Buttermilk Panna Cotta
This dessert was so easy to make, and very pretty (it's kind of hard to tell with the white-on-white, but it was so soft and silky looking, and such a pure white). My first time with unflavored gelatin; I don't really like jello but this has an entirely different texture.
Sprinkle one packet (about 2 teaspoons) unflavored gelatin over 2 tablespoons water and let it sit for 10 minutes for the gelatin to soften. While that's doing, put 1 cup whipping cream and 7 tablespoons sugar in a saucepan, then, over medium heat, get the cream hot and dissolve all the sugar into the cream (don't let the cream boil). Add the gelatin mixture and stir until it dissolves. (I still had a few lumps, but it doesn't matter at this point.) Let that sit for about 30 minutes to come to room temperature, then add 2 cups buttermilk and 3/4 teaspoon vanilla. Pour the mixture through a strainer into a 4-cup measuring cup with a spout, then divide the mixture between the various custard cups and ramekins you have available (I used 3 custard cups, 3 mise-en-place bowls and 2 ramekins). Refrigerate at least 6 hours. Unmold by dipping the cups in warm water for 30 seconds, then loosening the edge with the tip of a knife. I had to push the knife in a little further along one side to get it to release.
I served it with macerated strawberries; it's wonderful stuff, creamy, tangy, rich and cool. Todd said it almost tasted like lemon, and it did even though there wasn't any lemon in it.
Hi, Kim--
Great blog.
A couple of weeks ago, I bought some Northern Spy apples at the Ann Arbor Farmer's Market and made a pie with them. The apples made a wonderful pie.
I think the secret to a good pie crust is to use just enough water to hold the thing together and not to work the dough too much. Working it just activates the gluten and makes the baked crust tougher.
Yeah, I think you're right. I'm always disappointed when I roll out my crust and there are big blobs of butter all over, but they all melt away during baking and make the crust flakey. I just need to work on getting my blobs a little smaller.
My dough is always so moist to begin with, I rarely add much water at all. I'm especially bad with the food processor; I've discovered I like my mother-in-law's method of cutting in the butter with a pastry blender, then using a fork to stir in a tiny bit of water at a time. Maybe by the time I'm 50 I'll have perfected the crust part.
I've heard Northern Spy makes great pie; a coworker of mine always uses a couple different types of apples in her pie, and I think she named Northern Spy as one of them. Just think of all the apple pies being baked across the country just in this one weekend alone! It makes me want to get out the rolling pin.
I just went to your site and saw that you make your own sausage - it sounds terrific, and a great family activity. I just can't imagine the Whipple family (my family) doing something like that.
That's exactly how I make my pie crust! :) The pastry cutter works well because the blobs come out the right size. If you cut the butter into the flour with a food processor, the blobs are too small, I think.