Sicilian Italian · Desserts

Chocolate chip ricotta cannoli

Name: Chocolate chip ricotta cannoli
Prep time: 1 h 15 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 13 h 45 min
Yield: 12 cannoli
Cuisine: Sicilian Italian
Ingredients: 2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour; 2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar; 1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder; 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon; 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt; 3 tablespoons (42 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed; 1 large egg; 1/3 cup (80 grams) dry Marsala wine; 1 teaspoon white wine vinegar; 1 egg white, lightly beaten, for sealing; 2 quarts neutral high-heat oil, for frying; 24 ounces (680 grams) whole-milk ricotta, drained overnight; 3/4 cup (90 grams) confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting; 1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest; 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; 1/2 cup (85 grams) mini chocolate chips; 1/3 cup (38 grams) finely chopped toasted pistachios

Crisp blistered pastry tubes filled at the last minute with sweet ricotta, chocolate, orange, and pistachio.

About 13 hr 45 minTotal

About 1 hr 45 minActive

$$Cost

AdvancedDifficulty

Makes 12 cannoli

Equipment

Use similar stainless cannoli tubes; never improvise with heat-unsafe cylinders.
Best traditional starting set
Ateco Cannoli Kit · 660
View at Amazon
Another workable path: Use similar stainless cannoli tubes; never improvise with heat-unsafe cylinders.
Paid links. As an Amazon Associate, Kwilt earns from qualifying purchases.
How we chose
Research-backed · reviewed Aug 2026
We matched traditional tube length and diameter, stainless construction, four-piece count, model 660 and UPC identity, frying constraints, and the exact Amazon destination. Kwilt has not fried shells on these forms.
Ateco Cannoli Kit · 660: The four 5.63-inch stainless tubes provide the rigid shape needed for thin dough to fry into open, evenly blistered shells that release after brief cooling. Trade-off: Four forms require repeated frying rounds for a full batch, and both the tubes and shells remain dangerously hot immediately after leaving the oil.
Another workable path: Use other purpose-made stainless cannoli tubes of similar diameter; do not improvise with coated, soldered, or heat-unsafe cylinders in frying oil.
Sources
Ateco 660 dimensions and contents
Amazon exact product listing

Ingredients

1× recipe · Makes 12 cannoli

2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons (25 grams) granulated sugar
1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 tablespoons (42 grams) cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 large egg
1/3 cup (80 grams) dry Marsala wine
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1 egg white, lightly beaten, for sealing
2 quarts neutral high-heat oil, for frying
24 ounces (680 grams) whole-milk ricotta, drained overnight
3/4 cup (90 grams) confectioners' sugar, plus more for dusting
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup (85 grams) mini chocolate chips
1/3 cup (38 grams) finely chopped toasted pistachios

Instructions

The night before, drain ricotta in a cheesecloth-lined sieve over a bowl. For shells, pulse flour, granulated sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, salt, and butter to fine crumbs. Add egg, Marsala, and vinegar; knead 8 minutes until firm and smooth. Wrap and rest 1 hour.
Divide dough in four and keep covered. Roll each piece with a pasta machine or rolling pin to about 1/16 inch, thin enough to see a hand shadow. Cut twelve 4-inch rounds. Wrap each around a lightly oiled and seal the overlap with egg white without getting it between dough and tube.
Fill a heavy pot no more than halfway with oil and heat to 350°F. Turn handles inward, exclude children and pets, keep a lid nearby, never add water, and never leave oil unattended. Fry two or three shells and tubes at a time 60 to 90 seconds until blistered and deep golden.
Lift with tongs, drain, and wait until tubes are safe to touch before sliding shells off; metal stays dangerously hot. Repeat while holding oil at 345–355°F. Cool shells completely and store airtight. Cool oil fully before handling.
Press drained ricotta through a fine sieve and fold with confectioners' sugar, orange zest, vanilla, and chocolate chips. Refrigerate in a piping bag. Fill shells from both ends only just before serving, dip ends in pistachios, and dust with sugar. This is the batch's one true project: overnight draining, thin rolling, special tubes, sealing, serial deep frying, cooling, filling, and immediate service are intrinsic.

Sicily, ItalySicilian pastry traditions

From the table

About this recipe

Cannoli originated in Sicily and became associated with Carnival before spreading into year-round Italian pastry culture; their identity rests on brittle blistered shells filled only at service with sweet ricotta.

Cannoli originated in Sicily and became associated with Carnival before growing into an all-occasion Italian pastry. Cannolo is singular and cannoli plural. Their identity depends on contrast: a dry, blistered, brittle shell and smooth sweet sheep's- or cow's-milk ricotta added only at service. Chocolate, orange, and pistachio are familiar accents, but none should turn the filling into buttercream. This Kwilt version follows the reviewed household adaptation: Retain the Sicilian thin-shell and pure ricotta architecture with familiar accents, and expose every sourcing, equipment, frying, and timing burden rather than treating cannoli as ordinary filled cookies.

Sources

Dinner does not stop at the recipe