Steal of the Day - Panna Cotta with Raspberry Coulis

Photo: Quyen's Vanilla Panna Cotta with Fresh Raspberry Coulis

In my last post I mentioned how expensive raspberries were. I spoke too soon. Yesterday, while shopping at my favorite local produce store down the street, they were selling a half flat of raspberries for $1.99. That's 14 South African Rand, 3.10 Singapore Dollars, 32,009 Vietnamese Dong. It's hectic. It's manic. I love it. I bought three. I asked the owner what was wrong with them. They were PERFECT. For a coulis, that is.

So I asked myself, what do I do with all these raspberries? I can't pass up a good bargain, whether it's clothes, food, or men. It's in my nature. Naturally, eating them fresh with a sprinkle of sugar came first. Then, a raspberry coulis:

Simmer together raspberries, sugar, water for about 10 minutes. Sieve to get rid of all the seeds and you'll be left with a thick, smooth coulis. Add a little lemon juice and / or liquer and you're ready to drizzle it over ice cream, chocolate souffle, or panna cotta, or "cooked cream." I made a vanilla bean panna cotta (because I'm in my vanilla bean phase, plus I have like, over 100 beans dying to be used).

Panna cotta is one of the easiest, most rewarding desserts you can make. You dissolve unflavored gelatin in milk, simmer it for a few minutes, stir in sugar, add vanilla steeped heavy cream, place it over an ice bath, stir until thick, strain, pour into molds and refrigerate until set. How easy is that???

Wish you could have a bite,
Quyen

PS I know it looks bad, but my diet is not comprised merely of heavy cream and berries. Heavy cream, berries, AND vanilla beans.