No-Bake Cannoli Pie

I can’t think of a single person who doesn’t love cannoli, those tubes of crispy fried dough filled with a ricotta mixture that’s often laced with spices and orange zest that are then dipped in chocolate and coated with either pistachios or even more chocolate.

While I’m all for the classics, I am also always on the hunt for new, exciting recipes and this one, from queen Giada, seemed perfect to me. This recipe takes the classic components of cannoli but transforms them into a unique pie.

This cannoli pie features a crunchy biscotti crust that has a thin layer of chocolate spread onto it to protect the crust from the filling while also ensuring you have the maximum amount of chocolate that you can. The pie is filled with a ricotta-mascarpone filling, almost like a cheesecake filling, and is then topped with whipped cream and the aforementioned toppings.

It sounds amazing and I think is the perfect way to put a spin on classic holiday pies.

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Serves 10:

Total time: 50 minutes plus overnight chilling

Difficulty: Easy

For the crust:

• 8 store bought almond biscotti cookies (about 5-6 ounces)

• 1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted

• 2 tablespoons sugar

For the Filling:

• 4 ounces semisweet chocolate

• 3/4 cup cold heavy cream

• 1 cup whole milk ricotta, excess liquid drained

• 8 oz (1 container) mascarpone cheese

• 1/2 cup powdered sugar

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1/2 tsp cinnamon

• 1/4 tsp salt

• Grated zest of 1 orange

• 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips

For the Topping:

• 1 cup cold heavy cream

• 1/4 cup powdered sugar

• 1/4 cup roasted pistachios, chopped fine

• 1/4 cup Mini chocolate chips

• Flaky sea salt, optional but highly recommended

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1. Make the Crust: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Dump the biscotti into a food processor and blitz until it breaks down into fine crumbs. Add the melted butter and sugar, then pulse to combine. Dump the mixture into a 9-inch pie pan, then use your fingers to tamp and press the mixture into an even layer along the sides and bottom of the pan.

2. Bake the crust for about 10 minutes, or until golden, then set aside to cool.

3. Place the chocolate into a microwave safe bowl then microwave at 15 second intervals, stirring between each interval, until melted. Use a pastry brush to spread the chocolate into an even layer on the cooled crust. Set that in the fridge to harden.

4. Make the filling: Whip the heavy cream with a whisk or electric beater until it forms stiff peaks. Set aside.

5. Combine the strained ricotta, mascarpone, powdered sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, salt, and orange zest then beat together with a whisk until it becomes smooth and creamy. Beat in 1/3 of the whipped cream until combine then add the remaining cream and gently fold to combine before folding in the mini chocolate chips.

6. Pour the mixture into the crust and chill for at least 5 hours, but overnight would be better.

7. Make the Topping: When ready to serve, beat the cream with the powdered sugar and salt until it forms stiff peaks. Spread that into an even layer on the filling, then top with the pistachios, mini chocolate chips and, if you want, a pinch of flaky salt before slicing and serving.