Demand for creamy, Italian cannoli stretching small business start-up in Kamloops
Is there anything better than a sweet, fresh cream-filled cannoli?
Two women in Kamloops don’t think so, which is why they started making and selling the Italian treats last month, and the business is taking off.
“We were pondering the idea for a while because there was nothing quite like it available in town,” said co-owner Nadina Pepe. “We have since noticed there is cannoli you can get out of Safeway.”
Nadina Pepe and her mother-in-law Rose Pepe combined their skill sets in the kitchen to produce the fresh pastries with the encouragement of friends and family.
To their surprise, the cannoli has been a local hit, requiring a far bigger production than first expected, and inspiring the creation of fun, seasonal flavours.
“We are a home-based business working out of Rose’s kitchen,” Nadina said.
The pair are hand rolling around 30 dozen cannoli per week.
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A cannoli is an Italian pastry made of tube-shaped shells of fried pastry dough and filled with sweet, creamy filling containing ricotta, ranging in size from 9 to 20 centimetres.
“Rose has made cannoli for quite a while for friends and family and she also makes other Italian desserts,” Nadina said. “I love making cakes and playing around with different flavours, so we melded our strengths. Rose does the cannoli shells and I do the fillings.”
The shells are made using what is called a pizzelle iron.
“In the states you see a deep fried cannoli made by wrapping pastry dough around a form and deep frying it,” Nadina said. “We use a pizzelle that gives the shells a waffle look. We put dough into it, press it down and roll the shells when they are hot, burning our fingers, to make the round shell.”
Nadina said the pair are still getting into the groove of things as they flex to keep up with the increase in orders. They are able to prepare the shells in advance and then fill them with fresh cream at the last minute.
“We have expanded on the flavours and are doing seasonal flavours,” she said. “The pumpkin spice was decently popular but is dwindling a bit so I’m working on two new fall flavours and later on some new ones for the Christmas season.”
Nadina said they have not decided whether they will be expanding their pastry menu beyond cannoli to include other Italian treats.
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The biggest challenge for the business is finding enough time.
Nadina is a nurse and Rose a busy grandmother of six.
“It has been really exciting and we are definitely busy,” Nadina said.
When asked what it is like spending so much time working in the kitchen with her mother-in-law Rose, Nadine said “we usually drop the ‘in-law’ part because we are so close.”
You can order cannoli through the Pepe's Facebook messenger or through email at pepespastrieskamloops@gmail.com.
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