How Many Calories Does a Cannoli Have?

Made with sweetened ricotta cheese and deep-fried pastry shells, cannoli are typically high in calories. While these Italian desserts may be hard to resist, they're best left for rare occasions if you're trying to manage your weight. A better bet is a miniature cannolo -- the singular form of cannoli -- which has far fewer calories than the full-sized version.

The exact numbers vary by brand or recipe, but a medium cannoli from one cafe contains about 240 calories. A recipe for white chocolate cannoli is even more fattening, at 339 calories per cannolo. Mini cannoli from a major grocery store is more reasonable at 85 calories per piece. Stick to just one of these to help keep your diet on track.