Cannoli

These famous pastries from Sicily are made with a cylindrical fried pastry shell stuffed with ricotta and other ingredients—chocolate, nuts, candied fruit. According to legend, the first cannolo was invented in a harem in Caltanissetta as a compliment to their emir's virility.

During carnival men would give women cannoli and sing Ogni cannolu è scettru d' ogni Re... lu cannolu è la virga di Mosè (Every cannolo is the sceptre of every king… the cannolo is the penis of Moses).

Cannoli are specifically a Sicilian treat (cannolu in their language). The Piedmontese cannolo is made with pasta sfoglia and stuffed with cream or zabaglione. Other versions, made elsewhere in Italy or in the U.S., may use mascarpone or another cheese instead of ricotta.

At the end of May, Palermo hosts a Cannolo Festival in the Mercato Sanlorenzo with prizes for Sicily’s finest.