How to make
Start with the Ricotta, which is placed in a colander to drain the excess water.
Sift the flour into a bowl, add the salt and all the powdered ingredients. They are mixed. Add the diced butter, mix and add the egg. The liquids are added carefully, because the dough must be both hard and soft, so they are added slowly and it is estimated how much moisture is absorbed in the flour. It is kneaded first in the bowl itself, and then on a counter with a little flour sprinkled on it. The dough should be harder than bread dough. Wrap it in cling film and let it rest at room temperature for about 1 hour.
After the ricotta has strained sufficiently, add the sugar and crush it through a strainer with a spatula to get a very smooth, fine cream. Chocolate is added in small pieces. Mix with a spatula. Leave it in the fridge for about 1/2 hour.
Roll out the dough very thin to 1 mm and cut out circles about 9 cm, which are wrapped around the cannoli tubes, by spreading one end with egg white, so that they can stick to each other.
Fry the finished cannoli in the oil at 170-180°C. Place no more than 3 pieces in the oil, because with more cannoli the temperature will drop, and this is of great importance. After they have cooled, the tube is removed, and the cannoli is filled with cream using a piping bag, but just before serving, because otherwise they will soften, and they must be very crunchy. Finally, one candied cherry is added, they can also be dipped in some toasted nuts.
Note: I used special metal cannoli tubes. They are extremely light, so that they can float in the oil. They are made of thin aluminum. The important thing in making this wonderful, delicate dessert is the rolling out, it must be extremely thin, because if the dough is thicker when frying, the cannoli will open up and the desired shape will not be obtained and therefore there will be no way to fill them with cream. I used a thermometer when frying them.
Sicilian cannoli is a fantastic dessert that is considered culinary perfection in Sicily. Every good Italian cook is famous for their method of making them. I offer the most common type of recipe for making them.
I am attaching photos of finished cannoli and those that did not manage to get the correct shape. I purposely rolled them a little thicker (about 2 mm) and accordingly they opened up during frying. I am also attaching a photo of the cannoli tubes, just for reference.
