Homemade Sourdough Cannoli can be long-fermented with active sourdough starter or made quickly with discard. You can get creative with the filling, but this light and sweet ricotta filling is my favorite! The recipe calls for all-purpose flour, but I also have instructions for using freshly milled flour if you prefer it.
A Quick Recipe Overview: Sourdough Cannoli
- ✅ Recipe Name: Sourdough Cannoli
- 🕒 Ready In: 55 minutes (plus optional straining time)
- 👪 Serves: 12 large cannoli
- 🍽 Calories: ~235 per cannoli
- 🥣 Main Ingredients: Flour, sugar, butter, sourdough starter/discard, egg, ricotta, powdered sugar, vanilla, neutral oil for frying
- 📖 Dietary Info: Vegetarian, sourdough discard friendly, fresh-milled flour option, make-ahead components (shells can be stored/frozen)
- ⭐ Why You’ll Love It: These homemade sourdough cannoli have crisp, lightly sweet fried shells and a creamy vanilla ricotta filling — and you can make them with active starter OR discard. It’s a fun, impressive Italian dessert that feels bakery-worthy but is totally doable at home.
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“This is such a fun way to use starter, the ricotta filling is light and delicious with the crispy cannoli shells!” – Steph
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Get Creative with Fillings: The ricotta cheese filling is just sweet enough but not too sugary that it’s overpowering. You can use substitute cream cheese if you want a richer option or mix in extras like chocolate chips or nuts!
- Long-Ferment: If you want better digestibility that comes with long fermentation, which breaks down phytic acid and gluten, long-ferment the dough for 4-12 hours during the “rest” period.
- Make it Quick with Discard: If you want this recipe ready in an hour, start to finish, follow the instructions as is in the recipe card below!
- Fresh Milled Flour: The recipe calls for all-purpose flour, but if you prefer FMF, I’ve got you covered! I included measurement adjustments and wheat variety recommendations below.
If you’ve mastered classics like sourdough artisan bread, sourdough pancakes, or sourdough sandwich bread, it’s time to get creative and try something new!
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Key Ingredients
Precise measurements and instructions can be found in the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Sourdough Starter: You can use any kind of flour in your starter, and it works for this recipe whether it is active or discard. Just be sure to stir it down if it is active, and it works best if it’s more on the thin side.
- Flour: The recipe calls for all-purpose flour, however you can use any type of flour. If using fresh milled, I recommend using soft white wheat. You will need to adjust the amount to 2 cups. I get my flour and my wheat berries from Azure Standard because of the quality and the option to buy in bulk.
- Salt: I use Redmond Real Salt for all of my daily baking and cooking in my kitchen. I love the added trace minerals in our diet from using quality salt!
- Ricotta Cheese: I prefer a classic, lightly sweetened ricotta filling because it’s not too rich or overpowering. You can substitute cream cheese if you want the richness!
- Sugar: I use minimally processed organic cane sugar or natural sweeteners like maple syrup or honey in all of my daily baking. I get my organic cane sugar in 25lb bags from Azure Standard. If you’ve got a sweet tooth, you’re going to want to make my sourdough chocolate chip cookies next!
Fresh Milled Flour for Sourdough Cannoli
TLDR – I use 2 cups fresh milled flour from soft white wheat for this sourdough cannoli recipe.
- Best Wheat for Making Sourdough Cannoli: Soft white wheat makes the best pastry flour because its naturally lower protein (gluten) content yields tender, delicate, flaky baked goods, ideal for pastries, sourdough pie crust, and any recipe where a soft texture is desired rather than chewiness (like bread). I use Heirloom Soft White Wheat Berries from Azure Standard.
- Flour Ratio: Freshly Milled to All-Purpose: Soft white wheat has a higher moisture content, so you need to use more of it when substituting for all-purpose flour. Use 1 1/4 cup soft white wheat flour for every 1 cup all-purpose flour. For this recipe you’ll need 2 cups fresh milled soft white wheat flour.
- How Freshly Milled Flour Affects Texture and Flavor: Using freshly milled soft white wheat flour gives sourdough cannoli a slightly nutty, subtly sweet flavor and a crisp, flaky texture, while still providing plenty of structure to hold fillings.
Step-By-Step Instructions for Making Sourdough Cannoli
STEP 1: Add the dry ingredients (flour, sugar, and salt) to a mixing bowl or food processor and mix to combine. Then add cold cubes of butter and cut in with a fork or pulse with the food processor until you reach a crumbly texture.
STEP 2: Add the stirred-down sourdough starter/discard and egg, and mix to form a shaggy dough. Turn the dough out onto a flour-dusted work surface and knead for 2 minutes until smooth.
STEP 3: Shape the dough into a disc, cover with a towel or plastic wrap, and allow it to rest at room temperature for 30 minutes (quick option) or 4-12 hours (long-ferment option).
STEP 4: While the dough is resting, heat neutral oil to 350°F in a skillet, Dutch oven, or fryer. Also, strain the ricotta that will be used for the filling through cheesecloth or a fine mesh sieve and discard the whey that’s strained off.
STEP 5: After the dough has rested, roll it out as thin as possible on a generously floured work surface. Use a round cookie cutter or glass to cut the dough into rounds.
STEP 6: Reshape dough scraps and cut into more rounds. Using a large cookie cutter will yield 12 cannoli, using a small one will yield closer to 24.
STEP 7: Spray or lightly brush the cannoli forms with neutral oil and then wrap cannoli dough rounds around the form. Whisk up the extra egg for an egg wash and use a bit to seal the edges of each cannolo around the form.
