Recipe: Dragon Fruit Dream Panna Cotta
by Maggie Frank
July 05, 2023
Oh boy, I am glad I did because this one is a winner. This recipe yields two portions of panna cotta, but you can easily double the recipe and pour it into individual glasses to best suit your occasion. Let's get into it.
What is Panna cotta?
Fair question, it is not a super common dessert.Panna cotta is an Italian dessert made with a sweet cream base that is thickened and set with gelatin. Often made into a mold so it can hold its shape and present nicely on a plate. I'm going to pour mine into a bowl but it can also be beautifully served in a stemmed wine glass or a cute mason jar.
Be creative! It's thick and creamy and so smooth. Think of creme brulee and jello as being cousins to the panna cotta. Then, of course, we will add toppings for extra flavor and texture!
The Ingredients
Dragon Fruit Dream
As mentioned earlier this tea is absolutely heavenly. The smell is unbelievable and the taste is just as good. This is an herbal tea blend so you won't get your caffeine kick from it, but the good news is that you can sip on it all day long. It's noted that Adagio recommends trying it iced for those hot summer days.This recipe comes together nicely from the brewed tea because it illuminates the need to cook the panna cotta over the stove, which is where some things tend to go wrong.
Sweetened Condensed Milk
Trying to make a new dessert can be intimidating. Especially if you haven't tasted it before and aren't quite sure where to put your expectations. To help with these worries I wrote this recipe using sweetened condensed milk.If you haven't used it before, sweetened condensed milk is a canned ingredient you can find easily at any grocery store. It is simply milk and sugar that is cooked down and thickened before being canned. It has an unbelievably smooth texture and is so delicious. This ingredient really helps to make sure your panna cotta is velvety and clear of any lumps.
Gelatin
Don't get too worried, we will use a powdered form of gelatin in this recipe and it will be as easy as making jello. Gelatin is a naturally derived ingredient that is often used in desserts and pasties as a thickener. This ingredient will make our dessert set; you truly cannot make a panna cotta without it.Gelatin is a little tricky because we need to use different temperatures to get it to activate properly.
Dragon Fruit Dream Panna Cotta
Yield: 2 portions
Time: Prep: 5 minutes
Cook: 10 minutes
Set time: 4 hours
The ingredients
1 cup of milk2 oz unflavored powdered gelatin
4 oz cold water
10 oz brewed Dragon Fruit Dream
8 oz canned sweetened condensed milk
Directions
1. Gather all of your ingredients and pre-measure them. This recipe comes together quickly so it's better to be ready.2. In a small bowl with your two ounces of cold water, simply sprinkle the gelatin over the top. This is how we will bloom it. Or make it a liquid to use in our recipe. This prevents clumps. We will know it's bloomed when it begins to wrinkle on the top and the water has become thick.
3. While the gelatin sets, brew your tea.
4. Once brewed, pour your tea into a large bowl. Then add in the bloomed gelatin while the tea is still hot. Give it a good whisk to make sure the gelatin is fully dissolved.
5. Next, whisk in your milk. Pour it in slowly as you mix to prevent any lumps from forming.
6. Then add in the sweetened condensed milk. And again, whisk well.
7. Transfer your panna cotta to your serving dishes as soon as you're done mixing. It's best to use a ladle or a liquid measuring cup with a spout. I poured mine into bowls, but you can also pour it into glasses or any other cup of your choice.
8. Let set in the fridge for at least four hours.
9. Before serving top with fresh fruit, jam, or even crunchy granola as I did!
10. Enjoy within 3 days of making.