If you’re a fan of cannoli, you’re going to fall in love with this Cannoli Cupcake Recipe. These are a fun twist on the classic Italian dessert and are so easy to customize with fun toppings!
What You’ll Need
While these Cannoli Cupcakes are super simple to make, they do require a couple of special ingredients that you may not be used to seeing in a dessert recipe. A full list of ingredients with measurements for this recipe is available in the printable recipe card below.
- Ricotta Cheese– You may have seen it in savory recipes such as lasagna, dips and even ricotta cheese fritters, but ricotta is also used in sweet recipes like Italian ricotta cheesecake and cannoli filling. You can find ricotta cheese in your local grocery store near the sour cream.
- Mascarpone Cheese– Mascarpone is basically the Italian version of American cream cheese, but it’s a bit richer and creamier because it’s made from whole cream. It makes a fabulous addition to the cannoli filling.
- Powdered sugar
- Vanilla extract
- Mini chocolate chips
- All purpose flour
- Baking powder
- Baking soda
- Ground cinnamon
- Fine sea salt
- Sugar
- Unsalted butter
- Buttermilk
- Vegetable oil
- Eggs
- Cream cheese
- Maraschino cherries
Perfect Pairings
These cannoli cupcakes are decadent enough to be served all on their own but it’s also perfect when paired with dalgona whipped coffee or a steamy mug of regular coffee. You can also serve it alongside other Italian treats like tiramisu and fried dough.
Cannoli Cupcakes
These EASY Cannoli Cupcakes are stuffed with classic cannoli filling, topped with cream cheese frosting and topped with cherries & chips.
Servings:
Equipment
Ingredients
Filling:
- ½ cup ricotta cheese
- ½ cup mascarpone cheese
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ½ cup mini chocolate chips
Cupcake Sponge:
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¾ cup granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter , softened
- ½ cup buttermilk
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- 8 ounces cream cheese , softened
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter , softened
- 5-6 cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Toppings:
Instructions
Filling:
- Drain the ½ cup ricotta cheese in a colander or fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth. Lightly break apart and gently press into the sides. Allow to sit for 1-3 hours. If over 1 hour, place in the refrigerator with a bowl underneath to catch the dripping liquid.
- In a medium mixing bowl, fold together the drained ricotta and softened ½ cup mascarpone cheese. Do not overmix.
- Stir in the ½ cup powdered sugar and ½ teaspoon vanilla extract.
- Fold in the ½ cup mini chocolate chips. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use.
Cupcake Sponge:
- Preheat your oven to 350°F and add cupcake liners into a cupcake tin and set aside.
- Whisk or sift together the 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour, ½ teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon baking soda, ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamonand ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt into a medium bowl.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, add the softened ¾ cup granulated sugar and 6 tablespoons unsalted butter and cream for 1-2 minutes until light and fluffy.
- Add the½ cup buttermilk, ¼ cup vegetable oil, 2 eggs and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract and mix until just combined.
- Add in the dry mixture and mix on low speed until there are no dry spots remaining. Scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl and mix for an additional 30 seconds to make sure the ingredients are fully combined, but try not to overmix.
- Fill each cupcake liner halfway with batter and gently tap the pan on the counter to remove any air bubbles.
- Bake for 10-13 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in each cupcake comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool completely.
Cream Cheese Frosting:
- While the cupcakes are cooling, prepare the frosting by creaming together the softened 8 ounces cream cheese and 1/2 cup unsalted butter in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment and cream for 3-4 minutes or until smooth.
- Stir in the 5-6 cups powdered sugar, one cup at a time, combining after each addition. Add in the 1 teaspoon vanilla extract last and mix until just combined.
- Add the frosting to a piping bag with a large star attachment (I use a Wilton 1M tip).
Assembly:
- Take each cupcake and use a cupcake corer, piping tip or a small knife to remove the center of each cupcake (keep the tops of what you remove).
- Fill the center of each cupcake with the cannoli filling. Trim the tops to make remove for the filling and replace the top part of the cupcake.
- Pipe a generous swirl of frosting on top of each cupcake. Sprinkle with mini chocolate chips and top with a Maraschino cherries.
- Please come back to let us know how this recipe was in the comments or ratings section!
Notes
*If using salted butter, omit additional salt.
*Use a vanilla box cake mix, add cinnamon to dry mixture and prepare according to package instructions.
Nutrition
Calories: 526 kcal, Carbohydrates: 69 g, Protein: 5 g, Fat: 26 g, Saturated Fat: 17 g, Trans Fat: 1 g, Cholesterol: 80 mg, Sodium: 158 mg, Potassium: 81 mg, Fiber: 1 g, Sugar: 58 g, Vitamin A: 732 IU, Vitamin C: 1 mg, Calcium: 74 mg, Iron: 1 mg
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Storage and Freezing
How to store?
You can store cannoli cakes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to five days.
Can I freeze cannoli cupcakes?
You can also store the cupcakes separately if you want to frost them later – just wrap them tightly in plastic wrap. They can be frozen with or without frosting, just don’t garnish with cherries. Thaw them at room temperature for about 20 minutes.
More Homemade Cupcake Recipes
Cupcakes have all the goodness of cake, but in a portable handheld method of enjoying! Here are some of my favorites.
These are SOOOO GOOD! It was my first time making cupcakes from scratch and I found this recipe and I fell in love! The filling is so addicting!
So glad you loved them!
These were fantastic! I love cannoli but they are so oily, this was the perfect alternative, all the cannoli flavors but not greasy.
The mix of ricotta and mascarpone cheese in the filling was to die for! I could just eat that with a spoon…but I didn’t 🙂 The cupcakes were delicious too!
These cupcakes look right up my alley! I haven’t made cupcakes in forever, so this is a great reminder. Bookmarked to make this weekend!
We love cannoli and that cream cheese frosting looks so smooth and creamy! Giving these a try at the weekend!
Let us know how they go!