Crunchy and flaky homemade cannoli made in the air fryer, with that classic cannoli chocolate chip filling.

Cannoli are one of my all-time favorite treats, but the idea of deep frying with very hot oil is sometimes a little daunting, and it requires a lot of oil which is not exactly heart healthy!
I have experimented with many cannoli recipes, such as my Homemade Pistachio Cannoli, which are absolutely divine, but I wanted to know if I could make cannoli that were just as delicious but without the deep fat frying. And so these air fryer cannoli were born! This air fryer cannoli recipe still makes beautifully crispy and flaky cannoli shells, all in the air fryer with very little oil.
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Ingredients
Flour - Use All-purpose flour (plain flour) to make these cannoli shells, this has the right strength and structure to make a solid shell.
Sugar - There isn't much sugar in the cannoli shells but a small amount of white sugar helps tie the flavor of the shell in with the sweet filling.
Butter - You can use salted or unsalted butter for this recipe. Make sure it is at room temperature before you begin.
Egg - We'll use egg in the cannoli shells and also a little extra for an egg wash to hold the shells together on the cannoli tubes. In baking, I always recommend using large eggs and always free range if you can.
Marsala Wine - Traditional Sicilian cannoli recipes use Marsala wine in the shells, but if you can't find it you can substitute it with a little red wine, dry white wine, or red wine vinegar.
Ricotta - Strain your ricotta the night before making your cannoli filling, there's a whole section in the blog post below on how to do this.
Powdered Sugar - Also known as icing sugar or confectioners’ sugar, this is the super fine, powdery sugar that will dissolve into your ricotta cheese and add just the right amount of sweetness.
Vanilla - Vanilla adds sweetness and depth of flavor to our cannoli filling. Make sure to use a high-quality vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.
Cinnamon - The cinnamon is optional but it does really add something to the filling, it's not enough to be able to detect a cinnamon flavor, but it's just a slight note of warmth in the filling. I think it's worth adding.
Chocolate Chips - I like mini chocolate chips for cannoli and I prefer dark chocolate, but you can use whatever you like.
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Cannoli Shells
- Combine flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl.
- Cube the butter into small chunks then add to the flour mixture. Mix until it resembles lumpy breadcrumbs. You can do this in a food processor, a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, or by rubbing the butter into the flour by hand
- Add the egg and marsala wine and mix together just until a rough dough forms. If it needs more liquid, add a little splash more of the marsala wine and keep mixing. Don't overmix.
- Once it comes together into a raggedy dough, tip the mixture out and finish off the dough by hand, kneading on a floured work surface.
- Knead until it is a nice smooth dough. Form into a round shape and wrap in plastic wrap. Leave on the countertop to rest for 2 hours. If you want to prepare the cannoli dough in advance, you can make it the day before and leave it in the fridge overnight. Just bring it back down to room temperature before rolling it out. I have tested making this dough up to two days in advance and it still works great.
- Roll out the cannoli dough as thinly as possible. It is quite an elastic dough so this requires some patience and perseverance. If you have a pasta machine then that can make this process easier, but it will work just fine with a rolling pin and patience. Ideally, it should be thin enough that you can see your fingers through it.
- Cut the thinly rolled dough into rounds using a circular cookie cutter. The longer you want your cannoli shells to be the larger you should cut your circles (but no longer than the cannoli forms). If unsure, about 4-inch circles should work nicely.
- Wrap your dough circles around the cannoli tubes and seal with a little egg wash. Egg yolk can sometimes color the shell a little, so if you want to avoid this, use egg white only. Press firmly on the seam to prevent the dough from unraveling from the cannoli mold.
- Once the first lot of cannoli tubes are 'dressed' brush your air fryer basket lightly with a little oil or spray with an oil-based nonstick spray and preheat to 400°F / 205°C. Adding a little oil is an essential step as the air fryer needs it to circulate the oil and fry the cannoli shells.
