Friday, November 27, 2009

Che Belli CANNOLI - DB

I am not worthy...I am not worthy. That was my first thought when I read that Cannoli was the pastry for the November Daring Baker's challenge. I am fortunate enough to have visited Italy and tasted these pastries made the way they should be eaten...oh, I'm swooning just thinking about them, AND the whole Italian experience. Can you tell: I'm a little in love with all things Italian. I have studied the language for a few years (on and off), visited all regions (every year for 5 years) and value my beloved Italian teacher (now good friend), Lorena Bignamini - and another one of my best friends, Erika Nadir, who teaches Italian at UCLA. I live in giant gratitude for the opportunities to travel to this amazing country and the friends that have come into my life as a result of my...well, frankly, obsession.

But fear not, readers and friends. If a young woman like myself (hey, it's the internet I can say whatever I feel like saying) can take a little flour, sugar, red wine and seasonings, and (with a bit of hot oil) create this flaky, bubbled, crispy sweet round tube packed with whipped delishiousness - SO CAN YOU.

The November 2009 Daring Bakers Challenge was chosen and hosted by Lisa Michele of Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. She chose the Italian Pastry, Cannolo (Cannoli is plural), using the cookbooks Lidia’s Italian-American Kitchen by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich and The Sopranos Family Cookbook by Allen Rucker; recipes by Michelle Scicolone, as ingredient/direction guides. She added her own modifications/changes, so the recipe is not 100% verbatim from either book.

I couldn't launch into this Cannoli-making adventure without finding out a little about the Who/What/Where regarding these pastries. It was no surprise to learn that the Arab influence during Medieval times actually began the process. Before the Arabs brought sugar to Sicily, most pastries were sweetened with honey. The first time a Chef or cook tasted sugar cane and then started experimenting with it must have been like a carnival in the kitchen. In fact, research offers that the first time Cannoli were served was during Carnivale in Italy. The name, Cannoli, is from the word Canna - similar to Cane in Sugar Cane. Guess why. Like the tubes that are used for forming the Cannoli pastry, the first cooks wrapped the pastry around SUGAR CANES before cooking them in oil and filling them with the mixture of Spring Season fresh Sheep's Ricotta cheese and Sugar whipped together. The classic Cannoli is filled with Ricotta, Sugar and often candied fruits and nuts. The Italians love their endings to words (ie. piccolo and bacione) that means something is litte or huge. Canna plus the ending that would make it cute and small; olo. The plural adds the i instead of o = Cannoli!

The tubes for making Cannoli are not hard to find online or in a baking shop and aren't so expensive, but you can also use short wooden dowels (like cut broom handles).

The directions that we were given are below; along with a few pics to show the process and expected colors, etc. The fillings are up to you. I did the classic Ricotta, but with chipped chocolate, a Cinnamon Pumpkin Filling with Candied Ginger, and a Rose Pastry Cream.

Go for it! Then, save/plan/stretch/beg and borrow til you find yourself sitting on a little patio in the world's most friendly country, sipping a real caffe and closing your eyes every time you bite into a hand-rolled Cannoli. Che Buono!




CANNOLI SHELLS
2 cups (250 grams/8.82 ounces) all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons(28 grams/1 ounce) sugar
1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.06 ounces) unsweetened baking cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon (1.15 grams/0.04 ounces) ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (approx. 3 grams/0.11 ounces) salt
3 tablespoons (42 grams/1.5 ounces) vegetable or olive oil
1 teaspoon (5 grams/0.18 ounces) white wine vinegar
Approximately 1/2 cup (approx. 59 grams/approx. 4 fluid ounces/approx. 125 ml) sweet Marsala or any white or red wine you have on hand
1 large egg, separated (you will need the egg white but not the yolk)
Vegetable or any neutral oil for frying – about 2 quarts (8 cups/approx. 2 litres)
1/2 cup (approx. 62 grams/2 ounces) toasted, chopped pistachio nuts, mini chocolate chips/grated chocolate and/or candied or plain zests, fruits etc.. for garnish
Confectioners' sugar

DIRECTIONS FOR SHELLS:
1. In the bowl of an electric stand mixer or food processor, combine the flour, sugar, cocoa, cinnamon, and salt. Stir in the oil, vinegar, and enough of the wine to make a soft dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and well blended, about 2 minutes. Shape the dough into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest in the fridge from 2 hours to overnight.

2 Cut the dough into two pieces. Keep the remaining dough covered while you work. Lightly flour a large cutting or pastry board and roll the dough until super thin, about 1/16 to 1/8” thick (An area of about 13 inches by 18 inches should give you that). Cut out 3 to 5-inch circles (3-inch – small/medium; 4-inch – medium/large; 5-inch;- large. Your choice). Roll the cut out circle into an oval, rolling it larger and thinner if it’s shrunk a little.

3 Oil the outside of the cannoli tubes (You only have to do this once, as the oil from the deep fry will keep them well, uhh, oiled..lol). Roll a dough oval from the long side (If square, position like a diamond, and place tube/form on the corner closest to you, then roll) around each tube/form and dab a little egg white on the dough where the edges overlap. (Avoid getting egg white on the tube, or the pastry will stick to it.) Press well to seal. Set aside to let the egg white seal dry a little.

