I have never had real Panna Cotta, I became vegan before I was able to try the real form of the dessert. However, I have been seeing a lot of Panna Cotta lately at restaurants and on the tv show Hell's Kitchen, so I felt the need to try out my own version. I was very pleased with my first attempt, but there might be some revisions to come. You can eat this dish on it's own or pair it with a sweet syrup. We recently went strawberry picking so I made my own strawberry syrup to go along with the Panna Cotta. Enjoy this simple and elegant dessert!
INGREDIENTS
1 1/2 cups vanilla soy creamer
2 (6 oz.) containers of coconut yogurt - you could also use soy yogurt
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup sugar
4 Tbs. boiling hot water
1 tsp. agar agar power
METHOD
1. Mix the water and the agar agar powder together using a small whisk. Let the mixture sit while you continue on with the other ingredients.
2. In a saucepan, combine the creamer, yogurt, vanilla beans, vanilla extract, and sugar.
3. Whisk in the agar agar mixture and heat over a medium heat. Stir constantly until the mixture reaches a boiling point and remove from the heat.
4. Pour into ramekins and allow the mixture to cool to room temperature. For me, this took about an hour.
5. Place into the refrigerator and allow the Panna Cotta to chill for a few more hours.
6. To serve, loosen the edges with a small knife and carefully slide out on to a dessert plate. Accompany with your favorite sauce or fruit. Enjoy!
