If you love cannoli – the flaky Italian treat found at any Italian bakery, you’ll think you’re in heaven with these baked cannoli that are both easy to make AND delicious!!!

“Leave the gun… take the cannoli.”

If you’ve watched The Godfather, you probably hear that line every single time cannoli are mentioned. I know I do. And honestly… who wouldn’t take the cannoli? I mean, come on.

Cannoli have been a constant in my life. My sister-in-law’s mother-in-law was Sicilian and made the most incredible Sicilian cannoli: crispy fried shells, creamy ricotta filling, and little flecks of dark chocolate. They were glorious.
But let’s be real, traditional Sicilian cannoli take commitment. The pastry dough is finicky, the frying is messy, and even she eventually started buying high-quality shells because she was tired of dealing with the hassle.

Restaurant cannoli follow the same path: beautiful, delicious, very Sicilian… and not exactly quick.

But these?
These are something entirely different.

They’re fast, flaky, bakery-worthy baked cannoli made with store-bought puff pastry and a two-ingredient filling that tastes like pastry cream. No frying. No stress. Just roll, bake, fill, and enjoy.

And yes, they’re worth taking every single time.

Why These Baked Cannoli Are So Easy

If traditional cannoli are a labour of love, baked cannoli are a gift from the pastry gods.

You simply:

• roll out puff pastry
• cut into strips
• wrap around cannoli tubes (or DIY versions!)
• bake until golden
• pipe in a super-simple filling
• dust in icing sugar

That’s it.

If you want to grab your own cannoli tubes, you can find them here!! But if you want to make them asap and you don’t own cannoli tubes, don’t panic. Just wrap a sugar cone tightly in foil, spray it with cooking spray, and wrap the pastry around that. Works like a charm.

Sicilian Cannoli vs. Baked Cannoli

Just so expectations are clear:

Traditional Sicilian Cannoli

• fried shells
• ricotta filling
• typically includes chocolate, candied fruit, pistachios
• crisp, bubbly, rustic texture

These Easy Baked Cannoli

• puff-pastry shells (flaky, light, buttery)
• whipped cream + pudding filling
• minimal effort, maximum payoff
• great for big batches, holidays, parties, or last-minute desserts

They’re different, but equally delicious, and a great option for anyone who wants cannoli flavour without Sicilian-level commitment.

Customizing Your Baked Cannoli Filling

Here are some fun variations that take very little extra effort:

• add Nutella for chocolate-hazelnut cannoli
• use lemon pudding for a bright, fresh lemon cannoli
• add almond extract and dip the ends in toasted almonds
• mix in mini chocolate chips for a chocolate-chip filling
• swirl in raspberry jam for a berry cannoli

And don’t forget Suzie’s famous rule:
Broken pastry bits have zero calories. Everyone knows this.

FAQ: Baked Cannoli

In case you are interested in learning more about the history of the Cannoli you can check it out here.

Fast and Flaky Baked Cannoli Recipe

Fast Baked Cream-Filled Cannoli

These are flaky and light with a filling that resembles pastry cream! You can add Nutella to flavour it or use lemon flavoured pudding to change it up a bit!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 45 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 15 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine Italian

Servings 30

Ingredients

  

• 1 pkg (450g) store bought puff pastry (2 sheets)
• flour for rolling
• 2 boxes (102g) instant vanilla pudding
• 1 litre whipping cream
• Icing sugar for dusting
• cooking spray
• metal tube forms (cannoli tubes) from a bakery supply store)

Instructions

 

• Preheat your oven to 400°F . Line a large baking sheet with parchment and spray each cannoli tube with cooking spray (you’ll only need this once)
• Unroll the first puff pastry sheet and place it on a well, floured surface.  Roll out to about 15 x 10-inches and cut into 15 long evenly cut strips per sheet.
• Starting from one end of the cannoli tube, wrap the puff pastry around the tube making sure to slightly overlap the pastry dough each time you wrap around (making sure that there are no gaps in between); place each puff pastry wrapped tube on your baking tray (making sure the end pieces are tucked under) and bake on the middle rack for approximately 15 minutes or until they are a light golden brown. 
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, add your whipping cream and both packages of pudding mix; beat (with the wire whisk attachment if you have it) on medium speed until it has thickened.  Spoon into a piping bag and if you don’t have a piping bag you can use a plastic ziploc bag snipping off a small piece at the corner of the bag, big enough to fit into each cannoli tube.    
• Remove the Cannoli from the oven and allow to cool.
• Once cooled gently remove each cannoli shell from the metal form by grasping the tube with one hand and gently wrapping your hand around the cannoli, being careful not to press too hard); set aside. Gently pipe the filling into each cannoli shell and dust with icing sugar on top. 
• Refrigerate until ready to serve (for optimum crispiness, don’t fill the cannoli too far ahead of time)
• **If you don’t have the Cannoli metal forms you could use a sugar cone wrapped tightly in aluminum foil and spray each aluminum wrapped cone with a non-stick baking spray