These Gluten-Free Ricotta-Stuffed Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cookies will remind you of cannoli you would find in Sicily, Italy. The creamy ricotta filling makes these cookies unlike any you’ve had before.
Let me tell you about the best cannolo I have ever had.
It was in Taormina, Sicily, which is, to this day, my favorite part of Italy that I’ve visited.
Please excuse my iPhone 4 photography.
Now, Sicily is known for its’ cannoli. So, if you ever get the chance to visit, get yoself a cannolo. Unfortunately, at this point in my life, I wasn’t as good at the take-a-photo-of-everything-you-eat thing, so I don’t have a picture of it. But, I can tell you that it was creamy, sweet, crunchy, nutty, chocolatey, orangey, and freaking delicious.
And it’s what inspired this recipe.
I’m not a Real Housewife of New Jersey – I don’t have the materials or time to make fresh cannoli at home. But, I can cookies. So I thought, how can I smash the flavors of a cannolo into a cookie?
And, how can I make it gluten-free?
It’s funny, because at the time that I visited Italy, I was on a gluten-free diet. I’d been having awful digestive issues that I’d seen a pattern with when consuming gluten, so I cut it out of my diet for a year. (I now know that it was my gallbladder the whole time – apparently the two are confused quite often). However, when I visited Italy, 1) gluten-free food was very accessible, and 2) I was in Italy and said IDGAF I’m eating all the gluten.
I never got sick. I ate what would be considered ‘junk food’, and still felt fine (as in, no bloating or discomfort, which happens every time I eat processed foods in the U.S.). I felt like everything was more natural, and no matter what I ate, it felt more like ‘real food’ than what I’m used to in the States.
[Tweet “YUM!! Gluten-Free Ricotta-Stuffed Pistachio Chocolate Chip Cookies!? “]
Italy, you da real MVP.
I kid you not, these cookies were gone in two days. They are definitely a crowd-pleaser!
If using ricotta for a cookie freaks you out (no judgments here!), I recommend replacing it with mascarpone cheese, a more ‘desserty’ Italian cheese.
[Tweet “All of the flavors of a cannolo morphed into a gluten-free cookie:”]
- 2 cups almond flour
- 3/4 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup vanilla Greek yogurt
- 1 cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 1/2 cup mini chocolate chips
- 1/2 cup chopped pistachios
- ~1 cup skim ricotta cheese
- Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees and prepare a cookie sheet.
- In a large bowl add in the flour, baking powder, baking soda, brown sugar and salt, and whisk together to combine.
- Next, add in the Greek yogurt, egg, and vanilla. Combine well.
- Fold in the chocolate chips and pistachios.
- Using an ice cream scoop, scoop (~1.5 inch) about 8 pieces of dough onto the cookie sheet, each about 2 inches apart. Using your finger, create a little dip in the center of the dough.
- Using a teaspoon, spoon ricotta into the dip of each piece of dough.
- Using the ice cream scoop, scoop dough and form atop each ricotta-filled cookie. Using your hands, press down the dough around the ricotta to make sure it is fully covered.
- If you have leftover dough, repeat steps 5-7. It’s important to remember from the beginning that you will have to use dough for the bottom and top, hence why you start out with only 8 pieces of dough.
- Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until you can see the bottoms begin to brown.
Join the conversation:
What is one meal/food that you’ll never forget from one of your travels?
What is your favorite dessert?
Hover over the image to ‘pin it’ for later!
This is such a creative and interesting recipe and I LOVE stuff like this! I’m going to Italy for the first time in July so I’ll take all the recommendations I can get and you’re getting me so excited. I’m not gluten free, but a lot of my cousins (who are also going with me) are so I pinned this to make for our next big family get together so we can all get excited about our trip!
OMG where in Italy are you going?? I AM SO JEALOUS
Love the flavor combo and–kinda random–but I really like that “cookie” font in the first photo. Isn’t it funny how a few years ago our phones were probably filled with photos of actual human beings as opposed to now, where it’s 92% food. Haaaaaa sad but true!
Thanks! New font ;D And yeah, my phone and computer are almost all food hahaha oops
My favorite dessert is always a larger than life chocolate chip cookie with M&M’s in it! My favorite food from travel would have to be the pizza in Florence, Italy. I will never forget it…So GOOD! XOXO
OMG I love chocolate chip cookies with M&Ms. I have yet to go to Florence!!