4. In a deep heavy saucepan, pour enough oil to reach a depth of 3 inches, or if using an electric deep-fryer, follow the manufacturer's directions. Heat the oil to 375°F (190 °C) on a deep fry thermometer, or until a small piece of the dough or bread cube placed in the oil sizzles and browns in 1 minute. Have ready a tray or sheet pan lined with paper towels or paper bags.

5. Carefully lower a few of the cannoli tubes into the hot oil. Do not crowd the pan. Fry the shells until golden, about 2 minutes, turning them so that they brown evenly.

8. Lift a cannoli tube with a wire skimmer or large slotted spoon, out of the oil. Using tongs, grasp the cannoli tube at one end. Very carefully remove the cannoli tube with the open sides straight up and down so that the oil flows back into the pan. Place the tube on paper towels or bags to drain. Repeat with the remaining tubes. While they are still hot, grasp the tubes with a potholder and pull the cannoli shells off the tubes with a pair of tongs, or with your hand protected by an oven mitt or towel. Let the shells cool completely on the paper towels. Place shells on cooling rack until ready to fill.

9. Repeat making and frying the shells with the remaining dough. If you are reusing the cannoli tubes, let them cool before wrapping them in the dough.

Pasta Machine method:
1. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Starting at the middle setting, run one of the pieces of dough through the rollers of a pasta machine. Lightly dust the dough with flour as needed to keep it from sticking. Pass the dough through the machine repeatedly, until you reach the highest or second highest setting. The dough should be about 4 inches wide and thin enough to see your hand through

2. Continue rolling out the remaining dough. If you do not have enough cannoli tubes for all of the dough, lay the pieces of dough on sheets of plastic wrap and keep them covered until you are ready to use them.

3, Roll, cut out and fry the cannoli shells as according to the directions above.

For stacked cannoli:
1. Heat 2-inches of oil in a saucepan or deep sauté pan, to 350-375°F (176 - 190 °C).

2. Cut out desired shapes with cutters or a sharp knife. Deep fry until golden brown and blistered on each side, about 1 – 2 minutes. Remove from oil with wire skimmer or large slotted spoon, then place on paper towels or bags until dry and grease free. If they balloon up in the hot oil, dock them lightly prior to frying. Place on cooling rack until ready to stack with filling.

CANNOLI FILLING
2 lbs (approx. 3.5 cups/approx. 1 kg/32 ounces) ricotta cheese, drained
1 2/3 cups cup (160 grams/6 ounces) confectioner’s sugar, (more or less, depending on how sweet you want it), sifted
1/2 teaspoon (1.15 grams/0.04 ounces) ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon (4 grams/0.15 ounces) pure vanilla extract or the beans from one vanilla bean
3 tablespoons (approx. 28 grams/approx. 1 ounce) finely chopped good quality chocolate of your choice
2 tablespoons (12 grams/0.42 ounces) of finely chopped, candied orange peel, or the grated zest of one small to medium orange
3 tablespoons (23 grams/0.81 ounce) toasted, finely chopped pistachios

Note - If you want chocolate ricotta filling, add a few tablespoons of dark, unsweetened cocoa powder to the above recipe, and thin it out with a few drops of warm water if too thick to pipe.

DIRECTIONS FOR FILLING:
1. Line a strainer with cheesecloth. Place the ricotta in the strainer over a bowl, and cover with plastic wrap and a towel. Weight it down with a heavy can, and let the ricotta drain in the refrigerator for several hours to overnight.

2. In a bowl with electric mixer, beat ricotta until smooth and creamy. Beat in confectioner’s sugar, cinnamon, vanilla and blend until smooth. Transfer to another bowl and stir in chocolate, zest and nuts. Chill until firm.(The filling can be made up to 24 hours prior to filling the shells. Just cover and keep refrigerated).

ASSEMBLE THE CANNOLI:
1. When ready to serve..fill a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch plain or star tip, or a ziplock bag, with the ricotta cream. If using a ziplock bag, cut about 1/2 inch off one corner. Insert the tip in the cannoli shell and squeeze gently until the shell is half filled. Turn the shell and fill the other side. You can also use a teaspoon to do this, although it’s messier and will take longer.

2. Press or dip cannoli in chopped pistachios, grated chocolate/mini chocolate chips, candied fruit or zest into the cream at each end. Dust with confectioner’s sugar and/or drizzles of melted chocolate if desired.

9 comments:

Veena said...

So colorful, almost too pretty to eat :) Great job!

-Veena

Audax said...

Classic Ricotta, with chipped chocolate, a Cinnamon Pumpkin Filling with Candied Ginger, and a Rose Pastry Cream. Those fillings sound so delicious and intriguing especially the rose pastry cream and the colours of the fillings are delicious and eye catching. And you got blisters and warts on the shells well done and yes to be in Italy the smells and sights arrrg I want to go. Cheers from Audax in Australia.

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

Guess this is your month at the DB!:)Love your colourful and very pretty cannoli.

Anonymous said...

Your cannoli is molto bene, an I LOVE the cinnmaon pumpkin ginger filling. Th rose pastry cream filling actually looks like a little rose tucked into the shell the way it's piped..gorgeous! Also, beeeyoootiful shells! Thanks so much for deep frying with me this month!

chef_d said...

Your cannoli filling sounds yum and they are so pretty

Namratha said...

Delicious flavors and fillings, well done!

anna said...

Those are gorgeous and all sound so delicious! Nice job!

Shirley said...

Cinnamon pumpkin ginger sounds delicious!

Sara said...

Oooh, delicious! I love those rose ones...so elegant! :)