dowel. (The shells may be held in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 months; I urge you to not fill the cannoli more than 1 hour before serving them or they may become soggy.)
When ready to fill and serve the cannoli, put the pastry cream into a pastry bag fitted with the #7 plain tip. Pipe filling into each shell until it is filled and the cream sticks out both ends.
Dust the finished cannoli with powdered sugar and serve.
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