Oh I know the deliciousness of cannolis and all of the food in Italy, it just tastes so much better! I have not yet traveled to sicily but I seriously need to go there. I’m pretty sure that Italy is the best place ever and has the best food on earth. I have never seen a cookie stuffed with a cannoli filling before, how awesome is that!? It’s like an easy way to make cannolis!
I wholeheartedly agree that it has the best food on earth lol! I have to go back just to eat more!
Great idea!
There is an Italian gelato/pastry shop in New Orleans (Brocato’s if you’re ever there) that has THE BEST cannoli – we always bring back a dozen mini when we visit.
Since they’re m husband’s favorite – and I’m the awful wife who forgot to get him a Valentine’s Day card – I am making a batch for him!
Yes I’ve heard of that place! My father is from NOLA. I don’t think I’ve ever been though, now I need to!!
Oh my gosh yum! My granny is full Italian so she has had all the good stuff, and I can’t wait to try these out for her!
Oh where is she from?! My Italian roots stem from my father’s grandparents, who were from Sicily.
I love EVERYTHING about these cookies, and I’m seriously so excited to make them. What an awesome idea!! This post makes me miss Italy… we traveled all over for 2 weeks last October, and I can’t wait to go back!!
I sort of wish we went to more places because we were there for 2 weeks, too. But we only went to Sicily (stayed in Cefalu, and took day trips to other towns), and Rome. Just means I gotta go back ;D
mmmm, I looove chocolate and pistachio together.
Cannolis are one of my favorite desserts ever! When my husband and I backpacked through Europe a few years ago, Rome was one of our favorite stops. I’m pretty sure I ate my body weight in cannoli (and gelato)!
When we went, I totally ate my body weight in cornetti. Nutella-filled to be exact. GOSH I miss it!!
You, girl, are BRILLIANT. I just can’t turn down a good cannolo – LOVE that you turned them into a cookie even GF’ers can enjoy!
Me too. I remember one we had in Cefalu, Sicily that had candied orange peel and it was frickin ridonkulously good lolol
Uhhhh YUM girl. These sound amazing. I’m all about cheese in desserts and I bet these have an amazing texture. Also, with all of that fresh REAL food, Italy is totally the MVP. I’ve never been, but it’s on my bucket list of places to go!
You must go to Italy!! Paris, Spain and Ireland are on my bucket list. Among many other places! Italy is the only place I’ve been outside of the US (minus the Bahamas but I don’t count that)
These sound so delicious, I especially love that they are made with almond flour!
Thanks Victoria!!
DEFINITELY GOING TO BE BAKING THESE. I love pistachios and chocolate chips (OBV). I bet the yogurt & ricotta make them so nice and moist too.
My favorite meal from my travels was when I lived in Spain and I ate paella all the time. My house mom was incredible at making it.
My sister studied in Spain and said the food was amazing! She had a house mom too and I actually don’t think she was the best cook lmao #fail
Those look so good! I want one with my afternoon coffee!
Thanks Amanda! <3
Oh my gosh! these look amazing! Such a lovely recipe! Also, one treat I’ll never forget from my travels was when I had dark chocolate honey sorbet from Montreal! I’ll never forget it! I went back the next year and got the same thing!! YUM!
Dark chocolate honey!? That sounds amazing, I can see why you haven’t forgotten!!
One of my most memorable meals traveling was in italy as well! I studied abroad in Paris in college and went to italy by myself – total eat, pray, love move. I was stumbling all over rome looking for this tiny restaurant that I had heard about, and literally found myself ducking through alleyways and finally came across it! Best bucatini alla amatriciana I think I’ll ever had was eaten that day.
WAIT what was the restaurant called!? I’m sure there are plenty like this, but we ate at a restaurant that was in an alley way or near one haha and it was amazing.
I would never think to combine those ingredients to make a cookie but now I’m so intrigued I think I have to make these. Pinned for the weekend <3
I hope you enjoy!! <3
Okay, ALL about these! I’ve used ricotta in a lemon cookie for Easter one year, and they were definitely a favorite! These sound AHMAZING though. Lurve your photos too <3
Favorite dessert…. gosh probably ice cream, not gonna lie. I like me some dairy 😉
If I could take a spoon to anything these days, it would be a) cream cheese frosting, or b) cannoli filling. So, yes: I’ll gladly eat 3 of these, and then help you finish the leftover filling 😛
I had a phase around the age of 12 where I was so obsessed with cannolis… obsessed. These look incredible. I love ricotta savory and sweet. I love slapping it on toast, with pasta any form of ricotta and I’m down.