This month Mallory of A Sofa In The Kitchen had challenged the Daring Bakers to prepare Panna Cotta and Nestle Florentine Cookies. Panna Cotta uses gelatin, which I never use because I am a vegetarian. But, no problem. We vegetarians have a great substitute for gelatin, which is agar-agar. In Madurai, I get sheets of agar-agar a.k.a. china grass. Usually the recipe suggests flakes or powder. I just weighed the equal amount of the sheet and it did set well. Using pumpkin puree was my idea. I had pumpkin puree in my fridge. So thought of incorporating it into this dish. The result was awesome.. Very creamy and delicious. We enjoyed it a lot. It will be a great dessert for your guests.
Pumpkin Panna Cotta
Ingredients:
For the plain Panna Cotta:
Milk-2/3cup
Low Fat Cream-2cups
Honey-1/4cup
Sugar-1tbs
Agar-Agar Sheet-5gm
For the Pumpkin Layer:
Milk-1/3cup
Low Fat Cream-1cup
Honey-3tbs
Sugar-2tbs
Pumpkin Puree-4tbs
Agar-Agar-Sheet-2gm
Pumpkin Seeds-3tbs

Procedure:
For the first layer:
1. Add the agar-agar sheet to milk and let it stand for 10minutes.
2. Heat the milk. Stir till the agar-agar dissolves in the milk. Let the milk boil for 3 minutes on low flame.
3. In a sauce pan, heat cream. Add honey and sugar and bring it to boil.
4. Add the agar-agar milk to the cream.
5. Let it boil for 1 minute. Adjust sugar according to your taste.
6. Switch off flame and allow it to cool.
7. When the temperature has come down, pour the mixture in the serving bowls.
8. It will take 5 minutes to set.
For the Pumpkin Layer:
1. Add agar-agar to milk and let it stand for 10 minutes.
2. Heat the milk and boil it until agar-agar dissolves. Let it boil for 3 minutes on low flame.
3. In a sauce pan, heat cream. Add honey, sugar and pumpkin puree. (adjust sugar according to your taste)
4. Add the milk and let it boil for 1 minute.
5. Switch off flame and allow it to cool.
6. Now pour this mixture carefully on top of the first layer.
7. If the mixture is hot then it will melt the first layer. So bring down the temperature before pouring.
8. Roast pumpkin seeds in a pan. When they start popping, transfer the seeds to a plate and let them cool.
9. Garnish the panna cotta with the seeds before the top layer sets.
10. Refrigerate and serve chilled.
Nestle Florentine Cookies
Ingredients:
Butter-2/3cup
Quick Cooking Oats-2cups
Sugar-1cup
Flour-2/3cup
Corn Syrup-1/4cup(I substituted it with liquid glucose)
Milk-1/4cup
Vanilla extract-1tsp
Salt-a pinch
Chocolate (Milk/Dark)-250gm
Procedure:
1. Melt butter.
2. Add all the other ingredients and prepare soft dough.
3. Divide the dough into small balls.
4. Grease a baking tray and line with butter paper.
5. Arrange the balls 2inches apart on the tray.
6. With the back of a spoon, press the balls to make small cookies.
7. Preheat oven to 190C.
8. Bake the cookies for 6-8minutes.
9. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack.
10. In a double boiler, melt the chocolate.
11. Apply a spoon of chocolate on the flat side of the cookie and press another cookie on it, sandwiching the chocolate in between.
12. If you don’t want to do this, you can fill a plastic bag with the melted chocolate, make a small hole in the tip and pipe out lines on the cookie.
13. Serve along with Panna Cotta.
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Arrange balls on tray and press to form cookies |
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Bake till golden brown |
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Cool on wire rack |
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Make some chocolate lines |
I also used pumpkin for my Panna Cotta “project” but it wasn’t as successful as yours. It looks really creamy and yummy! Well done on the challenge!
I want the cookies. They looks scrumptious.
Delicious looking cookies and creamy panna cotta
Thats a lovely dessert and very apt one for guests
Delicious cookies rocks with yummy panna cotta
Pumpkin panna cotta looks yummy.
The cookies has come out very well:-)
Both the cookies and panna cotta look great. These are new to me. I would like to try them. But I need to know if the low fat cream you are talking about is Amul fresh cream.
Thanks for sharing.
Yummy….
kurinjikathambam
Panna Cotta is looking great.. agar agar put to good use…very delicious.
Looks great gayathri!!!
No Archana! I used Ajantha tinned low fat cream. You can also use Amul Fresh Cream..
Yummy dear! luks delicious…
both r cookie n dessert looks awesome….love ur all clicks
Love the pumpkin’s color combo…
Amazing clicks!
http://krithiskitchen.blogspot.com
awesome clicks..n recipe looks grt..
Elegant and utterly delicious pannacotta and pretty cookies…
This looks absolutely beautiful. I love the colors – and this is going to be the panna cotta I make next!
Beautiful concoction! 🙂 I like your lower fat panna cotta recipe, I found the full-fat version VERY rich. Congratulations!
Your pumpkin panna cotta has a great color!
WOW I love your pumpkin panna cotta it is inspired and the cookies are so thin crisp and lacy well done.
Cheers from Audax in Sydney Australia.
Pumpkin panna cotta looks and sounds so amazingly delicious, and paired with your beautiful florentines, this was a yummy month in your house! 🙂 Really well done.
What a deadly combination,I am dying with greed and lust for the panna cotta and the cookies,and can almost taste the smooth creamy & silky panna cotta with the crunchy cookies….*drools*
That panna cotta ooks creamy and luscious. You did an amazing job on this challenge, as usual. I lvoe seeing what you come up with!
Beautiful job on the challenge! Your photos are incredible. Love the idea of pumpkin. 🙂
Oh how fun! The pumpkin sound fantastic. It must have been a great combination with the creaminess. And your cookies look great too!
Pumpkin panna cotta, now that’s an original idea… I’m very curious on how it tastes! And what an great idea to put pumpkin seeds on top, that sounds awesome! Although I think I might have added some in the florentine cookies too, but I love pumkpin seeds 😉
Love the way u did it…look soo yumm!!
Lovely Pannacotta. Great idea with the pumpkin.
Both panna cotta and florentines looks absolutely beautiful and love the flavors.
Loved your low fat pannacotta..Good idea to use pumpkin puree. Cookies looks really delicious
Wow, that looks amazing and very special!
Great job!
Hi gayathri! Planning to try this recipe today. Thinking of substituting the pumpkin for strawberries. And if I use gelatine, would the measurements change?
You can substitute pumpkin purée with strawberry purée. And for gelatin, just substitute agar agar sheets with gelatin.