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We love cannoli; can’t get enough of them.
Although we’re rarely up for making the pastry tubes, we do relish a dish of “deconstructed cannoli”: the cream filling with a cookie on the side.
A bonus with cannoli cream is that you can substitute your sweetener of choice for the sugar. When we’re dieting, we treat ourselves to low-fat ricotta cannoli cream with Splenda (and of course, the mini chips).
We adapted this recipe from BelGioioso, a Wisconsin maker of classic Italian cheeses.
And buy the way, in addition to cookies, you can buy cannoli chips (photo #4).
The recipe follows, as well as recipes for savory versions! Also > below: What exactly is ricotta cheese?
But first:
> The year’s 15+ pastry holidays.
> The history and different types of pie and pastry: a photo glossary.
> National Cannoli Day is celebrated on June 16th, and September is National Cannoli Month.
> The history of cannoli.
> The history of ricotta.
RECIPE #1: DECONSTRUCTED CANNOLI
Ingredients For 4-6 Servings
16 ounces ricotta cheese
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons semi-sweet mini chocolate chips or shaved chocolate
Optional: 1/2 to 1 tablespoon orange zest, to taste
Golden Cannoli Chips (here’s more about them
And/Or Other Dippers
Thin cookies: cookie thins (e.g. Anna’s Swedish Thins), lace cookies, gaufrettes, Moravian cookies, rolled wafer cookies, waffle cookies
More dippers: broken waffle cones, cannoli shell pieces, graham crackers, ladyfingers, pizzelles, strawberries, vanilla wafers
Garnish: mint sprigs and/or raspberries
Variation: Substitute chopped candied fruits or pistachio nuts for the chocolate chips.
Preparation
1. COMBINE the ricotta and sugar until well blended. Stir in the chocolate.
2. COVER and refrigerate the mixture for at least 30 minutes before serving.
3. SCOOP a ball of cannoli cream onto a dessert plate. Garnish with a cookie and a sprig of mint and/or raspberries.
RECIPE #2: SAVORY DECONSTRUCTED CANNOLI
Turn the cannoli dip into cocktail party or appetizer fare by making a savory ricotta dip served with fancy crackers.
You can also use these to make standard cannoli in the same pastry tubes that are sold for sweet cannoli.
Cheese Fillings
Ricotta & Herbs: Blend ricotta with chives, parsley, dill, and black pepper.
Goat Cheese & Honey: Blend softened chèvre with thyme or rosemary and a touch of honey—for balance rather than for sweetness.
Blue Cheese & Walnut: Blend creamy gorgonzola dolce with mascarpone and chopped, toasted walnuts or pecans.
Meat & Seafood Fillings
Crab, Lobster, or Shrimp Salad: Bind the seafood salad with crème fraîche instead of mayonnaise, plus chives, dill, or tarragon, and a touch of grated lemon.
Prosciutto & Ricotta: Combine whipped ricotta with finely diced prosciutto, some lemon zest, and herb(s)— basil, mint, parsley, rosemary, or thyme.
Smoked Salmon & Cream Cheese: Combine whipped cream cheese with finely diced smoked salmon, capers, and fresh dill.
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[1]Deconstructed cannoli: Serve the ricotta cream with a cookie on the side (photos #1 and #2 © BelGioioso).
[2] Cannoli cream is simply sweetened ricotta cheese.
[3] A classic cannoli with chocolate chips (photo © Gerardo’s Italian Bakery.
[4] Cannoli chips with cannoli filling as a dip (photo © Golden Cannoli).
[5] Perfect for dipping, Golden Cannoli transforms crispy, crunchy cannoli shells into chip form, ready to scoop. You can also use them for fruit dips, dessert nachos, or right out of the bag (photo © Golden Cannoli).
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Vegetable & Herb Fillings
Roasted Red Pepper & Feta: Combine puréed roasted peppers (pimentos) with whipped feta and dill or oregano.
Spinach & Artichoke: Turn the classic dip into cannoli filling with chopped spinach, artichokes, and Parmesan cheese.
Sundried Tomato & Basil Pesto: Blend mascarpone or ricotta cheese with pesto and minced sun-dried tomatoes.
International-Inspired Fillings
Mediterranean: Fill with hummus or baba ganoush, blended with toasted sesame seeds or za’atar.
Mexican: – Refried beans whipped with queso fresco, topped with pickled jalapeños.
Indian: Blend paneer with yogurt, cilantro, cumin, and chili seasoning (ideally, Kashmiri red chili powder or smoked chili powder/paprika.
Finishing Touches
Garnish the shell edges in toasted sesame seeds, crushed pistachios, or crushed Parmesan crisps.
Pipe a different flavor into each side (e.g., ricotta & spinach on one side, sun-dried tomato on the other).
Serve with a dipping sauce: balsamic reduction, marinara, pesto, romesco, or whatever you want to pair with the flavor(s) you’ve chosen.
WHAT IS RICOTTA
Ricotta is a fresh (unaged) cow’s milk cheese that’s used extensively in Italian cooking. It’s soft and spreadable like cottage cheese.
Technically, ricotta isn’t cheese at all, but a by-product of the cheese-making process. The name “ricotta” means “recooked” in Italian (from the Latin recoctus).
Ricotta is been made from the whey left over from making other cheeses. After the curds are coagulated from the milk with rennet, the whey is drained off and the curds are pressed into cheese.
What to do with all the leftover whey had long been a concern for cheese makers. Many simply fed it to their pigs, a practice that continues today. That’s right: The whey drained from making the “king of cheeses,” Parmigiano-Reggiano, is used to feed the pigs that become Parma ham (prosciutto).
MORE WAYS USE RICOTTA
Ricotta breakfast recipes
Recipes for lunch, dinner and dessert
Recipe for homemade ricotta
Ricotta and honey for breakfast, dessert or snacking
What is ricotta salata
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