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One of the things Michael loved best when he lived in New York was cannoli–real, fresh cannoli made by all the many Italian families he met. I love re-creating his favorites at home, but (as you may remember) I have a serious fear of deep-frying and cannoli shells are tricky!
Serving the filling as a dip simplifies everything!
This is great for a dessert table, shower, buffet, or potluck. You can adapt this any way you like. You could add a little lemon or orange zest, or add a dash of almond extract in with the vanilla.
For even more variety, you could even make a plain batch and serve little toppings on the side–mini chocolate chips, chopped pistachios, sprinkles, sliced almonds, toasted hazelnuts, etc. That way, people can customize it just the way they like it!
We served ours with waffle cookies and fresh strawberries, but you could use waffle cones broken up into pieces, small biscotti, or any sort of fruit you fancy. Do be sure to use whole milk ricotta–skim ricotta will have an especially grainy texture.
- 1 (15oz) whole milk ricotta
- ¼c plain yogurt (I prefer Greek) or sour cream*
- ⅓c powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- ⅓c mini chocolate chips*
- In a small bowl, beat togehter ricotta, yogurt, powdered sugar, and vanilla. Fold in chocolate chips, reserving a few to sprinkle on top.
- Variations: stir in ½ tsp orange zest, or fold in a few chopped pistachios with or instead of miniature chocolate chips
{ 24 comments… read them below or add one }
There’s this place in baltimore that sells a canoli chips with dip! They cut up the dough into diamonds and then fry that, addicting . . . In terms of the ricotta being grainy, you could run it through a food processor first? I think I’ve seen that with one of the food network people.
Another variation is adding a pinch of cinnamon. Not so much that you know its there but just enough to give a background warm spice flavor! Need to make something like this since I can’t get to bmore for forever!
Sarah – why didn’t I ever think of running the ricotta through a blender or food processor!? That’s GENIUS!!!
Ooh, and I love the idea of cinnamon. Yum!
I have been there – was the place on a corner and sold just specialty coffees and desserts!!! Thats where I got my idea to make my own – they present it just like a flower and YES it was awesome!
Vaccaros!
You are a genius. I tried making cannoli shells once and it was a sad and funny failure. This looks even better than cannoli.
This is genius! Just genius! I love it!!
This looks sooo good! What a creative recipe. I can’t wait to try it sometime!
We are having an Italian potluck on Easter Sunday and this is just what I was looking for, something n very impressive and something one else will bring.
Can it be made a day or so ahead and refrigerated?
Lori – absolutely! We made ours the day before we ate it. We tasted it both days and it was great!
This looks delicious. Did you make the waffle cookies or buy them somewhere?
Lynda – they’re actually Private Selection brand from our Fry’s (owned by Kroger). They were great! We found them by biscotti and water crackers.
Just wanted to let you know that your blog is AWESOME. I found it by mistake while going through recipes on food gawker and now I come here every Friday to read the five facts. Your recipes are awesome and your family is beautiful!
Thanks for the idea, I made it over the weekend and it tasted great! One question though: do you NOT stir it too much? Because mine turns out kind of watery (maybe I used a bit too much Greek yogurt?!?) so I ended up serving it as a fruit dip.
And, has anyone tried making with Mascarpone instead of ricotta?
Lily – I wouldn’t say I was very careful about over-mixing. I beat it until it was smooth. Maybe it was the yogurt? I’m not sure… glad you enjoyed it!
What a great idea. I just found this recipe on Pinterest and will be making it soon. I love to dip!
Love this idea!!! Can you post the waffle cookie recipe? =)
Lillian – I wish! I bought the cookies pictured. Our local Kroger store carries one that’s similar to the one pictured, or you can buy/make pizelle cookies.
Does the ricotta need to be strained beforehand? Last time I attempted cannoli filling it ended up being a runny mess :/ This sounds delish!
Erin – I didn’t strain mine, and I didn’t have any problem. You’ll want it to be loose enough that you can dip into it easily, and straining might make it a bit thick. If that’s the way you prefer it, though, I see no problem with straining!
Would using marscapone make a difference.
Donna – You can use mascarpone instead of the sour cream/Greek yogurt without too much difference. You will have a much different texture if you substitute mascarpone in place of the ricotta, though it might be delicious. I’d love to know how it turns out if you try it!
The place in Baltimore is called Vaccaro’s…best Italian pasty shop HANDS DOWN! Try the pignoli cookies if you ever go there…to die for!!!
I had it served with broken pieces of waffle ice-cream cones and it was delish! Less work too!
Does anyone know how many servings this makes?