- It's best to fry the cannoli shells in small batches so that you can allow them plenty of space in the air fryer to crisp up nicely. Also, it means you can do a few at a time while letting some shells cool enough to remove from the tubes, and keep the momentum going.
- Once the air fryer is preheated - place the first batch of cannoli shells into the basket, making sure they do not touch each other. Cook for 4-5 minutes, or until the outside of each cannoli shell is golden brown. There is no need to flip the shells over halfway through.
- Once the cannoli shells are evenly golden brown, remove them from the air fryer and place them on a cooling rack lined with paper towels to remove any excess oil.
- Start air frying the next batch of shells. Once the second batch are cooked, the first batch should have cooled enough for you to carefully remove them from the cannoli tubes so you can reuse them with the next lot of dough rounds. Be careful removing the tubes as they will still be quite hot and the cannoli shells may break easily.
Tip: Many sources will tell you to cover the bottom of your air fryer basket in aluminum foil - don't do this! It actually prevents the air fryer from being able to work the way it's supposed to and you may end up with soggy bottoms on your cannoli.
How to Make Cannoli Filling
This is a traditional cannoli filling that is made from ricotta and mixed with mini chocolate chips. It's a classic filling for good reason, but you can fill your cannoli shells with whatever filling you like, or see the 'variations' section below for some filling inspiration.
Even if you are not a fan of ricotta, the ricotta flavor doesn't really come through, it's just the delicious cannoli filling that we know and love.
- Make sure the ricotta has been properly strained overnight (see the section below on how to strain ricotta).
- Add the ricotta, powdered sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla to a bowl and beat until it is smooth and well combined.
- Add the chocolate chips to the ricotta mixture and stir until evenly distributed.
- Put the ricotta filling in a piping bag and snip off the end (make sure the opening of the pastry bag is large enough for the chocolate chips to pass through easily). Pipe into the cooled cannoli shells right before serving.
- For extra crunch, dip the ends of the cannoli shells in some more chocolate chips.
- Serve immediately. If the cannoli are for later, I recommend storing the shells and filling separately and filling them right before serving.
How to Strain Ricotta Cheese
It's important to strain the ricotta overnight to remove any excess liquid that might be in there. If you don't then that liquid will seep out into your cannoli shells and make them soggy.
- Measure out your ricotta cheese and wrap it in a cheesecloth, squeeze tightly.
- Place ricotta into a sieve over a medium bowl (while still wrapped in the cloth).
- Put a small plate on top of the ricotta and use something heavy to weigh it down. This will provide a little pressure overnight to release those juices.
- Let the ricotta sit like this in the fridge overnight. Once you are ready to make the cannoli filling, discard of the excess liquid in the bottom of the bowl and unwrap the ricotta from the cheese cloth.
Are Air Fryer Cannoli As Good As Regular Cannoli?
Traditional fried cannolis are so darn good, so how do the air-fryer cannoli really compare? I'm not going to lie to you and say the results are exactly the same from these different cooking methods, because they are not. But I wouldn't be writing this post if making this recipe in the air fryer didn't produce a delicious and impressive air fryer dessert. Here is the comparison:
The biggest noticeable difference between the deep-fried cannoli shells and air-fried cannoli shells is that the air fryer obviously cannot produce those famous cannoli 'bubbles' bursting all over the shell. The bubbles are traditionally the sign of a really good cannoli. But though the air fryer cannoli don't have this, I have to say I didn't miss them. Visually, it doesn't make too much difference as the cannoli shells will be coated in powdered sugar anyway, and so you can't really tell if the bubbles are there or not. And flavor-wise the bubbles don't add anything.
The next difference is the texture. The texture of the air fryer cannoli and fried cannoli are admittedly different, but I wouldn't say one is necessarily better than the other. Both methods made a crispy shell that was flaky and crumbled beautifully as you bite into it. The air fryer cannoli was possibly slightly more crunchy than crispy, but again I wouldn't have noticed a difference if I hadn't had the two to compare side-by-side.
