Basil Yogurt Panna Cotta with Blueberries
Panna Cottas are a custard made with cream and gelatin. Panna cottas are deceptively easy and one of our favorite dishes to make for guests throughout the year using different flavorings and variations. Basil Yogurt Panna Cotta with Blueberries is our summer version, one we have made a little tangy with the addition of Greek yogurt and lemon. We originally created this basil Panna cotta as a dessert to bring to a dinner at our friends' house who loves all things Italian and basil. We loved it and have been making it ever since!
If you are in the Pittsburgh area, come down to the Pittsburgh Public Market this Saturday (August 16) between 12-2 pm try a free sample of our Basil Yogurt Panna Cotta with Blueberries and say hi!
Yield: Serves 8
Ingredients:
- 2 tablespoons warm water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 packet unflavored gelatin
- 1 3/4 cups whipping cream, divided
- 3/4 cup sugar
- 1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
- 2 1/4 cups Greek style low-fat yogurt, unflavored
- 1 cup blueberries (for garnish)
- handful of purple basil leaves (for garnish)
Steps:
- In a small bowl, combine warm water, lemon juice, and gelatin. Whisk and let stand to soften for 1 minute.
- In a small saucepan, over medium heat, whisk together 1 cup whipping cream and sugar until sugar is dissolved and the mixture just reaches a simmer. Remove from heat.
- Pour warm hot mixture into a food processor or blender and add basil leaves. Puree until smooth.
- Strain the basil cream mixture through a fine mesh strainer into a large bowl. Add gelatin mixture, remaining 3/4 cup whipping cream, and yogurt to the large bowl. Whisk thoroughly until smooth.
- Pour the panna cotta into 8 small bowls, ramekins or serving dishes. Allow to cool at room temperature for 1 hour before covering and refrigerating. Allow to set up in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours (up to 1 day).
- For serving, remove from the fridge 5-10 minutes prior to serving and garnish with fresh blueberries and basil leaves.
Note: These panna cottas are a wonderful canvas to experiment with flavors. Vanilla, mint, lime or lavender are all great alternatives to basil.
Almond Meringues with Creme Anglaise & Berry Sauce, Îles Flottantes
Sumptuous Îles Flottantes, "floating islands," are a rustic French dessert. Part custard, part meringue; think of these as decadent deconstructed egg desserts. We were first introduced to this old-fashioned dish on a trip to France, where Paul ordered it for dessert on a whim. He developed something of an obsession with this quirky dish, and would call ahead to restaurants to confirm they made it from scratch. On his fourth round of Îles Flottantes, he finally persuaded me to dip my spoon, and in a creamy instant, I too become a devoted fan. For Paul's birthday this month, we decided to create our own simplified and less sweet version of Îles Flottantes. We ditched the step of poaching the meringues, and baked ours scented with almond. We served these toasted almond meringues floating in a creamy bath of egg yolk thickened creme anglaise with a fresh berry sauce for a bright fruit contrast to all that creamy goodness. Note that the quality and flavor of your eggs make a huge difference in this dish, so use the best eggs you can find (we used local Clarion River Organics).
Blueberry Bay Leaf Quick Jam
We started our holiday weekend with an early morning visit to a local farm for some berry picking. The blueberry bushes were flush with dusky blue berries. With our crates brimming with berries, we headed to the kitchen to develop a jam recipe that would preserve the subtle sweet flavor of blueberries, without the accompanying cloying sweetness that is common to many berry jams. Our Blueberry Bay Leaf Quick Jam is simple to make, small batch, refrigerator style (not canned) jam that is accessible to first time and seasoned jam makers alike. We made this particular jam with one of my uncles', an avid jam eater and aficionado, in mind. This Blueberry Bay Leaf Quick Jam has a soft and graceful texture, excellent for spreading. Paul added a unique twist to the recipe to further preserve the raw blueberry flavor, he combined the potency of a blueberry jelly base with raw berries, resulting in juicy fresh blueberries suspended in a deep magenta preserve. Blueberry Bay Leaf Quick Jam has just the bare minimum amount of sugar allowing for the very fresh blueberry taste to shine, with a subtle woodsy note of bay leaves and Meyer lemon supporting in the background. While our plan had been to bring my uncle a jar of this Blueberry Bay Leaf Quick Jam during an upcoming visit, I'm afraid that at our current rate of consumption, we will have polished off all the jam within a few short days. It is just that good!
Homemade Berry Yogurt Cups
We just got back from a weeklong trip to Canada for my sisters’ wedding, it was a magnificent weekend of celebrations, and we are thrilled to have a new brother-in-law! Driving home yesterday, we realized that in all the wedding festivities, it sort of slipped our minds that we have a food blog to write!
In the meantime, we have been busy cooking and eating summer produce and I wanted to share a simple make-ahead breakfast I have been eating this berry season. It all started with a craving for a decent berry yogurt cup; just a simple cup with plain yogurt and some fresh tasting berry puree that didn’t have the caloric count and saccharine sweetness of an ice cream Sunday. It turned out that this was a tall order! My grocery store hunt yielded a host of unpalatable and over-priced results, so I decided to try my hand at making yogurt cups at home. These Homemade Berry Yogurt Cups are simple to make and delicious to eat, a refreshing summer breakfast on the go.
Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Peaches
For me, the panna cotta is the answer to my classic conundrum of low-dessert-making-confidence, contrasted with a voracious craving for custardy desserts. Panna cottas are a light-tasting Italian custard dessert made with cream and gelatin. If you are looking for a summer dessert with an outstanding work to reward ration and guaranteed guest appreciation, Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Peaches is your dessert. Simple to make and tasting of sweet peaches and tangy cream, we eat a lot of panna cottas in our household. My goal in Buttermilk Panna Cotta with Peaches was a recipe with a nuanced tangy buttermilk base, and found that I couldn’t resist the classic peaches and cream combination.
Looking for more creamy summer desserts? Check our funky Basil Yogurt Panna Cotta with blueberries and dead simple Meyer Lemon Posset.
Meyer Lemon Posset
Lemon Posset is a near perfect dessert in my mind. It is rich, decadent, and creamy, while managing to taste light and fresh on the tongue. It has only three simple ingredients, that come together in a taste and texture that will make you smile. We discovered this unique old-fashioned British treat when searching for a custard-like dessert for a friend who is allergic to eggs. As often happens when we are confronted with a food restriction, we become fixated on that ingredient...in this case egg-centric dishes: ice creams, meringues, cakes, and custards. We wanted a dish with the silky creaminess usually only possibly with thickeners and eggs. Lemon Posset allows the egg-free and gluten-free among us an uncompromised dessert win, free of any substitutes or unpronounceable ingredients.
