Cannoli recipe from the kitchen of SicilianFoodLovers

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• on febbraio 13, 2013
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Cannoli Recipe from the kitchen of SicilianFood Lovers
Yummy … you need the authentic CANNOLI recipe – “There are several secrets for making authentic Sicilian cannoli” (my grandmother was used to say!)
“Use fresh ricotta made from sheep’s milk” – ricotta goes off very quickly, so buy only the freshest cheese and make your recipe immediately
“cannoli should be served and eaten the same day” – the shells will go soft the next day, and though maintaining their delicious flavour, they’ll lose that contrast between the crunch of the shells and the softness of the ricotta
“use some drops of cherry liqueur for the filling” and … more!

Ingredients for Sicilian Cannoli (serves about 20 pcs cannoli)

Cannoli Shells – 400 grams of flour, 50 grams of granulated sugar, a pinch of salt, a pinch of baking soda, ¼ glass of wine vinegar (about 50 cl), 2 eggs, vanilla flavor, olive for frying (you know, we use olive of oil even for frying!)
Cannoli Filling – 1 kilogram of local sheep’s milk ricotta (fresh ricotta may not be available during summer months), 500 grams of granulated sugar, 125 grams of dark chocolate chips, a pinch of powdered cinnamon, Sicilian candied orange peels (one per cannolo) or Sicilian pistachios, cherry liqueur
Make cannoli shells first – In a bowl mix eggs and sugar first. After becoming a cream, add salt, baking soda, vanilla, vinegard and flour spoon after spoon. Go on untill all ingredients are mixed well. The mixture has to become consistent
Make a ball, wrap it with plastic wrap and set aside to rest in the refrigerator for about 1-2 hours
When ready, use a rolling pin (or a pasta machine) and roll into a thin sheet of about 2 millimeters or so and cut out circles of about 10 cm in diameters (you can use a small round bowl). Place cannoli tube across circles and roll. Press the center together gently. Be sure the edges are well sealed because they tend to pop open when frying. You can use an egg white to seal
Heat oil for deep frying. When oil boils, immerse the dough-covered tubes. Fry only 2-3 at a time. Cook until golden brown. Remove being careful that hot oil spills from the centers of the tubes. Set aside to cool and rest on paper towels to absorb any excess of oil. When cooled, remove shells from tubes

Now prepare the filling…by using the authentic method and secrets!
The first secret for a great ricotta cream is to combine the ricotta with the sugar in a bowl the night before by using a fork. You do not need the mixer at this step. Let the bowl in the fridge (when you remove the ricotta cheese from its container be sure to drain any excess water it may have). The day after you can work on the cream
Mix well the ricotta and the sugar. If you have time, pass it to a sieve! This makes another “difference”. It makes the cream a “silk”. Then add the cinnamon, a tablespoon of cherry liqueur, some black chocolate (would you like to know another secret? Use a big cube of chocolate and cut it by using a knife so to obtain pieces of different dimensions and some powder, too
Let the cream rest from 1 to 2 hours in the fridge
You can fill the cannoli in two ways, with a teaspoon or with a pastry bag. If you’re using a teaspoon make sure you fill all parts of the shell

Once the shells are filled, decorate with the candied orange peels, one piece for each side of the cannolo. An alternative decoration is by entirely covering one end of each cannolo with crushed pistachios
Place cannoli on a serving dish and dust with icing sugar and cinnamon