Simple, Sweet, Scrumptious – The Coconut Panna Cotta!

I have a photo shoot at home for a magazine article and the photographer is coming at noon. I want to make something quick as I have to go to work too. So I’ve decided on Coconut Panna-Cotta. For those who don’t know about Panna Cotta, I’ll quote wikipedia – “Panna cotta is an Italian dessert made by simmering together cream, milk and sugar, mixing this with gelatin, and letting it cool until set. An Italian phrase which literally means “cooked cream”, it generally refers to a creamy, set dessert from the Northern Italian region of Piedmont. It is eaten all over Italy where it is served with wild berries, caramel or chocolate sauce. It is not generally known exactly how or when this dessert came to be, but some theories suggest that cream, for which mountainous Northern Italy is famous, was historically eaten plain or sweetened with fruit or hazelnuts. Earlier recipes for the dish used boiled fish bones in place of gelatin; however, sugar, a main ingredient, would not have been widely available as it was an expensive imported commodity. After years this treat evolved into what is now a gelatin dessert, flavored with vanilla and topped with fruit or spices, and served chilled. Similar versions of this dish are also found in Greece and France.”

I have decided on INA market, opposite Dilli Haat for my ingredient source. It’s one of the best places where I have been able to get all the ingredients I used in U.S. and Singapore.

Because of the shoot I need something with colours and the base plain so I’ve decided to go ahead with a Coconut Panna Cotta. But Plain coconut is a little too boring…as I walk in the market with a friend who is helping me select some fruits and ingredients, she picks up a lemon grass stalk and asks, “What in the world is this?” And suddenly all the ingredients come together in my mind. I have always liked to create fusion based desserts. Chocolate with chillies or with cardamom and orange – I like creating a fusion of different items.

So that was that – my ingredients were selected! Came home and did my Mise en place. Mise en place (literally means “put in place”) is a French phrase defined by the Culinary Institute of America (aka CIA-this is where I went for my specialization in baking and pastry) as “everything in place”, as in set up. It is used in U.S. kitchens to refer to the ingredients, such as cuts of meat, relishes, sauces, par-cooked items, spices, freshly chopped vegetables, and other components that a cook requires for the menu items that they expect to prepare during their shift. The perception of having everything in its place as applied to the work in a kitchen is likely to have become a staple around the time of Auguste Escoffier, who is well known for his growth of the brigade system of running a kitchen.

So my ingredients were done and making it was quite a simple task. As I give you the recipe (please try at home it’s super easy) I realized that many-a-times, very basic components create great flavours.

• 1 Cup Coconut Milk
• 1 Cup Heavy Cream
• ½ Cup Castor Sugar
• 1 Chopped Lemon Grass stalk
• 1 White Tea Bag
• Zest of Orange
• Vanilla to taste
• 2 tsp Gelatin Powder
• 1/8 Cup Water to bloom the gelatine.

Add all the ingredients except water and gelatine in a pan. I have flavoured white tea at home (Guava and Pineapple), which I think would make a nice change. FYI: White tea is composed of uncured un-fermented tea leaf and leaves a very subtle taste on your palate. It comes from the Chinese province of Fujian. Coming back to the recipe, after mixing everything, bring it to a boil, take off the heat and let it lie for about 40 minutes or so.

Meanwhile add gelatine and water and keep it aside. Once your cream mixture is ready strain it, and melt the gelatine and add to the recipe. Add the mixture to any desired shaped dish. I like to add them to a small dish so I can do an individual serving. Let it set -should take about 2- 3 hours. Voila! Your dessert is ready!

Take any fruits that are available at home and use them to decorate the top of your pana-cotta. I prefer mangoes, kiwi, sour grapes – the tartness of the fruits compliments the sweetness of the dessert. Sometimes I also coat the grapes with silver foil (which is available at most mithai (sweet) shops).

The photographer comes. Big guy I must say. Super hot weather and no electricity, deadly combo!! The poor panna cotta was melting and almost falling apart. I offered the photographer the same dessert after the shoot “Sorry Kishi – I am on a diet” he said. I smile and convince him that it is quite refreshing and light. I guess he was entrigued, so he tried the stuff… 2 minutes later the dish had disappeared!!

- Kishi

Partial Content Courtesy: Wikipedia