I’ve said it before, but my friends are absolutely amazing.
First, my friend Sara. On Friday night, a group of my book club girls gathered together as we bid a tearful but oh-so-exciting farewell to Sara as she moves across the ocean to be with her love. It’s true. After leaving her job as an English teacher to pursue a career as a singer-songwriter (you must check out her beautiful music — she was even featured on the show “Private Practice”!), her leap of faith also landed her in the path of an amazing man with a rockin’ accent from Britain who…pretty much instantly fell in love with her. And then proceeded to win her heart from halfway around the world. Theirs is truly an amazing love story that has been inspiring to see unfold. Grateful and so excited for her.
So for my contribution to the evening full of wine, sweets, and (always) great conversation, I decided to modify a traditional Italian dessert recipe from one of my other amazing friends — Lisa. I met Lisa years ago when she auditioned for a choir I was directing, and have been inspired and amazed by her story as well. After coming out of a really difficult season in life, this gal met and married another amazing man. And then decided somewhat on a whim to launch her own foodie website, dedicated entirely to Italian dessert recipes. (Hint hint – that’s the name of the site!) Literally, people, every single one I’ve tried has been nothing sort of fantastico!
So when I had the idea for making some little cannoli cups for Sara’s party, I immediately knew whose filling recipe to try. Sure enough, Lisa’s cannoli filling was absolutely amazing! As my friends said to tell the blogosphere, it was subtle, sweet, and really delicious. And they thought they were so tasty that a “wizard” must have made them. Ha – ok, long story. But trust us — they are crazy good. And really easy. So I’m pretty sure you should try them.
Grateful once again today for amazingly talented friends and the amazing joy found in courageous leaps of faith!
Cannoli Cups
Ingredients
- 1 package (16 oz.) wonton wrappers
- 1 container (15 oz.) ricotta cheese
- 1/4 cup cornstarch
- 1 1/3 cups whole milk
- 1/2 cups powdered sugar
- 1/2 tsp. almond extract
- 1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon (optional)
- 2 cups mini semisweet chocolate chips
- powdered sugar (for dusting)
Instructions
- In a bowl, slowly whisk *1 cup* of the milk into the cornstarch until smooth. Let sit about 20 minutes.
- Transfer mixture into a sauce pan, and then add in the remaining milk and sugar. Heat on medium-low, stirring constantly until it is very thick and smooth (about 7-10 minutes). Remove from heat. Stir in the almond and vanilla extracts. Place a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the filling to avoid “skin”, and let cool until the mixture reaches room temperature.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Then press 30-35 wonton wrappers (you can do this in multiple batches) into a mini baking cup pan to form the “cups”. (Be sure that the corners do not fold in after the pan sits for a minute!) Bake the cups for 10-15 minutes, or until the wrappers are golden brown. Remove and let cool.
- After the milk mixture has reached room temperature, whisk in the ricotta and cinnamon until smooth. (You can also do this with an electric mixer on low.) Use a pastry bag to pipe the mixture into the baked wonton cups, or use a spoon to scoop it in. Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips, then dust with powdered sugar. Refrigerate, or serve immediately.
Notes
Did you make this?Let me know how it turned out in the comments below!
Source: Filling recipe slightly adapted from Italian Dessert Recipes.
After reading all the comments, I thought the shells might taste better if you dusted them with sugar before baking. Has anyone tried this?
I tried making these last night. Everything came together very easily and looked super pretty in the cups. but i did not like the taste of the cream at all, it did not taste like a cannoli to me. it tatsed more like rice pudding. i think maybe next time i would try with a mascarpone cheese? and less almond extract.
I literally just got done making these cute little desserts! Its Italian night here and these Cannoli Cups are going to be perfect for after my Lasagna Rolls! Now I had the same “watery” problem. It just wasn’t Cannoli thick after I completed the recipe, so I popped that mixture back into the sauce pan on med/high and whisked till it was connoli thick…probly 10 more mins or so. Turned out PERFECT! Was able to pipe it into the cups after it was cooled. Looked and tasted amazing!
I tried to make the filling tonight for a function tomorrow night. The filling is really thick, and is not at all creamy like I was dreaming it would be. I followed the directions exactly. I mixed the ricotta and the milk/cornstarch, once cooled, by hand. Although I stirred for quite some time, they never seemed to fully combine. Should I have used a mixer instead? I was hoping to make these for a gourmet club lunch next week, but I am hesitant. (Also, as a side note: the milk/sugar/cornstarch thickened on my gas stove within 3 minutes.)
Looks like a fantastic recipe! I think the idea of draining the liquid off the ricotta makes sense–like Greek yogurt instead of the soupy regular version. I will also sprinkle powdered pistachios over the finished product, along with the choc. chips. Thanks!!!!
These looked great and filling tasted great, but shell still tasted like a wonton – not dessert. I will use the filling again, even made it with no fat ricotta and it turned out delicious, just need a better dessert shell…
Hello! I made these last night and they were a huge hit. Thank you very much!!
These are adorable, bite size and a lot easier than stuffing the cannoli tubes. I can’t wait to try them!
You are awesome!!!! Thank you for sharing!
Such pretty treats!