Cannoli 18 Ways

I came into cannoli shells last week, both small and large, at 25 cents and 50 cents per box, respectively. There’s nothing wrong with them, the boxes aren’t dinged, nor are they even near their expiration date(s). I suppose the store was just clearing out stock of an item they may no longer carry. So did I ever stock up! Over the summer, I plan to dip some shells in chocolate and fill them with ice cream or sorbet.

But for now, I had ricotta on hand from last week, so cannoli was naturally our Sunday baking project. This recipe will fill a heckuvalot of mini shells, which is good because I have a heckuvalot on hand. This recipe can easily be halved, or doubled if you are baking for an army. And hey, I’m Italian, so I always make enough for an army anyway.

1 pound ricotta cheese, drained (about 2 cups)
Up to 1 cup confectioner’s sugar (I use a generous half; we don’t like them overly sweet)
The scraped contents of half a vanilla bean
Good pinch of fresh orange zest

Blend together all ingredients very thoroughly but gently. Add ingredients (see below) according to your tastes or needs. Spoon into a pastry bag fitted with a wide tip and chill, or chill in the bowl.

Spoon or pipe into prepared shells. I used a large, star tip [6B] on these. As usual, it was nearly impossible to pry it from my daughter’s little hands. Dust with powdered sugar and serve immediately. Refrigerate leftovers.

I like freshly made cannoli, so try to pipe filling into only what you’ll need. The filling will keep for up to a week in the pastry bag for future and/or other use.

Divide the filling in half or thirds if you want more than one kind on your dessert tray, or if you simply want to try some variations:

Chocolate chips. Tiny, mini-chips folded into the filling are pretty traditional, then sprinkled on the ends of the filled cannoli. I like to use good quality bittersweet chocolate shavings instead, and usually have a bar on hand. The shavings melt in your mouth.

Citron. My daughter likes this stuff, so I chop it fine and fold it through the filling. I’ll mainly do this during the holidays, when I tend to have those gelled cubes of red, yellow and green-dyed peels.

Orange Zest. You can go heavy on it if you like, keeping in mind that a little does go a long way. Mine this time were quite orangey, a nice surprise and refreshing variation on what can be overly sweet when store-bought.

Lemon Zest. Ditto. You can also add a tiny drop of yellow coloring to help identify the lemon cannoli in the bunch – a pretty touch for Easter.

Nutmeg. Blend a generous pinch of nutmeg and omit the citrus. Nutmeg and Italian just go together, sweet or savory.

Cocoa. Blend unsweetened cocoa powder into the filling for chocolate cannoli filling. Dust with powdered sugar and cocoa powder once filled.

Almonds. Fold in finely chopped, slivered toasted almonds and a touch of almond extract. Sprinkle with slivered almonds to garnish.

Pistachios. Ditto, and dye the filling green – a little dab’ll do you.

What to do with watery filling:

This happens. All is not lost. This is a happy mistake and an opportunity to experiment with a still-tasty filling, just one with a different consistency. Make any of the following and no one will suspect the cream was meant for any other use.

Make choux pastry puffs. Cut them in half, fill the bottom with your cannoli cream, top with a chocolate-coated upper half of the choux, then soak in a mixture of dark rum or amaretto and simple syrup.

Make mini-babas, cut them in half, fill with your cannoli cream, then drizzle the dark rum/simple syrup mixture over the entire batch for Babas au Rhum. Sprinkle with non-pariels. Replace the rum with straight limoncello taken right from the freezer, no simple syrup required. Garnish with powdered sugar and fresh mint – it’s summer on a plate.

I have a wonderful cake pan with an indentation that allows for a filling – I use it a lot in the summer when fruits are juicy and plentiful. Bake a basic sponge (3 eggs, ¾ cup sugar, cup flour), then soak the sponge in your choice of liqueur and simple syrup. Pour the cannoli cream into the well and top with chocolate curls. Or top with strawberries, amaretto-soaked apricots, toasted slivered almonds – your choice.

Slice and/or macerate summer fruit, layer one inch at the bottom of a champagne flute or parfait glass, top with a spoonful of your cannoli cream, and repeat until you reach the top of the glass. Try this with macerated strawberries and a drizzle of aged balsamic atop the dessert.

You could also try to recover the filling by placing it in a double-boiler, adding a tablespoon or two of cornstarch, and heating gently but thoroughly through, stirring occasionally with a spatula. It will still seem watery in the double boiler while warm, but let it cool a bit, spoon into your pastry bag with the tip covered, and refrigerate overnight. The filling should be more solid and ready to go in the morning.

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