I really hate deep frying anything. And so have never made cannoli. I have nothing against them in concept, though I am not totally sure I have ever eaten any. But if they could be made in tiny mini muffin tins, then they could be baked. Aha!
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| Cannoli Cups |
Sill waffling, I looked at recipes, seeing what constitutes cannoli dough. And then, wondering if the dough was made and set it into mini muffin tins, would it shrink? So finally I got down to creating a recipe. As usual, I read countless recipes online. I looked for what constituted true cannoli dough. Ideas, ideas and more ideas. Once I created a recipe plan that sounded good, I made the dough one evening just before dinner. It went into the fridge to chill while we ate dinner, and after dinner I got it out and set about testing.
My first piece of dough was rolled out as thinly as I could get it, and believe me, it tends to spring back, so it needs to be thin. I cut out circles with a three-inch biscuit cutter and set two little discs of dough into two wells (sprayed with nonstick spray, just in case) of my mini muffin tin. I baked them, primarily to see how they would fare. Maybe if they shrunk too much I would have to turn the mini muffin tin upside down and lay the little disc of dough over the upturned well, rather than set it inside. But actually, they came out just fine, without too much shrinkage. So, I proceeded with the remainder of the dough.
Let me just say that these little cups, even before filling them with the ricotta cream, were just delightful. They had amazing flavors. I am tempted to make the dough and use it for crisp cookies!
One thing I had concern over was that the cups be strong enough to stand up to the wet, creamy filling. Granted, these cannot be filled too far in advance and still expect the cups to be crisp. But for a reasonable amount of time, I hoped they would hold up. And they did.
Okay, so some of these "constants" sounded good. Others, not as much.
Marsala Wine and Substitutes
One of my first stumbling blocks was the use of Marsala wine. I love wine. But the only time I tasted Marsala was a very long time ago, and to me it tasted like medicine. Granted, it may have been a cheap version of Marsala, but I have a hard time thinking of going out to buy a bottle just to use 2 tablespoons worth in cannoli dough. Instead, I went Googling to see what would be a good substitute for Marsala. There were many suggestions:
I opted to use cocoa and cinnamon, plus the addition of a little coffee powder. I like Starbuck's "Via" instant coffee, both for flavor and ease of dissolving. I used Madeira wine and white wine vinegar and the obligatory egg. And I used lard.
Okay, I had a recipe. And I also had other ideas. Seeing photos of cannoli online, some had ends dipped in chocolate. Some had ends dipped in chocolate and chopped nuts. Some had no chocolate dipped ends, but had little mini chocolate chips sprinkled onto the filling.
I decided that to make my little cannoli cups attractive, I would melt some chocolate and dip the rims in the melted chocolate. I also decided to chop some unsalted pistachios and dip half of the chocolate dipped rims into the nuts.
I cannot believe that one teaspoon of liquid would make the filling too runny. Maybe other brands are more moist, but my container of Sargento was pretty good, as is.
I did use a bit more mascarpone to ricotta ratio than called for in any recipe I read. I love mascarpone. The ricotta and mascarpone mixed together with a little confectioners' sugar was absolutely perfect and made the best little cannoli cups imaginable.
Makes about 50 to 60 cups
DOUGH:
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon coffee powder
¼ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons lard
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) white vinegar
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) Marsala, Madeira or Pinot Noir wine
1 large egg, whisked to mix
TO ADORN:
½ cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted
⅓ cup chopped unsweetened pistachios
FILLING:
16 ounces full fat ricotta cheese, drained at least 3 - 5 hours
8 ounces mascarpone cheese
¾ cup confectioners' sugar
MAKE THE DOUGH: In a mixing bowl, combine the first six dry ingredients and stir to combine. Cut in the lard, and once combined, lift the mixture and slide it between the palms, making flaky looking bits in the bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the egg with the vinegar and wine of choice. Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients and toss to combine, as for pie dough. Once it begins to hold together, form a ball, flatted, wrap tightly and chill for at least an hour or up to overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray the wells of mini muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Using about half the dough at a time, on a floured surface, roll the dough as thinly as possible. Using a 3-inch cutter, cut little rounds of dough and set them into the wells of the prepared mini muffin tin, pressing down into the edges. Bake the cups for about 10 to 12 minutes, until crisp.