There are many dessert recipes that I don't feel produce the best result when air fried, such as my Custard Donuts, but this cannoli recipe really does create a wonderful, crunchy, delicious cannoli. So if you are keen to make cannoli but would like a healthier option, or don't want to mess around with frying oil, definitely give this air fryer cannoli recipe a try!
What kind of Air Fryer Should I Use?
Any air fryer will do the trick, I have set up standard settings in this post which should apply to any model. I obviously have not tested every kind of air fryer and can't speak to their results, however, I was given an Instant Vortex 8-quart Dual Basket air fryer to play with and have been super impressed with the results so far on everything I have tried in it. I opted for the dual basket one as that meant I could have two batches of things on the go at once, such as with this recipe where you want to alternate the wrapping and cooking of the cannoli shells.
Substitutions
Ricotta Cheese - If you can't find or don't like ricotta cheese, you can swap it out for mascarpone. You can use it in the same quantity as the ricotta. Or you could use a mixture of ricotta and mascarpone. The mascarpone should still be strained just like the ricotta.
Mini Chocolate Chips - I used dark, mini chocolate chips - but you can use milk or white or regular-sized chocolate chips - whatever tickles your fancy!
Marsala Wine - You can substitute the Marsala wine for red or white wine, sherry, or red wine vinegar.
Variations
This air fryer cannoli recipe uses a classic ricotta cannoli filling with mini chocolate chips, but you can mix this classic recipe up in so many ways.
Pistachio Cannoli - Check out my pistachio cannoli recipe for a pistachio version of the filling
Citrus Cannoli - Another classic twist is to add lemon zest and candied orange peel to the cannoli filling instead of chocolate chips.
Dipped Chocolate - For even more chocolatey goodness, try melting some chocolate and dipping the ends of the cannoli shells in chocolate before filling.
Equipment
Air Fryer - Of course, to make air fryer cannoli you will need an air fryer. Any air fryer will do, but the one I used is the Instant Vortex 8-quart Dual Basket air fryer.
Cannoli Tubes - Cannoli tubes or forms are metal molds with a cylindrical shape that are designed for you to wrap your cannoli dough around to produce the correct shape. I highly recommend using purpose-made cannoli tubes as they are designed to withstand the frying heat without warping or causing marks at the joining point etc. You can order them online or in many specialty cooking stores.
Rolling Pin or Pasta Maker
Storage
It's best to fill the shells immediately before serving. But you can prepare the shells and the cannoli filling ahead of time.
You can store the unfilled shells in an airtight container for up to a week.
You can store the prepared cannoli filling in the fridge in an airtight container for 3 days.
I don't recommend trying to store filled cannoli as the shell will go soggy after a few hours.
Recipe
Air Fryer Cannoli
Equipment
- Round Cookie Cutter
- Rolling Pin or pasta maker
Ingredients
For the Cannoli Shells
- 1 ¾ cups All-purpose flour 250g
- 2 tablespoon White Sugar 25g
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- 3 tablespoon Butter 43g (room temperature)
- 1 Egg
- ⅓ cup Marsala Wine 80ml
For the Cannoli Filling
- 900 g Ricotta strained
- 1 ½ cups Powdered Sugar 195g
- ¼ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon
- 1tsp teaspoon Vanilla
- 1 cup Mini Chocolate Chips 170g
Instructions
- Strain the ricotta the night before and let it sit overnight.*
Make the Cannoli Shells
- Mix together the flour, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl.1 ¾ cups All-purpose flour, 2 tablespoon White Sugar, ¼ teaspoon Salt
- Cube the butter into small chunks then add to the flour mixture. Mix until it resembles lumpy breadcrumbs. You can do this in a food processor, a stand mixer or by rubbing the butter into the flour by hand.3 tablespoon Butter
- Add the egg and marsala wine and mix together just until a rough dough forms. If it needs more liquid, add a little splash more of the marsala wine and keep mixing. Don't overmix.1 Egg, ⅓ cup Marsala Wine
- Once it comes together into a raggedy dough, tip the mixture out and finish off the dough by hand, kneading on a floured worksurface.
