Puff pastry is a miracle ingredient when you want an appetizer that looks like it took hours, but is ready in minutes. These Salmon Puff Pastry Cannoli are crispy, golden shells filled with creamy smoked salmon and cream cheese. Perfect for parties, festive occasions, or even a fancy snack at home.
If you like quick and easy appetizers made with puff pastry, also try my CHEESE AND ONION PUFF PASTRY APPETIZER or my popular PUFF PASTRY TART WITH MASCARPONE AND BELL PEPPER.
Watch the full video tutorial here:
Ingredients (for 6-8 people)
- 300 g (11 oz) puff pastry sheet
- 250 g (9 oz) cream cheese (Philadelphia)
- 50 g (1.8 oz) smoked salmon
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 egg
- Chopped chives, to taste
How to Make Smoked Salmon Puff Pastry Rolls
Preparing the Puff Pastry Cannoli Shells
Start by preheating the oven to 220°C / 428°F, so it’s fully hot when the cannoli go in. This helps the puff pastry rise evenly and become perfectly golden.
Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and cut it into strips about 2 cm wide and 12 cm long (approximately ¾ inch by 5 inches). Try to keep the strips as even as possible for uniform cannoli (1).
Shaping the Cannoli
To shape the cannoli, you will need cannoli molds. If you don’t have them, you can use a piece of bamboo cane or make your own molds by tightly rolling aluminum foil, as shown in my tutorial for classic cream-filled cannoli.
Grease the cannoli tubes with a little olive oil, to make it easier to remove the cannoli once cooked. Wrap each strip of puff pastry around the mold, overlapping the pastry slightly as you go, so it sticks to itself and forms the classic cannoli shape. If needed, you can use 2 or 3 strips per mold, starting one from each end, to fully cover it (2). Gently press the overlaps with your fingers to seal.
Baking and Cooling
Place the wrapped cannoli molds on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Brush them lightly with beaten egg to help them brown nicely during baking (3).
Bake at 220°C / 428°F for about 10 minutes, or until the puff pastry cannoli are puffed, crisp, and golden brown. Remove from the oven and let them cool completely. Once fully cooled, gently slide the puff pastry cannoli off the molds and set them aside (4).
Filling and Assembling
While the cannoli shells are cooling, prepare the filling by mixing the cream cheese with finely chopped chives until smooth and creamy (5), and cut the salmon into thin strips about 1cm long (about 1/5 inch) and a little longer than the cannoli (6).
To assemble, place a small strip of smoked salmon inside each cannoli shell (7), then fill them using a piping bag, syringe, or a small spoon with the cream cheese and chive mixture (8).
Serve immediately for the best contrast between the crispy puff pastry and the creamy filling.
Smoked Salmon Puff Pastry Cannoli Tips & Variations
- Make sure the puff pastry strips overlap slightly while wrapping them around the mold. This helps the cannoli keep their shape during baking and prevents them from opening in the oven. Gently pressing the overlaps with your fingers is usually enough — no extra egg wash is needed at this stage.
- If you don’t own cannoli molds, DIY molds work perfectly. Bamboo sticks or tightly rolled aluminum foil are great alternatives, exactly like the ones used for classic Italian cream cannoli. Just make sure they are firm and heat-resistant.
- For extra crisp shells, allow the cannoli to cool completely before removing them from the molds. This step is essential to avoid breaking or flattening the puff pastry.
- The filling can be customized easily: you can add a squeeze of lemon juice or a pinch of black pepper to the cream cheese for extra freshness, but keep the flavors delicate so they don’t overpower the smoked salmon.
- Instead of chives, you can use finely chopped dill or parsley, but chives remain the most classic and balanced choice with smoked salmon.
- For a more elegant presentation, fill the cannoli using a piping bag or syringe, which gives a cleaner result compared to a spoon and makes them look bakery-style.
Storage Instructions
Unfilled puff pastry shells can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a day.
Once filled with the salmon cream cheese mixture, the cannoli are best eaten immediately to maintain the crisp texture of the pastry. If needed, you can refrigerate the filling for up to 2 days and assemble just before serving.
Avoid storing filled cannoli in the fridge for long periods, as the pastry will soften.
Smoked Salmon Puff Pastry Cannoli – Quick & Elegant Italian Appetizer
Ingredients
- 300 g puff pastry sheet
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 egg
- 250 g cream cheese Philadelphia
- Chives, chopped to taste
- 50 g smoked salmon
Method
- Start by preheating the oven to 220°C / 428°F, so it’s fully hot when the cannoli go in.
- Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface and cut it into strips about 2 cm wide and 12 cm long (approximately ¾ inch by 5 inches). Try to keep the strips as even as possible for uniform cannoli.
- To shape the cannoli, you will need cannoli molds. If you don’t have them, you can use a piece of bamboo cane or make your own molds by tightly rolling aluminum foil. Grease the cannoli tubes with a little olive oil, to make it easier to remove the cannoli once cooked. Wrap each strip of puff pastry around the mold, overlapping the pastry slightly as you go, so it sticks to itself and forms the classic cannoli shape. If needed, you can use 2 or 3 strips per mold, starting one from each end, to fully cover it. Gently press the overlaps with your fingers to seal.
- Place the wrapped cannoli molds on a baking tray lined with parchment paper. Brush them lightly with beaten egg to help them brown nicely during baking.
- Bake at 220°C / 428°F for about 10 minutes, or until the puff pastry cannoli are puffed, crisp, and golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and let them cool completely.
- Once fully cooled, gently slide the puff pastry cannoli off the molds and set them aside.
- While the cannoli shells are cooling, prepare the filling by mixing the cream cheese with finely chopped chives until smooth and creamy.
- Cut the salmon into thin strips about 1cm long (about 1/5 inch) and a little longer than the cannoli.
- To assemble, place a small strip of smoked salmon inside each cannoli shell, then fill them using a piping bag, syringe, or a small spoon with the cream cheese and chive mixture.
- Serve immediately for the best contrast between the crispy puff pastry and the creamy filling.
Delicious!