TO ADORN: While the cups bake, set the chocolate chips in a wide bowl and microwave on a few short bursts of 20 to 25 seconds, until they melt. Set the chopped nuts in another wide bowl. Once baked, remove the cannoli cups from the pan and cool them only until of a temperature to handle, one to two minutes. Invert one cup into the melted chocolate, set upright on a rack to finish cooling. Repeat with the remainder. For some of these, after dipping the rims in chocolate, dip also in the nuts. Set them aside to cool and harden.
MAKE AND FILL: Set the ricotta and mascarpone cheeses on the counter for an hour to make them easier to mix. Spoon both cheeses into a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Beating is not necessary. Once the cheese are combined, add the confectioners' sugar and stir thoroughly.
The cups can be filled with small spoons. Sprinkle on mini chocolate chips or more chopped nuts, if desired. If you have piping bags and tips, I used #823 open star tip from Ateco. Fill the piping bag and pipe like ice cream in cone.
NOTE: Depending on how many cups you manage from the recipe, and how much you fill the cups, you may need a slightly larger amount of the filling.
My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.
My first piece of dough was rolled out as thinly as I could get it, and believe me, it tends to spring back, so it needs to be thin. I cut out circles with a three-inch biscuit cutter and set two little discs of dough into two wells (sprayed with nonstick spray, just in case) of my mini muffin tin. I baked them, primarily to see how they would fare. Maybe if they shrunk too much I would have to turn the mini muffin tin upside down and lay the little disc of dough over the upturned well, rather than set it inside. But actually, they came out just fine, without too much shrinkage. So, I proceeded with the remainder of the dough.
Let me just say that these little cups, even before filling them with the ricotta cream, were just delightful. They had amazing flavors. I am tempted to make the dough and use it for crisp cookies!
One thing I had concern over was that the cups be strong enough to stand up to the wet, creamy filling. Granted, these cannot be filled too far in advance and still expect the cups to be crisp. But for a reasonable amount of time, I hoped they would hold up. And they did.
What Makes Cannoli Dough?
When looking through recipes, it appeared there were a few "constants" in making cannoli dough.- All the recipes used cinnamon.
- Most of the recipes used unsweetened cocoa powder.
- All recipes (that were true to the spirit of things) called for Marsala wine.
- Most recipes called for vinegar in addition to the wine.
- All the recipes I read used egg in the dough.
- Most recipes called for butter.
- One recipe said no true Sicilian grandmother would use butter, but instead would use lard both in the dough and for frying the cannoli.
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| Cannoli Cups |
Marsala Wine and Substitutes
One of my first stumbling blocks was the use of Marsala wine. I love wine. But the only time I tasted Marsala was a very long time ago, and to me it tasted like medicine. Granted, it may have been a cheap version of Marsala, but I have a hard time thinking of going out to buy a bottle just to use 2 tablespoons worth in cannoli dough. Instead, I went Googling to see what would be a good substitute for Marsala. There were many suggestions:- Use Sherry. Though Sherry has its own unique flavor profile, and is not like Marsala at all, it can be used.
- Use a red wine such as Pinot Noir.
- Combine white grape juice with a tablespoon of brandy.
- Use Madeira, which has a very similar flavor profile to Marsala.
I opted to use cocoa and cinnamon, plus the addition of a little coffee powder. I like Starbuck's "Via" instant coffee, both for flavor and ease of dissolving. I used Madeira wine and white wine vinegar and the obligatory egg. And I used lard.