- Knead the dough until it looks smooth. Form into a round shape and wrap in plastic wrap. Leave on the countertop to rest for 2 hours.**
- Roll out the dough as thinly as possible. It is quite an elastic dough so this requires some patience and perseverance. If you have a pasta maker then that can make this process easier, but it will work just fine with a rolling pin and patience. Ideally, it should be thin enough that you can see your fingers through it.
- Cut the thinly rolled dough into rounds. The longer you want your cannoli shells to be the larger you should cut your circles (but no longer than the cannoli tubes).
- Wrap your dough circles around the cannoli tubes and seal with a little egg wash. Press firmly on the seam to prevent the cannoli shell from unraveling.
- Once the first lot of cannoli tubes are 'dressed' brush your air fryer basket lightly with a little oil and preheat to 400°F / 205°C.
- Once the air fryer is preheated - place the first batch of cannoli shells into the basket, making sure they do not touch each other. Cook for 4-5 minutes, or until golden brown. There is no need to flip the shells over halfway through.
- Once the cannoli shells are evenly golden brown, remove them from the air fryer and place on a cooling rack covered with paper towels.
- Start air frying the next batch of shells. Once the second batch are cooked, the first batch should have cooled enough for you to carefully remove them from the cannoli tubes so you can reuse them with the next lot of dough rounds.
Make the Cannoli Filling
- Add the ricotta, powdered sugar, cinnamon and vanilla to a bowl and beat until it is smooth and well combined.900 g Ricotta, 1 ½ cups Powdered Sugar, ¼ teaspoon Ground Cinnamon, 1tsp teaspoon Vanilla
- Add the chocolate chips and stir until evenly distributed.1 cup Mini Chocolate Chips
- Put the cannoli filling in a piping bag and snip off the end. Pipe into the cooled cannoli shells right before serving.
- For extra crunch, dip the ends of the cannoli shells in some more chocolate chips.
- Serve immediately. If the cannoli are for later, I recommend storing the shells and filling separately and filling them right before serving.
Notes
It really helps and I love hearing all your feedback!
Nutrition
FAQ
Yes! Though air-fryer cannoli won't have those famous cannoli 'bubbles' on the shells, they still have that delicious, crispy, flaky shell if you use the right recipe.
Fresh ricotta contains a lot of excess liquid. If you don't strain the ricotta overnight and remove the excess liquid, then it will seep out of your filling and into your cannoli shells - making them soggy.
Absolutely, cannoli shells made in the air fryer are still crispy and flaky and go beautifully with the classic cannoli filling.
Linda Sebek
I have read through this recipe several times, but I don’t see any pistachios listed in the ingredients or in the directions, but it says “creamy pistachio filling”. Please advise.
Chris Radwanski
Under step 2 of “Making Pistachio Cannoli Filling” it says “Add the pistachio paste and mix it through the cannoli filling” it recommends 2 tablespoons of Pistachio Paste. It further says in step 4 to add chopped pistachios for an extra crunch. I hope this helps 🙂
Jules
Hi Linda,
So sorry for the confusion and thank you for pointing this out! This was a typo as I use the same cannoli shell recipe for both these cannoli and my pistachio cannoli recipe. You can find the pistachio cannoli filling here - https://bonnibakery.com/pistachio-cannoli/
Thank you,
Jules
Andrea
I cannot wait to try these! I love cannolis but never try making them because of all the oil they take to fry, but being able to make them in an air fryer is a game changer (and probably a waist size changer lol)
Chris Radwanski
Admittedly, I thought cannoli was cannelloni for the longest time, and I'm ever so happy now that I know the difference. These were amazing and I have found a whole bunch of different foods that I hadn't tried in my life! Thanks for showing these to me, super enjoyable, please keep it up!
Jules
Aww that is the sweetest comment 🙂 <3