Low Fat Cannolis

sitstaygimmeeakiss

I have a whole tray of cannoli shells in my freezer (leftover from Easter - bought them wholesale). I'm surprised that they haven't tempted me very much - but this wk, on shopping day, I decided buy the ingredients I needed... :devil:

No, they aren't going to be full of knock-your-socks off delicious-ness, but they turned out, IMO, really good.


Here's my ratio:

1/4 C. fat free ricotta
2 Tablespoons fat free sour cream*
1 - 2 pkgs splenda (taste after adding to make sure the sweetness is right)
drop of vanilla
drop of anise flavoring (optional - some people, such as non-Italians, actually don't like the taste of anise! Who knew?!!!)

I LOVE anise, so I used a drop of my anise oil, which is prob the same as a whole bottle of extract/flavoring, lol. Wouldn't advise that unless you are Italian or Greek, haha. Mmmm....

Smoosh it all together. Hopefully you won't have a teeny chihuahua mix who suddenly got terrified at who-knows-what (could have been the squeaky door to where I keep my spices), or you'll have dog in arms while you mix it together, and you'll be picking dog fur out of your creation.

To fill the tiny cannoli shells, you can use a regular plastic bag instead of a pastry bag - cut out a very small portion of the tip, and squeeze to fill.

Or - just leave the mixture in a bowl, and alternate bites between the ricotta mixture and cannoli shells.

While holding your dog on your lap, of course...

*originally I planned to use fat free cream cheese instead of the sour cream. I think that would have given the ricotta that added creaminess that the fat free version is lacking - but the store I was at didn't have any. :noway: The addition of the fat free sour cream turned out great, though, so I think I'll continue to just do this.:bigsmile:

KTalada

Thanks! This sounds GREAT! I'm gonna have to give it a try one evening when not rushed (a non-workday perhaps)! Sorry about the scared little pup though! :ohwell:

Thanks for sharing your recipe with us! :flowerforyou:

aippolito1

Where did you get the cannoli shells?

SueInAz

You might try plain non-fat Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. They have about the same taste but the yogurt is much creamer and loaded with protein. Just the filling you made sounds yummy, even without the shells.

sitstaygimmeeakiss

I bought the cannoli shells at a restaurant supply place. Fantastic find - but caters only to the restaurant industry.

(true confession time, haha)

Am I *in* the restaurant industry, in any manner at all? Nope. Long story... but yrs ago I thought I was going to start my own (web-based) business. Never made even a dime. :embarassed: Still have my tax # so I used that. But I just got a temp card to use that day - don't think it's worth me going back. Lord knows I love the cannoli shells, though - esp. at those wholesale prices. Got a huge box...over a hundred for about $15 (may have been $12....)

Anyway, no one NORMAL needs that size, unless you decided to cater a wedding. :laugh: Ferrari is the standard brand sold - I'm in the Boston area, and even w/our diminishing Italian population, it's still easy to find them. As for the rest of the country... YMMV.

(and honestly, the filling is yummy enough to forgo the shells - which are fried, btw. :noway: ... which is why I love them, I guess, haha)

sitstaygimmeeakiss

You might try plain non-fat Greek yogurt instead of sour cream. They have about the same taste but the yogurt is much creamer and loaded with protein. Just the filling you made sounds yummy, even without the shells.

Yeah, I'm sure Greek yogurt would make it take fantastic. It's just that, right now, I can't justify the cost. But an easy way to replicate Greek yogurt (haven't done this in a long, long time) is to drain regular yogurt in a strainer (I would let it drain overnight, in the fridge) lined w/a coffee filter. Makes some amazing stuff - I used to make my own yogurt, and then do that - but w/the increased cost of milk these days plus my own increased laziness, I haven't bothered lately.