A cannoli, cannoli! And because gluttony can’t be satisfied with just one of these pastries… In Italian, this name means “little tube” and is borrowed from the cane (canna) around which is the dough (flour, eggs, fat, vinegar, sugar, marsala). , cocoa) were wrapped before frying. Today, for practical and hygienic reasons, the reed ends have been replaced by metal tubes, but the name has been preserved and the cake has become a symbol of Sicilian gastronomy.
If some see in it nothing more than a filled cigar, others find in it an undeniable phallic allusion. Its origins date back to the 10th century, when Sicily was under Arab rule. The concubines of Caltaniseta’s harem, to flatter the virility of their prince, would imagine this highly suggestive sweetness. A century later, the island fell into the hands of the Normans, who Christianized the area but preserved certain traditions, especially culinary ones. Among them, the cannoli, the nuns – not trivial. – will continue production.
“Over time, the cannolo became a carnival delicacy, a symbol of fertility with its suggestive appearance and offered as a joke to the nobility and Sicilian high-class ladies.says pastry chef Corrado Assenza from Caffè Sicilia in Noto, where cannolo are made according to the rules of the art.
Find other episodes of Summer All Sugar, All Honey:
Episode 1 – Tropezienne cake, the sweetest star of the Côte d’Azur
Episode 2 –Sfogliatella riccia, a Neapolitan slipper that is nothing more than a couch potato
Episode 3 – A basque cake, crispy and smooth, to take out.
Funny comments
Now you can eat cannoli all year round, all over the world, sometimes with very strange interpretations. However, the success of a “real” cannonball depends on several details, first of all its dough, the crust of which must be covered with bubbles and craters, which are the result of bursting sugar grains during frying. Similarly, tradition dictates that cannoli be fried in lard for extra crispiness.
Therefore, it is recommended that the pastry shop or cafe where you decide to taste it, decorate it only at the last moment, so as not to dampen the “cigar”. This is also one of the reasons why you sometimes find cannoli “dipped” in chocolate frosting, which acts as an insulator somehow. The cannoli filling should be made with fresh sheep’s milk ricotta, slightly sweetened, and not with pastry cream or any other buttercream. Ricotta may also include small chocolate drops or candied fruit pieces. Finally, the cannolo will be sprinkled with powdered sugar at the last minute.
It’s this combination, the mix of crunch and smoothness, that makes the cannon alluring. Despite its success, it is not the easiest to eat with its generous size of 15 cm long and 4-5 in diameter. Therefore, it is recommended to bring a small plate in case the dough is completely dislodged on the first bite. There is also an XS version of the cannolo, the cannolicchi, which is easier to eat on the street, or more suitable for those who are watching their figure…
The best places to taste cannoli in Sicily
Caffè Sicilia, Corso Vittorio Emanuele, 125, Noto (SR). Such. +39 0931 835013.
Caffè Battaglia, Piazza Garibaldi, 10, Nicosia (EN). Such. +39 329 425 7611.
Euro Bar, Via Garibaldi n11/13, Dattilo (TP). Such. +39 0923 861434.
Extra Bar, Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, 4, Piana degli Albanesi (PA). Such. +39 091 857 1033.
Source: Le Figaro