STEP 8: Fry 4 to 5 cannoli at a time at 350°F for 2 minutes total, 1 minute on each side.
STEP 9: Remove cannoli from oil and place on paper towels to drain. Immediately remove the forms from each cannoli, let the forms cool completely, and then repeat until all cannoli are fried, drained, and cooled.
STEP 10: Make the filling while cannoli are cooling. Add all filling ingredients to a mixing bowl and whisk or use a hand mixer to whisk until smooth. Fold in any add-ins you like: chocolate chips, berries, coconut, nuts, etc.
STEP 11: Use a piping bag to fill the cannoli shells, then add your favorite toppings, dust with powdered sugar, and serve!
If you need help with sourdough vocabulary, check out my Complete Guide to Sourdough Terms!
Sourdough Cannoli Sample Timelines
Quick Discard Option
1 Hour start to finish
- starter can be active or inactive
- 0:00 – place the ricotta in a cheesecloth or fine strainer and set aside. Mix the dough, wrap it, and let it rest at room temp for 30 minutes. While the dough rests, prepare the filling.
- 0:30 – Heat your oil to 350F
- 0:40 – Roll out the dough, cut it, and shape onto cannoli forms.
- 0:50 – Fry in batches for 2 minutes at a time.
- 1:00 – remove fried cannoli from molds, add filling, and serve.
Long-Fermented
DAY 1
- morning – afternoon – Feed your starter
- evening – Mix the dough, cover it, and let it long-ferment overnight.
DAY 2
- 7:00am – Place the ricotta in a cheesecloth or fine strainer and set aside and heat oil to 350F. Then roll out the dough, cut it, and shape onto cannoli forms.
- 7:10 am – Fry in batches for 2 minutes at a time.
- 7:20 am – While cannoli are cooling, prepare the filling, then add the filling and serve.
Sourdough Cannoli FAQs
Yes. Sourdough cannoli can be made with discard or active starter. Since the dough doesn’t need to rise like bread, discard works well. For long fermentation, let the dough ferment 4–12 hours instead of resting briefly.
Straining ricotta keeps the sourdough cannoli filling thick so it doesn’t leak or make the shells soggy. Drain for at least 30 minutes before mixing the filling.
Fry sourdough cannoli shells at 350°F. If you don’t have a thermometer, the oil is ready when a small piece of dough sizzles and floats immediately.
Yes. Cream cheese can replace ricotta in sourdough cannoli filling for a richer, cheesecake-style texture. Add-ins like chocolate chips or nuts also work well.
Expert Tips for Making Sourdough Cannoli
- Use soft white wheat if you’re milling your flour fresh. This variety works best for pastries like cannoli and gives you a tender, crisp shell.
- Fry your cannoli in a neutral, high-heat oil like avocado oil or tallow. Skip olive oil, as it’s too strong, and avoid vegetable oil if you’re steering clear of heavily processed options. Coconut oil is okay, but may impart a light coconut taste.
- Spoon in the filling if you don’t have a piping bag. A small spoon works just fine to fill each cannolo.
- You can swap ricotta with cream cheese for a cheesecake-style filling. It tastes great, too.
- Cannoli is best fresh!
Storage
Store unfilled cannoli shells airtight at room temperature up to 5 days or freeze up to 2 months. Reheat at 300°F to re-crisp before filling.
Ricotta filling keeps refrigerated up to 5 days.
Filled cannoli are best fresh; refrigerated, they’ll last up to 3 days but will soften.
Unfried cannoli rounds can be stacked with parchment and refrigerated 1–2 days before frying. Do not freeze filled cannoli.
If you love this recipe, please leave a ⭐ 5-star ⭐ rating below! If you have questions or suggestions – drop a comment!
Sourdough Cannoli
Ingredients
Method
- Whisk dry ingredients (flour, sugar, and salt) together.
- Cut in cold butter until crumbly.
- Stir in sourdough starter/discard and egg until a shaggy dough forms; knead briefly until smooth.
- Shape into a disc, cover, and rest 30 minutes (or 4–12 hours for long fermentation).
- Heat neutral oil to 350°F and strain ricotta.
- Roll dough thin and cut into rounds.
- Wrap dough around greased cannoli forms and seal edges with egg wash.
- Fry 4–5 at a time for about 2 minutes, turning once.
- Drain on paper towels and remove forms when cool.
- In a separate bowl, whisk filling ingredients until smooth; fold in add-ins.
- Fill shells, dust with powdered sugar, and serve.
Nutrition
Notes
- Best fresh: Fill cannoli just before serving for crisp shells.
- Oil choice matters: Fry in neutral, high-heat oil (avocado oil or tallow). Avoid olive oil; coconut oil adds mild coconut flavor.
- Filling options: Ricotta or cream cheese both work; add chocolate chips or other mix-ins if desired.
- No piping bag needed: A small spoon works for filling.
- Fresh milled flour: Use soft white wheat and increase flour to 2 cups.
- Storage: Store unfilled shells airtight at room temp up to 5 days or freeze up to 2 months (re-crisp at 300°F). Filling keeps refrigerated up to 5 days.
- Make ahead: Unfilled dough rounds can be refrigerated 1–2 days before frying. Do not freeze filled cannoli.
Tried this recipe?
Let us know how it was!About the Author
Welcome to Hopewell Heights, I’m Steph – seasoned sourdough baker, homesteader, homemaker, homeschooling mom of 5, and creator behind this Heritage American food blog. I hope you enjoy my family’s favorite, from-scratch recipes!
This is such a fun way to use starter, the ricotta filling is light and delicious with the crispy cannoli shells!