Cannoli Cheesecake

Hello friends, today we are making Cannoli Cheesecake. This cheesecake features a graham cracker crust, it tastes just like cannoli filling, and it’s topped with a delicious Ricotta Whipped Cream.

This Cannoli Cheesecake is not overly sweet, it’s super smooth and creamy. It’s less rich than most cheesecakes because it’s made with part ricotta, which lightens up the texture and the flavor of the cake. The cheesecake truly tastes exactly like cannoli filling. It’s absolutely delicious!

I made this Cannoli Cheesecake in partnership with Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk. Everything is better when it’s made with sweetened condensed milk!

I used sweetened condensed milk in the filling for the cheesecake along with the ricotta and cream cheese, and this is one of my favorite cheesecake textures that I’ve ever tried.

The cheesecake was super light and fluffy!

First we start with a graham cracker crust.

There’s no need to bake the crust before baking the cheesecake. You can pour the filling over the unbaked crust and bake it all at the same time.

The crust is simple to make, consists of graham cracker crust, cinnamon, brown sugar, and melted butter. I always like to add a bit of cinnamon and brown sugar to my graham cracker crust.

The filling of the cheesecake is also super simple to make.

Make sure the cream cheese is at room temperature. Cold cream cheese makes lumpy cheesecake.

Beat the cream cheese until super fluffy, then add the ricotta and the sweetened condensed milk.

I like to scrape the bowl several times while making cheesecake, because any bit of cream cheese that’s stuck on the bottom of the bowl, will be a lump later on when you transfer it all to the pan.

Add the eggs, and remember to not over mix, but make sure one egg is added before adding the next.

If you do over beat the cheesecake once the eggs have been added, you can risk cracking the cake when it bakes in the oven.

Bake the cheesecake over a water bath to prevent cracking.

An alternative to placing the cheesecake directly over the water bath, is to place a pan with hot water on the bottom rack of the oven, below the rack where the cheesecake will be baking.

A water bath will prevent the cheesecake from cracking.

Another way I like to keep my cheesecake from cracking, is to run a knife around the edges as soon as it’s done baking. When the cheesecake cools down, it will deflate a bit, and if the sides of the cake are stuck to the pan when that happens, that can cause the center to crack.

However, when doing this, don’t pull the cake out of the oven to run the knife around the edges. The cake should slowly cool down in the oven, with the door cracked open and the oven off once it’s done baking. So just get in there, but be careful not to burn yourself.

If you remove the hot cake from the oven while it’s super hot, it can crack.

To top the cheesecake, I made my Cannoli Recipe into mini cannoli. I thought there could be no other topping for my beautiful Cannoli Cheesecake. If you don’t want to make the mini cannoli, that’s totally fine, the mini chocolate chips or chopped pistachios and a dusting of powdered sugar will make for a beautiful cake!

How to avoid cracked cheesecake

• Don’t over mix the batter once you add the eggs.
• Bake at a low temperature, I prefer 300ºF in my conventional oven.
• Bake the cheesecake over a water bath.
• Don’t remove the cheesecake from the oven as soon as it’s done baking, leave it in the oven for about 1 hour with the door cracked, and the oven off. The slow temperature change will prevent cracks.
• As soon as the cheesecake is done baking, run a knife around the edges of the cheesecake to loosen the sides from the pan.

This Cannoli Cheesecake recipe is perfect for the holidays and for any gathering. It is sure to be a crowd pleaser.

Here are some more recipes you might enjoy:

• Cranberry Cheesecake
• Pecan Pie Cheesecake
• No-bake Chocolate Pie
• Baklava Cheesecake
• Apple Dulce de Leche Cheesecake

Cannoli Cheesecake

Camila Hurst

This Cannoli Cheesecake is the perfect dessert to bring to a gathering. It features a graham cracker crust, it tastes just like cannoli filling, and it’s topped with a delicious Ricotta Whipped Cream.

5 from 2 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 50 minutes mins

Cook Time 1 hour hr

0 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 50 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Servings 10 people

Calories 260 kcal

Ingredients

  

Graham Cracker Crust

• 1 1/2 cups graham cracker crumbs 170 grams
• 2 tbsp brown sugar 25 grams
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder
• 6 tbsp unsalted butter melted (85 grams)

Cannoli Cheesecake

• 1 1/4 cup cream cheese softened (283 grams)
• 1 14 oz. can Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk 396 grams
• 1 1/4 cup ricotta cheese 283 grams
• 4 large eggs room temperature
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp cinnamon powder

Ricotta Whipped Cream

• 1/2 cup heavy cream 120 ml
• 1/4 cup ricotta 56 grams
• 1/3 cup powdered sugar 41 grams

Toppings

• 1/4 cup mini chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup chopped pistachios
• 8 mini cannoli

Instructions

 

Graham Cracker Crust

• Place the graham cracker crumbs, brown sugar, and cinnamon powder in a bowl and mix. Add the melted butter and mix to combine.
• Press the crust on the bottom of a 9” spring form pan. Grease the sides of the pan with oil spray or butter. Set aside.

Cannoli Cheesecake

• Pre-heat the oven to 300ºF.
• Beat the cream cheese for about 2 minutes with a mixer at medium speed, until creamy and fluffy. Scrape the bottom of the bowl.
• Add the Eagle Brand® Sweetened Condensed Milk, ricotta, and mix. Scrape the bottom of the bowl again.
• Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing one egg completely before adding the next one, scraping the bottom of the bowl in between additions.
• Add the cinnamon and vanilla and mix to combine.
• Pour the cheesecake batter in the prepared pan.
• Cover the bottom of the pan with foil and place the spring form pan inside a larger pan with tall sides, such as a large roasting pan.
• Pour water in the large pan to form a water bath for the cheesecake. This will prevent the cheesecake from cracking.
• Bake the cheesecake in the oven for approximately one hour, until the center is slightly jiggly, but the edges of the cheesecake look set.
• Turn the oven off, open the door, and leave the cheesecake in there for 1 hour.
• Remove the cheesecake from the oven and let it cool down. Place it in the fridge overnight, or for at least 6 hours.

Ricotta Whipped Cream

• Add the whipping cream, ricotta, and sugar to the bowl of an electric mixer. Beat over medium high speed for a couple of minutes to stiff peaks.
• Place the cream in a piping bag.

Decorate

• Pipe the cream on top of the cheesecake, I used a tip 6B.
• Sprinkle chopped pistachios and mini chocolate chips on top of the cheesecake.

Keyword cannoli, cheesecake