Ingredients
Yields 10 cannoli
Shells
2 cups all-purpose flour
¼ tsp cinnamon
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp lard
¼ tsp baking soda
3 tbsp white vinegar
3 tbsp marsala
Filling
1 lb ricotta cheese
½ cup sugar
¼ cup lemon juice
zest of 1 lemon
½ tsp cinnamon
2 vanilla pods
2 Skor bars, chopped and divided
1 egg, whisked
8 cups canola oil, for frying
powdered sugar, for dusting
Method
Shells: Mix dry ingredients. Add lard and mix with your hands, add vinegar and marsala wine stirring with a fork. Shape in a ball wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 45 minutes.
Roll the dough out thin with a pasta machine or rolling pin. Cut ovals with a round cutter, or use a small bowl as a guide with a knife. Roll the ovals around metal cannoli tubes (or if you don't have cannoli tubes, you can do what my grandfather did: Make your own by cutting the end off a wooden broomstick) and seal the seam with the egg wash.
In a heavy bottom pot or countertop fryer set at 375°F, carefully place the shells and cook for two to three minutes until golden brown.
When the shells are cool, spoon the cream mixture into a piping bag. Fill the shells with the cream (see below). Dip each end of the cannoli in the reserved Skor bits and dust with powdered sugar.
Filling: Hang ricotta cheese in cheesecloth overnight to reduce moisture. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and refrigerate.
Rinaldo’s
Seaport Farmers’ Market, 1209 Marginal Road
