Tuesday, March 1, 2011

THE DARING BAKERS FEBRUARY 2011 CHALLENGE: Here's to a Creamy Dreamy Crunchy Sweet February!



The February 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Mallory from A Sofa in the Kitchen. She chose to challenge everyone to make Panna Cotta from a Giada De Laurentiis recipe and Nestle Florentine Cookies.


Yes, it's time for the Daring Bakers' February Challenge! When I first read the challenge, I thought it was better to do it right away because I knew I would be busy and so I accomplished it way ahead of time, but I forgot to post it! So here is my layered chocolate panna cotta with coffee jelly and florentine cookies.





Florentine Cookies
Ingredients:

2/3 cup (160 ml) (150 gm) (5.3 oz) unsalted butter

2 cups (480 ml) (160 gm) (5 2/3 oz) quick oats

1 cup (240 ml) (230 gm) (8 oz) granulated sugar

2/3 cup (160 ml) (95 gm) (3⅓ oz) plain (all purpose) flour

1/4 cup (60 ml) dark corn syrup

1/4 cup (60 ml) whole milk

1 tsp (5 ml) vanilla extract

pinch of salt

1½ cups (360 ml) (250 gm) (9 oz) dark or milk chocolate

Directions:

1.Preheat oven to moderately hot 375°F (190°C) (gas mark 5).


2.Prepare your baking sheet with silpat or parchment paper.


3.Melt butter in a medium saucepan, then remove from the heat.

4.To the melted butter add oats, sugar, flour, corn syrup, milk, vanilla, and salt. Mix well. Drop a tablespoon full, three inches (75 mm) apart, onto your prepared baking sheet. Flatten slightly with the back of your tablespoon, or use a spatula.

5.Bake in preheated oven for 6-8 minutes, until cookies are golden brown. Cool completely on the baking sheets

6.While the cookies are cooling melt your chocolate until smooth either in the microwave (1 1/2 minutes), or stovetop (in a double boiler, or a bowl that fits atop a saucepan filled with a bit of water, being sure the water doesn't touch the bottom of the bowl).

7.Peel the cookies from the silpat or parchment and place face down on a wire rack set over a sheet of wax/parchment paper (to keep counters clean).

*I used organic honey instead of dark corn syrup, rolled oats instead of quick oats, and hemp milk instead of whole milk. I also omitted the chocolate and kept my cookies plain.



Panna Cotta

Ingredients:

1 cup (240 ml) whole

1 tablespoon (one packet) (15 ml) (7 gm) (¼ oz) unflavored powdered gelatin

3 cups (720 ml) whipping cream (30+% butterfat)

1/3 cup (80 ml) honey

1 tablespoon (15 ml) (15 gm) (½ oz) granulated sugar

pinch of salt

Directions:
1.Pour the milk into a bowl or pot and sprinkle gelatin evenly and thinly over the milk (make sure the bowl/pot is cold by placing the bowl/pot in the refrigerator for a few minutes before you start making the Panna Cotta). Let stand for 5 minutes to soften the gelatin.
2.Pour the milk into the saucepan/pot and place over medium heat on the stove. Heat this mixture until it is hot, but not boiling, about five minutes. (I whisk it a few times at this stage).

3.Next, add the cream, honey, sugar, and pinch of salt. Making sure the mixture doesn't boil, continue to heat and stir occasionally until the sugar and honey have dissolved 5-7 minutes.

4.Remove from heat, allow it to sit for a few minutes to cool slightly. Then pour into the glass or ramekin.

5.Refrigerate at least 6 hours or overnight. Add garnishes and serve.


Thank you Mallory for this challenge! And bravo to the Daring Bakers for their exquisite panna cotta creations!


29 comments:

Renata said...

Yummy Panna Cotta, I love coffee desserts! Great job on the challenge!

shelley c. said...

That looks fantastic! Beautiful layers, and great substitutions for your florentines - I bet they were delicious! Glad to see your post - I was looking for it yesterday :)

Pavithra Elangovan said...

Wow looks fabulous and wonderful flavors... Absolutely love it. Great work on this challenge.

Pavithra
www.dishesfrommykitchen.com

Unknown said...

Very lovely post! Panna Cotta looks amazing!

Joy Calipes-Felizardo said...

I'd love to make one of those!

Mary said...

Both your cookies and panna cotta look beautiful. i love coffee jelly!

Anonymous said...

Beautiful flavour. Very nicely done.

Kris Ngoei said...

The coffee jelly turns out to be so appetizing, and makes the whole panacotta looks so refreshing and pretty! Such good choice :-)

zorra said...

Love the presentation, well done!

Evelyne CulturEatz said...

Better late then never, it looks awesome. The coffee jelly looks so light. Yum!

Sarah said...

I like your substitutions with the florentine. I wondered about not using the corn syrup and wasn't daring enough to try removing it from the recipe! Great job on the panna cotta too with the jelly.

Oggi said...

Coffee gelee sounds delicious and looks very pretty. Great job on this challenge, D.:)

shewhisks said...

Beautiful layering! Love the goldenness of the florentines. Great job!

Anonymous said...

Your panna cotta turned out great! Looks delish =)

Unknown said...

I'm a coffee lover, so the coffee jelly with the panna cotta has me drooling:) Great job on the challenge this month!

Evelyn said...

I love your Panna cotta. I love all things coffee and I think yours looks perfect.

Mary said...

These look fantastic-coffee--YUM! Love the blue in the photos as well--so vibrant!

Lisa said...

Gorgeous photos of stunning panna cotta and florentines! The coffee gelee looks so amazing that I want it, even though I'm not a coffee fan! Fantastic job as always!

Suz said...

I love the layers in your panna cotta, and the coffee gelee looks so beautiful on the top. That last pic of the gelee in the foreground and the florentines in the background is fantastic. Mmm, I'm not surprised you couldn't resist eating more. Yum. :)

Rackell said...

weehh.. I want that cookies... can you give me some pag nagkita ulit tayo.. hehe

Vicki Wilde said...

Great looking panna cotta, love the layers! Great job on this challenge!

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

Very well done! Both look wonderful. Coffee jelly is a great idea.

Cheers,

Rosa

Mimi said...

Beautiul panna cotta, I love the idea of coffee jelly.
Mimi

Simona Carini said...

Nice look of your panna cotta on those photos!

Aparna Balasubramanian said...

YOur Florentines are just lovely and I really like the textured look of the gelee layer.

Eat the Love said...

oh delightful! The coffee gelee sounds great and I love the cookies! Well done!

Anonymous said...

I love the look of your layers and your florentines look perfect! Good job this month
Best- Sandie

MandyM said...

Your layers are beautiful and I really love the look of the coffee jelly :) Yum! Great job on the challenge :)

Lea said...

Love your florentine cookies! They look beautiful and it's a great idea to just leave them plain