in love with food: AN ITALIAN SUMMER RHAPSODY~ MANGO PANNA COTTA

June 26, 2014

AN ITALIAN SUMMER RHAPSODY~ MANGO PANNA COTTA

Panna cotta (from Italian cooked cream) is an Italian dessert made by simmering together cream, milk, and sugar, mixing this with gelatin, and letting it cool until set. It is generally believed to have originated in the Northern Italian region of Piedmont although it is eaten all over Italy, where it is served with wild berries, caramel, chocolate sauce, or fruit coulis.(source- wikipedia)

My first tryst with this beloved Italian darling.. Panna cotta is the simplest of desserts — a softly set pudding that, at its most elemental, is made with cream, sugar, and gelatin. which gives it a smooth mouthfeel and a melt-in-the-mouth texture. But you can create a wide spectrum of taste and richness depending on the type of dairy and fruit used. You can create a very light, soft pudding using milk and fruit puree, or an intensely rich, thick pudding using mostly cream.

Panna cotta can always be the right dessert — whether you're throwing a fancy party or a small one, have lots of time or no time, are gluten-free, dairy-free, allergy-prone, vegan, or simply craving a delicious and creamy sweet. It's perfect.
Before you emabark on this silky journey you might want to lap up some more info, tips and tricks- 3 keys to perfect Panna cotta

This dessert can be made ahead of time and will keep fresh for 2-3 days, the options are almost limitless! I picked the recipe I wanted to try from Deeba’s Blog since she too blogs from India.

Ingredients:

50ml milk, lukewarm
2tsp gelatin
500ml low-fat cream {20-25%}
1 tin sweetened condensed milk {approx 400ml}
2 mangoes, peeled, diced {approx 500g net}
Fresh mint to garnish

Method:

Sprinkle the gelatin over lukewarm milk and leave to stand for 5 minutes to soften.
Place the condensed milk and cream in a heavy bottom pan and whisk to blend. Simmer over low heat, stirring constantly, until it comes to a bare boil. Take off heat and whisk the gelatin mixture in well. Strain and allow to cool to room temperature.
Reserve 3/4 cup diced mangoes for topping. Divide the rest between the serving glasses, alternately you can puree and fold in the mangoes. Gently pour the cooked cream over.
Refrigerate for 4-6 hours {preferably overnight} until set.
Top with the reserved diced mango and garnish with fresh mint.
Serve chilled. {Keeps refrigerated for 2-3 days}