Raw cannoli

I have been thinking to make cannoli for a while and after some experiments I have finally dished out this recipe, which has been appreciated by vegans and non vegans alike. I am very proud of the final result as (once again) I can show people high patisserie is not animal based. I love when people ask me what “binds it all together” or “how do you cook it?” When it’s a raw dish. The purists will tell you that it’s not Sicilian cannoli, but let’s face it: the purists have such a narrow perception of food (and its ethical consequences) we don’t really take any notice of what they think!

You will need a dehydrator to make the cannoli base, a high-speed blender (I use a Vitamix) to make the cream and some cannoli forms (as in the following photo).

cannoli forms

Ingredients for the cannoli base:

• 1 cup of almonds, soaked in water for one night and dehydrated to make them more digestible
• ½ cup of cashew nuts – soaked and dehydrated
• 1 pinch of salt – I use pink salt as it has a gentler flavour especially in cakes
• 4 or 5 pitted dates – soaked in water, keep the soaking water to use it in the mix. Keep few more handy as their sweetness can vary so you may want to use more or alternatively use some agave syrup to add sweetness to the base.
• water form the soaked dates – keep a little more handy just in case
• Optional: rehydrated blueberries if you like the acidic taste and the red colour (I love them).

Mix all the ingredients in a mixer until you obtain a smooth paste. Keep in mind you may have to add more water than the one you soaked the dates in. The idea is to obtain a thick but smooth paste (when the mixture start rolling around with the blades of the mixer it’s a sign it’s ready). Roll the base onto a non-sticky baking sheet and cut the round shapes that will be rolled around the cannoli forms afterwards. Once you have some nice and round shapes put them into the dehydrator and leave them there for few hours until still malleable but hard enough not to lose the consistency. Roll them around the cannoli forms and put them back into the dehydrator for few more hours, taking care to turn them every now and again.

raw cannoli

Ingredients for the cream:

• 1 cup almonds – soaked in water for a night and peeled to give the cream a smooth white texture. They need to be very cold (fridge col) when you use them so keep them overnight in the refrigerator.
• 2 or 3 spoonful of chia seeds – soaked in water
• 3 spoonful of coconut flour – mix desiccated coconut in a mixer at high speed to obtain a smooth flour
• 2 spoonful coconut oil (more if you want to add a creamy texture and flavour)
• a little cocoa butter
• vanilla essence or powder to taste
• some agave syrup (no fixed amount, but use it to suit your taste buds)

Mix all the ingredients in a high speed blender until you obtain a really fluffy and smooth cream. Adjust the agave syrup to desired sweetness: I personally don’t like very sweet creams so I tend to keep the agave syrup a little low: I like a sweet base for the cannoli and a slightly less sweet cream to compensate the tastes but it’s just my own likings. One the cannoli bases are ready fill them with this cream, set them aside. To garnish mix some hazelnuts in a mixer: keep the mixture very coarse as you need it to decorate both ends of the cannoli. Once the cannoli are filled and decorated keep them few hours in the fridge and hand them over to your guests! Voilà: one more stronghold of the 4C (cooked cruel culinary culture) has fallen.

delicious raw cannoli

Filed under: Italian, Raw, raw cannoli, rawcipes, dessert