Cannoli Dip – Everything you love about cannoli without any of the hassle.
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.
Cannoli Dip
Ingredients
- 1 (15oz) whole milk ricotta
- 1/4c plain yogurt (I prefer Greek) or sour cream*
- 1/3c powdered sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/3c mini chocolate chips*
Instructions
- 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 1/2 tsp orange zest, or fold in a few chopped pistachios with or instead of miniature chocolate chips
Notes
*For gluten-free: double-check your brands
So so so excited. I’m already addicted to Pizzelle cookies. Ugh. I love them. World market also sells them. As does HEB in Texas. They come in vanilla. Anise. Lemon. And cinnamon too!
I’m Italian and a pizzelle maker has been on my list for ages!!
I’m throwing a wine tasting party for my mom’s 50th birthday and this is one of the dessert dips ? Any excuse for me to have my pizzelles lol.
I’m a CupCakery owner and made cannoli cupcakes and took me 4 days to do the cupcakes. Filling. Frosting. And mini filled cannolis. So this recipe will be great. Lol
Erica – You are an expert! Cannoli cupcakes sound amazing!
Do I really need to use cream ?
For best results, yes. If you use anything with less fat, you’ll find it’s a bit runnier and looser. Up to you!
Can cannoli dip be made the night before? Can I use confectioners sugar instead of powered ? Do I need to use heavy cream some recipes don’t call for it thank you
Joyce – You can make this the night before. Confectioner’s sugar and powdered sugar are interchangeable, so feel free to use either! You can use cream or heavy cream (whichever you can find). Hope that helps!
This recipe has been sitting on my Pinterest for ages and I finally decided to give it a try for a girls night… WHY ON EARTH did i wait so long to try it?!?! Its soooo easy and sooo delicious! THANKS!
Does anyone know how many servings this makes?
I had it served with broken pieces of waffle ice-cream cones and it was delish! Less work too! 😉
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!!!
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!
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!