Pages

Monday 7 July 2014

Recipe CXVIII - Panna Cotta with Raspberry Jelly Topping

This recipe is so easy although it takes a little time - not yours, however, its own time in the fridge. It's another spinoff of the trifle, this time from Italy. The Italians took a lot from English cuisine several hundred years ago, but changed the look drastically, which is why English desserts look decadent and sumptuous, and Italian ones look like a keyhole surgeon has found an entertaining way of using his/her tools in the kitchen on days off. So here is another one, to follow the last recipe...

Ingredients for the panna cotta:
Half of a 9g packet of gelatine
500g cream
25g fine sugar
1 vanilla pod, cut down the middle with the insides scraped out


Ingredients for the jelly topping
Some cherry or raspberry genever 
4 suitable glasses
200cl water
200g raspberries
The other half of the 9g packet of gelatine
100g sugar 
A blender


Instructions:
Put the sugar, gelatine, vanilla and cream into a non-stick pan and heat gently, making sure it never bubbles up. It is essential that it goes no further than simmering, as it will detract from the final result. Make sure all the gelatine and sugar has been melted.

I'm not going to insult you by showing you a photo of this process, so let's move on.

When everything has nicely dissolved, pour the mixture out equally into four suitable glasses. Put some clingfilm over them and leave them to cool. Then put them for at least an hour in the fridge.

In this time, you can make the jelly.

Put the genever, water and sugar into a pan and slowly heat. Do not allow it to boil if you want a more alcoholic taste to the jelly. Once fairly hot, put in the gelatine and allow everything to dissolve. Then put in the raspberries and pour everything into a blender. 

Put it back on the heat for a minute or two, and then leave it to cool, but not fully or you won't be able to pour it onto the panna cotta.

But once it's tepid, get it out and pour over the panna cotta.


Put them back in the fridge and serve when ready.