Cannoli is a traditional Italian dessert, however, Italians enjoy it at any time of the day, including breakfast. The ingredients are simple, the preparation requires a little mastery and experience with doughs, but the result will reward you.

What you will need:

For the dough:

  • 1.5 tablespoons of powdered sugar
  • 1 & ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter
  • 1/3 white wine
  • 1 large egg

For the filling:

  • 500 g ricotta
  • 200 g of mascarpone
  • 6 tablespoons of powdered sugar
  • Zest of 2 lemons
  • 2 liters of sunflower oil
  • ½ cup pistachios – chopped
  • powdered sugar

How to make it:

  1. In a mixer, mix the flour, sugar and salt. Add the butter and continue beating until well combined. Add the wine and the egg. Mix well, you may need to add a drop of extra wine to get a soft dough.
  2. Form into a nice round ball. Cover with cling film and refrigerate for half an hour.
  3. Mix the filling ingredients in a blender. Put it in a bag and leave it in the fridge.
  4. Cut the dough in half. Sprinkle a little extra flour on a clean surface to work the dough. With a rolling pin, roll out half of the dough to a thickness of about 2 mm.
  5. With a 10 cm cutter, cut the dough into round pieces. Place the pieces on a lined tray and use non-stick paper to prevent them from sticking together.
  6. Using the cannoli molds, fold the dough and keep in mind that you want the longest edge to be slightly smaller than the cannoli mold, not to stick out. Using a pastry brush, brush 1/3 of the longer edge with the egg white, then press the edge to adhere.
  7. In a large pot, preheat the sunflower oil to 180 degrees. Carefully drop the cannoli into the oil and fry until golden brown and crispy. This should only take a few minutes. Do it in batches and be careful not to overcrowd the pot each time. Also watch the temperature so the oil doesn’t get too hot and burn the cannoli.
  8. Once cooked, use metal tongs and transfer to a paper-lined surface to absorb excess oil.
  9. Allow the cannoli to cool thoroughly and then gently tap the top of the pan with a knife to release the cannoli from the pan.
  10. Fill the cannoli with the ricotta mixture, then dip one end into the crushed pistachios. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and enjoy.