25 July 2008

Buttermilk Panna Cotta

The French have crème brûlée, the Spanish have flan, and the Italians have panna cotta, or "cooked cream". Regardless of the country of origin, these rich dairy desserts are a lot of fun. While I'm not a huge fan of sweets or dessert in general, occasionally I get in the mood for something like this, and decided to make buttermilk panna cotta a few nights ago.

Using a recipe from Whole Foods along with fresh berries from the Farmers Market, it was pretty simple. The flecks that can be seen in the photo are from Chinese Five Spice powder, in an attempt to marry the flavors of cream and spices as is done in India. This was a success, and it added another dimension to the dish. My only advice would be to let the ramekins rest in the fridge (preferably covered with plastic wrap) overnight; even four hours wasn't quite enough to get them set properly.

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