Yum Alert #2: Panna Cotta with Fresh Berries
Panna Cotta is a beautiful and delicious classic Italian dessert that can be made a day or two ahead of time. This is a dish where our Acacia Honey really shines, as it's light taste will not overpower the delicate flavor of the Panna Cotta as a commercial honey would tend to do. Honey Republic Wildflower honey also works extremely well in this recipe.
Ingredients
1 cup whole milk
2 tsp of vanilla extract, or 1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
1 tablespoon unflavored gelatin
3 cups heavy cream (or half and half)
1/3 Cup Honey Republic Organic Honey
(Acacia or Wildflower)
1 tablespoon sugar
Pinch of salt
2 cups assorted fresh berries
Place the milk in a small saucepan, sprinkle gelatin over and let stand for 5 minutes. Add vanilla and stir over medium heat until gelatin is dissolved. Do not boil. Add cream , honey, sugar and salt and stir until sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and let cool slightly . Pour the mixture into 6 martini or wine glasses. Cover an refrigerate for at least 6 hours and up to 2 days.
Serve with fresh berries. (6 servings)
Place the milk in a small saucepan, sprinkle in the gelatin and let stand for 5 minutes to soften the gelatin. Place pan over medium heat and stir until the gelatin dissolves about 5 mins. (Take care to not allow the milk to boil). Add the cream, honey, sugar, salt and vanilla (if using) and stir for an additional couple of minutes until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Pour the mixture into 6 martini or wine glasses. Fill each glass about 3/4 full to allow room for the berries. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to 2 days. just before serving spoon the berries over the Panna Cotta, garnish with the fresh mint and serve! Note: If using the macerated berry recipe, you want to prepare the berries only 2 to 4 hours ahead of time so that they have time to absorb the flavors, but not become soggy.
For those of you who are interested, this recipe is an adaptation of one by Giada De Laurentiis from her book "Everyday Italian"
