Baked Cannoli

For those of you who would like to enjoy a cannoli on the lighter side, or are like me and can't digest fried foods, here is a great alternative: Baked Cannolis!

Cannolis are originally Sicilian and mean little tubes. Traditionally these pastries are filled with a creamy ricotta filling.

Here is a recipe to make your own healthier cannolis.

Shells

Ingredients:

7oz flour

2tsp sugar

1tsp cocoa powder

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 fluid oz vegetable oil

1/2 fluid oz vinegar

3-4 fluid oz Marsala or other fortified wine

Method:

1. Mix dry ingredients together and rub in the oil.
2. Mix vinegar and marsala and stir into dry mixture. The dough will be firm and dry.
3. Form the dough into a rough rectangle and wrap in plastic wrap. Rest at room temperature for about 1 hour.
4. Flour the dough and roll it out through a pasta machine to a 1/4 inch thickness. Pass through machine about 15 times to achieve smooth texture.
5. Rest dough again for 1 hour.
6. Pass dough through pasta machine starting with thickest setting and ending at the thinnest. This will take a few times of going through.
7. With a round cutter, cut rounds of dough. Disk should be about 1 1/2 inches shorter than the tube it will be baked on.
8. Lengthen each round to an oval and then wrap the edge around the tube, sealing with a little bit of egg white. (don't let the egg white drip onto the tube or the dough will become stuck.
9. Place cannoli on sheet trays lined with parchment and bake at 350 for a few minutes. Wait until dough is cooked through.
10. Using tongs remove the tubes from the shells as soon as possible since dough will shrink as it cools.

Filling

2 pounds ricotta

1/2 pound confectioner's sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1oz chopped semisweet chocolate

1oz chopped candied orange peel

chopped, blanched pistachios for garnish

Method:

1. Whip ricotta and sugar will light and fluffy.
2. Whip in the vanilla and cinnamon.
3. Stir in the chocolate and orange peel.

Assembly

Right before serving, fill shells with cream using a pastry bag. Sprinkle the ends with chopped pistachios.
Dust with sprinkled sugar or melted chocolate.