Cannoli Pound Cake

Today is one of those days on vacation when I have lots of grownup things to do.  I have to cancel my old insurance (which took literally 3 weeks because they kept not being able to find my policy! Annoying), I had a dentist appointment, and I have an MRI on my old creaky neck in an hour and a half.  Plus I left the house the teeniest bit messy after a fun dinner last night with Jesse and Emily so I had some cleaning to do (skinny baked mac and cheese with broccoli, if you were wondering, with salad and bread and wine... lots of wine. I can't keep up with those Bergerons). I have to admit, I kind of like days like this.  They aren't fun, but it feels good to check things off my list, and it reminds me that I really am a grownup, even if I sometimes don't feel like it :)

Speaking of grownup things, I made this cannoli pound cake on the day that I closed on my house!  YES this lovely little mansion is MINE FOREVER.  Ahhh.  Sometimes life works out wonderfully, doesn't it?

Okay, back to the delicious and ingenious cannoli pound cake!  I mean, who doesn't love cannolis, right?  But they're intimidating even to someone like me who enjoys lengthy recipes.  This recipe combines many of the flavors and textures of cannolis without all the work.  How smart is that?  There's obviously plenty of ricotta to keep things super moist and soft (for days!), and grated lemon and orange peel, and mini chocolate chips and pistachios.  Okay, fine, I was out of pistachios and I really regret that, but we survived.  It's also lightly flavored with allspice and cinnamon.  So it's kind of like a cannoli spice cake pound cake hybrid!

I made this cake for dessert when Mom had Anne over for dinner, and everyone loved it.  We debated whether or not it should be eaten with your hands or with a fork; I will let you be the judge of that.  Just bake it and make your house smell amazing, and you won't really care how you eat it, I'm telling you.

Recipe:

cannoli pound cake
from Smitten Kitchen

Ingredients:
1 cup granulated sugar
finely grated zest from 1 orange
finely grated zest from 1 lemon
1/2 cup olive oil (it killed me to use this much olive oil but I stuck to the recipe!)
1 tablespoon sweet marsala wine, or 2 tablespoons white wine
1 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 - 2 pinches allspice
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup mini chocolate chips
1/2 cup pistachios, chopped small

Instructions:

1) Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Coat a standard loaf pan with butter or nonstick spray.

2) Place sugar in a large bowl, and add zests.  Use your fingertips to rub the zest into the sugar, scenting it throughout.  Whisk in olive oil, wine, ricotta and eggs.  Sprinkle baking powder, salt, cinnamon and allspice over wet ingredients, then whisk to combine.  Gently stir in flour, then chocolate and pistachios until just combined.

3) Scrape into prepared loaf pan.  Bake for 55 - 65 minutes, until a skewer inserted into the center of the cake comes out batter-free.  Let cool on wire rack in pan for 15 minutes, then invert out onto rack to finish cooling.  Cake is great the first day, and even better the next couple days!  Store at room temperature covered with foil or plastic.