Yummy Sicilian Cannoli

Cannoli are Sicilian pastry desserts. They consist of tube-shaped shells of fried pastry dough, filled with sweet , creamy filling usually with ricotta cheese or Mascarpone cheese. Sometimes cannoli can be dipped in chocolate. Scrumptious!

• pinch salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp butter
• 150 g flour
• dry white wine
• 250 g fresh ricotta
• 2 tbsp chopped bitter chocolate
• 1 tsp cocoa
• 1 tbsp orange essence
• crushed pistachio nuts
• 1 tsp coffee powder
• 2 tbsp candied orange and citron
• almond oil
• peanut oil
• yolk

Method

1. To make the pastry case place the flour, cocoa, coffee powder, a pinch of salt and the sugar on a pastry board or work surface and mix.
2.  Form a well and work in the smoothed butter and enough wine to make a firm dough. Form a ball wrap in cling film and refrigerate for an hour.
3. Dice the candied fruit and the chocolate. Sieve the ricotta and then whisk in the icing sugar, the orange essence and then add the candied peel and chocolate dice. Refrigerate.

1. Roll out the pastry and using a round 9'/18cm pastry cutter, cut 18 disks, kneading the dough each time.
2. Stretch each disk out into an oval, brush with almond oil and roll around the bamboo or tin tubes. Brush with a little egg yolk where they overlap and press down to make them stick properly. Lift the ends of the pastry slightly curling them back - makes them easier to remove.
3. Heat the peanut oil in the frying pan and deep fry the cannoli, two at a time. When they are golden brown remove them and drain on kitchen paper. As soon as they cool enough to be able to hold them in your fingers, remove them from the tubes, oil the tubes again and wrap them in more pastry to fry some more.
4. Only fill the cannoli when you are ready to eat them or they go soggy. They keep in a biscuit tin for a few days. Decorate the ends with a little crushed pistachio nut, giving the typical green of so many Sicilian desserts.

(Source: italian cook.ca)

(Image source: ilprincipehotel.com/eng/events/Evento6/cannoli.jpg)