Cannoli Cake Recipe

Cannoli cake is inspired by the classic Sicilian dessert that's beloved in Italy: we pair soft, moist yellow cake with cannoli cream filling, vanilla buttercream frosting, and chocolate ganache. And for the perfect finishing touch, we decorate the top with mini cannoli!

Course Dessert

Cuisine American, Italian, Sicilian

Keyword Cannoli Cake, Cannoli Cake Recipe

Prep Time 1

Cook Time 30

Time for the Ricotta to Strain and the Cake to Cool 14

Servings servings

Calories 643kcal

Author Faith Gorsky

Equipment

Fine mesh strainer to strain the ricotta
Mixing bowls
Handheld electric mixer
3 9-inch cake pans
Frosting spatula or a butterknife will work fine for a rustic look
1M open star piping tip with pastry bag

Ingredients

Cannoli Cream Filling:

30 ounces ricotta cheese strained overnight
1 3/4 cups powdered sugar
5 tablespoons heavy whipping cream
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1/2 tablespoon fresh orange zest and/or 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon or 1/4 teaspoon almond extract (optional)
3/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips

Cake:

3 cups all-purpose flour
6 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup butter slightly softened
2 cups granulated white sugar
1 cup mascarpone at room temperature
4 large eggs at room temperature
3/4 cup milk at room temperature
1 1/2 tablespoons pure vanilla extract
3/4 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon fresh orange zest and/or 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)

Vanilla Buttercream:

1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste
1/4 teaspoon salt
5 cups powdered sugar
4 tablespoons heavy whipping cream

Chocolate Ganache Topping:

3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temperature

Other:

Butter and flour for the cake pans
8 mini cannoli shells my mini cannoli shells measured about 2 1/2 inches across the bottom
1/4 cup mini semisweet chocolate chips for dipping the mini cannoli ends

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

The Night Before You Want to Make This Cake:

Strain the ricotta overnight. To do so, place a strainer inside a bowl, and line the strainer with cheesecloth or coffee filters so that they hang over the outside of the strainer. Scoop the ricotta into the lined strainer and fold the cheesecloth or coffee filters over the top of the yogurt. Cover with plastic wrap and put a plate on top. Put something heavy on top of the plate to help press the liquid out of the ricotta. Let the yogurt sit like this in the fridge for at least 12 hours, or up to 24 hours.

For the Cake:

Preheat the oven to 350F. Butter and flour 3 9-inch round cake pans.
Whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, salt, and baking soda in a medium bowl.
Use a handheld electric mixer to cream together the butter and sugar in a large bowl. Beat in the mascarpone, and then the eggs, milk, vanilla extract, almond extract, and orange zest and/or cinnamon (if using).
Add the dry ingredients to the wet half at a time, and beat to combine. Be careful not to over-mix.
Divide the batter between the 3 prepared cake pans. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 to 35 minutes. Let the cakes cool for 15 minutes in the pans. Turn them out onto wire racks to cool to room temperature (about 30 minutes), and then refrigerate 15 minutes to chill.

For the Cannoli Cream Filling:

After the ricotta is strained overnight, add all ingredients except the chocolate chips to a large bowl. Use a handheld electric mixer to beat until well-combined, smooth, and creamy. Stir in the chocolate chips.
If the cannoli filling is too thick, add a splash more cream; if it’s too runny, add a little more powdered sugar.
Use about 1 cup of cannoli cream filling to fill the mini cannoli shells to decorate the top of the cake. Dip the end of each mini cannoli in mini chocolate chips. (Or to keep the cannoli shells crisp, set the filling aside and wait to fill the shells until the cake is frosted and ready to decorate.)

For the Vanilla Buttercream:

Add the butter, vanilla extract, vanilla bean paste, and salt to a large bowl, and use a handheld electric mixer to beat until well-combined. Add the powdered sugar and cream, and beat until smooth and creamy.
If the buttercream is too thick, add a splash more cream; if it’s too runny, add a little more powdered sugar.
Set aside about 1 1/4 cups of buttercream to pipe rosettes on top of the cake.

To Assemble the Cake:

Once the cakes are cooled completely, trim them so the tops are flat (save the cake you trim off to make parfaits or cake pops!).
Put 1 9-inch cake onto a cake stand with the trimmed side facing up. Spread about 1/2 of the cannoli cream filling on top.
Place a second 9-inch round cake on top (trimmed side facing up), and spread about 1/2 of the cannoli cream filling on top.
Then put the last 9-inch cake on top (trimmed side facing up).
Frost the sides and top of the cake evenly with the buttercream (keeping the reserved 1 1/4 cups of buttercream to decorate the top later).

For the Ganache:

Melt the chocolate chips and butter together in a microwave-safe bowl in the microwave, or in a double boiler. Stir gently until smooth and let it cool until the ganache is no longer warm, but is still pourable (it can’t be warm or it will melt the buttercream).
Pour the ganache on top of the cake, letting it drip decoratively down the sides, but try not to let the drips reach the bottom. Let the ganache set for at least 1 hour.

To Decorate the Cake:

Once the ganache is set, you can decorate the top. Put the reserved 1 1/4 cups buttercream into a piping bag fitted with a 1M open star piping tip. Pipe 8 rosettes evenly spaced around the outer edge of the cake on top. If you have extra buttercream, you can decoratively pipe on more rosettes.
Put 1 filled cannoli on top of each of the 8 evenly spaced buttercream rosettes.
If you have any mini chocolate chips left, you can decoratively sprinkle them around the top of the cake.

Notes

Storage: Store leftover cake wrapped well in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Nutrition