What Next? Embellishments
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| The Dough - Before Baking, fitting in mini muffin tins - Baked and Rimmed |
I decided that to make my little cannoli cups attractive, I would melt some chocolate and dip the rims in the melted chocolate. I also decided to chop some unsalted pistachios and dip half of the chocolate dipped rims into the nuts.
And the Final Touch: the Filling
Every recipe I read online said that the filling was ricotta. Some mixed Mascarpone cheese with the ricotta. Most said that the ricotta had to be drained, preferably 3 to 5 hours, if not more, or else the filling would be too runny. I bought Sargento brand full fat ricotta. I set it into a strainer, as I would do for yogurt. It went into the fridge overnight. In the morning I had just about a whole teaspoon of liquid that had seeped out.I cannot believe that one teaspoon of liquid would make the filling too runny. Maybe other brands are more moist, but my container of Sargento was pretty good, as is.
I did use a bit more mascarpone to ricotta ratio than called for in any recipe I read. I love mascarpone. The ricotta and mascarpone mixed together with a little confectioners' sugar was absolutely perfect and made the best little cannoli cups imaginable.
 |
| Cannoli Cups |
Cannoli Cups
Makes about 50 to 60 cups
DOUGH:
1¾ cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons confectioners' sugar
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon coffee powder
¼ teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons lard
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) white vinegar
1 ounce (2 tablespoons) Marsala, Madeira or Pinot Noir wine
1 large egg, whisked to mix
TO ADORN:
½ cup semisweet chocolate chips, melted
⅓ cup chopped unsweetened pistachios
FILLING:
16 ounces full fat ricotta cheese, drained at least 3 - 5 hours
8 ounces mascarpone cheese
¾ cup confectioners' sugar
MAKE THE DOUGH: In a mixing bowl, combine the first six dry ingredients and stir to combine. Cut in the lard, and once combined, lift the mixture and slide it between the palms, making flaky looking bits in the bowl. In a separate bowl, mix together the egg with the vinegar and wine of choice. Pour this mixture into the dry ingredients and toss to combine, as for pie dough. Once it begins to hold together, form a ball, flatted, wrap tightly and chill for at least an hour or up to overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray the wells of mini muffin tins with nonstick cooking spray. Using about half the dough at a time, on a floured surface, roll the dough as thinly as possible. Using a 3-inch cutter, cut little rounds of dough and set them into the wells of the prepared mini muffin tin, pressing down into the edges. Bake the cups for about 10 to 12 minutes, until crisp.
TO ADORN: While the cups bake, set the chocolate chips in a wide bowl and microwave on a few short bursts of 20 to 25 seconds, until they melt. Set the chopped nuts in another wide bowl. Once baked, remove the cannoli cups from the pan and cool them only until of a temperature to handle, one to two minutes. Invert one cup into the melted chocolate, set upright on a rack to finish cooling. Repeat with the remainder. For some of these, after dipping the rims in chocolate, dip also in the nuts. Set them aside to cool and harden.
MAKE AND FILL: Set the ricotta and mascarpone cheeses on the counter for an hour to make them easier to mix. Spoon both cheeses into a mixing bowl and stir to combine. Beating is not necessary. Once the cheese are combined, add the confectioners' sugar and stir thoroughly.
The cups can be filled with small spoons. Sprinkle on mini chocolate chips or more chopped nuts, if desired. If you have piping bags and tips, I used #823 open star tip from Ateco. Fill the piping bag and pipe like ice cream in cone.
NOTE: Depending on how many cups you manage from the recipe, and how much you fill the cups, you may need a slightly larger amount of the filling.
My passion is teaching people how to create a harmony of flavors with their cooking, and passing along my love and joy of food, both simple or exotic, plain or fancy. I continue my journey in ethnic and domestic cuisines, continuing my journey to explore diverse culinary experiences and hopefully to start you on a journey of your own. Join me also at A Harmony of Flavors on Facebook, and Pinterest.
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