Serritella's Cannoli

By Foodiewife

This recipe comes from a friend whose Italian grandmother taught her how to make this delectable Italian dessert. Miss Kelly taught me how to make them, and I'm glad that she did. For those of you who aren't familiar with Cannoli, they are similar to working with a pie dough (only this recipe has eggs). A surprise ingredient, to me, was the red wine that is added to the dough. This gives the dough a rich color, but the alcohol taste of the wine disappears during the deep-frying.

The filling is a lightly sweet combination of ricotta cheese, whipped cream, mini chocolate chips and a pinch of cinnamon.

Thanks, Miss Kelly, for showing us Non-Italians how to enjoy Italian Cannoli!

Ingredients

• For the shells:
• 4 cups sifted all-purpose unbleached flour
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 Tablespoons butter, softened (or lard)
• 2 egg yolks, (reserve whites)
• 3/4 cup red wine
• Shortening (or oil) for frying
• For the filling:
• 4 cups whole milk ricotta cheese (low-fat ricotta is not recommended)
• 1 1/2 cups powdered sugar (to taste)
• 1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon citron (optional) or lemon zest
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/4 cup semisweet mini chocolate chips
• Pistachios, finely chopped (for garnish)
• Maraschino cherries (drained and cut in half, garnish) and squeezed dry with paper towels
• Powdered sugar (garnish)
• Equipment needed:
• Cannoli forms (easily found at Amazon.com)
• A glass , or a dough cutter, 3-4 inches in diameter
• Deep fryer, or a heavy skillet
• Cheesecloth
• Piping bag or a zip-log bag with a hole cut on the edge

Details

Preparation time 120mins
Cooking time 123mins
Adapted from foodiewife-kitchen.blogspot.com

Preparation

Step 1

For the shells:

Sift together dry ingredients of flour, sugar, cinnamon and salt.

Cut in the butter (or lard) with a pastry cutter, or two forks.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
Whisk the eggs and add to the middle of the well.
Add some of the wine, and begin combine the liquid to the dry-- a little at a time, until the dough clings together. (The idea is to incorporate the wet with the dry, but not to overwork the dough.)

Form a ball with the dough an let stand for 30 minutes.

To make the shells:
Roll the dough almost paper thin (if they are too thick they will not crisp up to the proper texture) on a well-floured surface.

If using a glass, use the rim to make circle imprints and cut out with a paring knife.

Roll each circle of dough around a metal cannoli tube, overlapping the ends.

Apply a small amount of egg white to help seal the edges; press to seal, flaring out the edges slightly.

Fry one or two at a time in hot, melted shortening (about 360F) for approximately 1 minute, turning to brown on all sides.

Carefully lift the cannoli from the hot grease (using tongs) and set onto paper towels, seam side down.

Allow to cool a minute or two before trying to remove the shell from the cannoli tube.

NOTE: Shells can be made ahead of time, and stored in an airtight container and made several days prior to filling them. They can also be frozen for up to 60 days.

For the filling:
Fill the cheesecloth with the ricotta (or in a fine mesh sieve) to remove any excess water.
TIP: If you have a fine mesh strainer, set it over a bowl and place into the refrigerator for at least an hour, or overnight.

Combine the drained ricotta cheese, powdered sugar, cinnamon and vanilla extract in a blender until smooth.

Gently fold in the mini chocolate chips.

Whip 1 cup of heavy whipping cream to form stiff peaks, and gently fold into the mixture.

Chill the filling for at least 30 minutes, before piping into cooled cannoli shells.
TIP: Pipe filling through one end, and rotate the cannoli. Pipe more filling on the other end.

For the garnish:
Roll the ends of the cannoli in the finely chopped pistachios.
Place one half of a maraschino cherry as a garnish on each side.
For a final presentation, sift a little bit of powdered sugar as a big Ta-DA!

Whipped cream and shaved chocolate can also be used to garnish the top.

Keep refrigerated until time of serving.