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Amaretto Cannoli Cookie Sandwiches
Cannoli cookie? Yeah…you read correctly…read on…
When I opened up this month’s Daring Bakers challenge, I was surprised to see the words “we won’t be baking this month.” What?? Turns out, this month’s challenge host chose a recipe for cannolis. Deep…fried… cannolis. Bleh. I am not a fan of frying. Not just because I think it is unhealthy, or because I am throwing my food in a vat of fat, but because I just don’t enjoy the taste of fried food.
I was a little happier when I read further and there was a suggestion to bake the cannolis. Much better idea! I got a little more excited…then there was problem #2 – no cannoli tubes. Cannoli tubes are the kitchen gadgets that you use to wrap the dough around in order to form the classic cannoli shape. My husband kindly offered to go to the hardware store and find something to fashion together some sort of cannoli tube device, but I declined. Instead, if cannoli tubes were not available, the recipe suggested making flat cannolis layered with filling. This looked like the option for me.
The flat, stacked version of a cannoli is called a cannolipoleon (get it…cannoli + napoleon…haha)
I had every ingredient in my kitchen for my first attempt at cannolis except sweet Marsala wine. Problem #3 was solved by substituting fruit juice and then adding a touch more vinegar to help break down the gluten in the dough. Whew…lots of problem solving this month. I guess it is a baking challenge.
So, as you will note below, the cannolis I made are not typical cannolis. By baking the dough, the end result was more like a cookie. The cookies tasted pretty good, and I liked the somewhat fruity flavor that resulted from the addition of apple juice. The cookies also made a great platform for ice cream! As you might expect, I chose to make ice cream as the “filling” for my cannolis. Amaretto ice cream was my first choice…kind of an Italian flavor to go with the Italian cookies. When I stacked the cookies and the ice cream together, it made perfect little ice cream sandwiches! Hence the name. I hope you enjoy them as much as I did!
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.
Cannoli “cookies”
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon unsweetened baking cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 ½ teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/2 cup apple juice concentrate
Confectioners' sugar
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.
Preheat over to 400 degrees
Remove from fridge, and 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). Use a cookie or biscuit cutter to make shapes and transfer to an oiled baking sheet. Continuing rolling dough until you can no longer make shapes.
Bake cannoli “cookies” for approximately 10 minutes, or until lightly browned. Allow cookies to cool on the baking sheet for 5-10 minutes (or until they start hardening up a little bit), then transfer to a cooling rack to continue cooling. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar once cooled.
Amaretto Ice Cream
Adapted from ice cream base recipe by Jeni Britton Bauer
2 cups whole milk
1 ¼ cups heavy cream
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 ½ oz. cream cheese, softened (3 Tbsp.)
2/3 cup cane sugar
1/8 cup light corn syrup
4 Tablespoons amaretto liquor
1/8 tsp kosher salt
Fill a large bowl with ice water. In a small bowl, mix 2 Tbsp of the milk with the cornstarch. In another large bowl, whisk the cream cheese until smooth.
Combine the remaining milk with heavy cream, sugar, and corn syrup in a large saucepan. Bring milk mixture to a boil. Cook over moderate heat until the sugar dissolves, 4 minutes.
Remove from heat and off the heat, gradually whisk in the cornstarch mixture. Return to a boil and cook over moderately high heat until the mixture is slightly thickened (draw a line on a spoon), about 1 minute. Gradually pour the hot milk mixture into the cream cheese and whisk until smooth. Whisk in salt.
Let milk mixture stand at room temperature for 30 minutes. Mix in amaretto and stir to combine. Pour in bowl or baggie and refrigerate until completely chilled.
Once chilled, pour ice cream base into an ice cream maker and freeze according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Pack the ice cream into a plastic container. Freeze until firm, at least 4 hours.
Amaretto | in Baked goods, Ice Cream 
Reader Comments (3)
Great recipe...cookies look crispy and delicious, I have tried them, they are never soft and tends to be hard. Unlucky me.
Creative! :D
Great Idea, I have forms, but it takes so long to make since I can only do 4 at once. You can also use Cream Sherry Wine, that's what my Sicilian grandmother always used. Time to put my cookie cutters to good use, Thanks again :)