Cannoli are Sicily’s most famous pastry: a crisp fried shell filled with sweet sheep’s ricotta. These pistachio cannoli with cocoa shells are filled with ricotta beaten with Scyavuru 100% Pistachio Butter, and the ends are rolled in chopped pistachios.

The shell dough needs an hour’s rest, then a roll-out and a deep fry, so allow about two hours; the filling takes minutes. Fill them at the last moment to keep the crunch. For another take, see our classic Pistachio & Ricotta Cannoli.

Difficulty: Medium
Course: Dessert
Time: Prep 40 min · Rest 1 h · Cook 10 min
Made with: Scyavuru 100% Pistachio Butter

Ingredients for pistachio cannoli with cocoa shells

For the shells

  • 250 g flour 00
  • 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 30 g lard
  • 1 tbsp Marsala
  • 150 g sugar
  • 1 pinch of salt
  • 1 egg white (to seal)
  • A little water, added very little at a time, only if the dough needs it
  • Seed oil, for frying

For the filling

  • 500 g sheep’s ricotta
  • 120 g icing sugar
  • 2 tbsp Scyavuru 100% Pistachio Butter
  • Chopped pistachios
  • Vanilla icing sugar, to decorate

How to make pistachio cannoli with cocoa shells

  1. 1. Dough Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa and salt. Work in the lard and Marsala until you have a smooth dough, adding drops of water only if it’s too dry. Wrap it up and chill for at least an hour.
  2. 2. Shells Roll the dough very thin and cut out rounds of about 10 cm. Wrap each round around a greased cannoli tube and seal the overlap with a little egg white.
    Cutting rounds of cocoa dough and wrapping them around a cannoli tube
  3. 3. Fry Bring a deep pan of oil to 170 °C. Fry the shells, turning them, until they are a deep golden colour, then lift them onto kitchen paper.
  4. 4. Filling Once the ricotta has drained, beat in the icing sugar and the Scyavuru 100% Pistachio Butter.
    Beating sheep's ricotta with Scyavuru pistachio spread in a blue bowl
  5. 5. Assemble Pipe the filling into the cooled shells, press the ends into chopped pistachios and finish with a dusting of vanilla icing sugar.
    Piping pistachio ricotta filling into a fried cannoli shell

Tips

  • Fill them at the last minute, or the shells will lose their crunch.

Try it with…

Did you know?

  • The word cannoli means “little tubes”.
  • They are tied to the Sicilian Carnival, where they were a symbol of fertility.
  • The cannolo alla ricotta is on the official list of traditional food products (PAT) of Sicily.

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