early morning light in the garden…
‘Thus yoga is not something which is confined to morning or evening meditation, but something which is all the time.’ – The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali.
citrus pannacotta
A lovely light dessert for a special occasion, served drizzled with an orange, infused honey cardamom syrup and a crunchy honey hazelnut cookie, it can also be equally delicious with seasonal berries or fruits.
Yields 8 small glasses depending on the size of your cups.
Recipe inspired.
for the pannacotta
¾ cup almond milk
600ml coconut milk
4 Tbsp light brown sugar/sweetener of choice
¾ tsp agar agar powder (if using flakes will need to add more)
1 tsp vanilla essence
one vanilla bean pod
1 batch of citrus syrup (recipe below)
preparation
1. Combine the nut milk and agar agar powder in a saucepan and scrape the vanilla bean along its length with a knife and add that bean “paste”, along with the bean itself to the pot (when using vanilla essence stir it in at the very end) – allow to sit with no heat for 15 minutes, then add the sugar, coconut milk and whisk together.
2. Heat the mixture over medium-low heat and slowly bring to boil, then lower the heat and simmer for 3 minutes, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon.
3. Turn off the heat and add the vanilla essence – let sit for 10 minutes and then take out the vanilla bean pod. (I keep the pod and add to the blender when I make nut milk.)
4. Pour equal amounts into small jars. If wanting a cold dessert place the pannacotta jars in the fridge, otherwise they will happily set outside at room temperature within the hour.
5. Make an extra batch of syrup, (recipe below). I double the syrup, glaze the cookies first and use what is left for the pannacotta.
To serve, garnish with fresh mint, orange zest and drizzle with a serving of honey orange-infused syrup and serve with a honey hazelnut cookie. (recipe below)
honey hazelnut cookies
Recipe slightly modified from Good to the Grain and brought to life by Noa.
I love these biscuits with toasted hazelnuts and warm honey and orange infused syrup which is brushed onto the still-warm cookies.
Makes 15 x 3- inch round cookies.
ingredients
½ cup raw hazelnuts, skin on
115 grams/4 ounces unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
dry mix
¼ cup whole spelt flour
1 cup white spelt flour
½ cup sugar
1 tsp fine salt
syrup
¼ cup honey
5 pods cardamom, smashed
zest of 1 orange
2 Tbsp orange juice
preparation
1. Preheat the oven to 180C/350F. Rub one baking sheet lightly with butter.
2. Spread the hazelnuts evenly on a baking tray and toast them in the oven for 16 – 18 minutes, until the nuts are fragrant and dark brown but not burnt. Remove from oven, cool, grind them, skins and all, in a food processor until finely ground.
3. Sift the dry ingredients into a bowl, add the butter and ground hazelnuts and rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingers. The dough should barely just come together.
4. Move the dough onto a work surface and press it together, then using a rolling pin, roll the dough out to a thickness of about 4 mm. If the dough seems to be cracking, push it back into place and continue rolling. You probably won’t need any additional flour to roll out the dough as it will be quite dry.
5. Using a 3-inch cookie cutter or a drinking glass, cut the dough into circles and transfer to the buttered baking sheet. I fitted them all snugly on one tray.
6. Bake for 20 – 24 minutes. Rotate the pan halfway through. Watch them closely towards the end and be careful not to over bake.
While you are waiting for the cookies to bake make the syrup:
7. In a small saucepan over a low flame, melt the honey, cardamom and orange zest. Do not allow the syrup to boil as you don’t want to reduce the honey and risk crystallization. Stir the syrup and remove from heat, letting it infuse for 15 minutes, then add the orange juice.
8. To glaze the cookies, brush each one twice while they are still warm to give a chance for the glaze to soak into them. The leftover syrup can be drizzled over the pannacotta.
Delightful as they are or as a special treat, serve with a vanilla pannacotta.
Goodness shared by Stacey
