honey lavender panna cotta with lemon gelee.

So. I'm embracing the purple flower again, this time in pudding form. And you know what, I'm starting to really like it! I seriously think that cream and lavender go together best.

But... I totally killed the dessert with the lemon gelee. Firstly, I added too little sugar and the whole layer was tart tart tart. Secondly, I think the strong acidity of the gelee made it hard to set, and even after 24 hours of chilling it was extremely wobbly. Some of it was not even set. And then, because it didn't set, it infiltrated the lavender panna cotta layer and made the overall dessert scarily sour. To save you such a horrific experience, I've increased the sugar and gelatin amounts in the recipe below.

However, I managed to taste some parts of the panna cotta still untainted by the gelee and I absolutely loved it! The lavender taste was not too strong- just right. I couldn't taste the subtle honey because my tastebuds practically died from the acid assault. Well I'll just have to make another batch then. With only the panna cotta of course. P.S. If you're wondering why my panna cotta is pink, it is because I added some lavender paste that was a deep purple. I've also seen lavender pastes in off-white shades- I should have gotten those instead.

To top it off, I whipped up some coconut cream. It's the first time I'm trying coconut whipped cream and the only thing I can say is that if you don't like coconut, you won't like this. But if you do, like me, then you'll probably start to get addicted to it.

Honey Lavender Panna Cotta with Lemon Gelee
panna cotta recipe slightly adapted from here, lemon gelee recipe from here

For the panna cotta:
1/4 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup milk
1 tsp sugar
2 tbsp honey
1/2 to 1 tsp dried lavender, depending on how strong a lavender taste you want (I used 1/2 tsp)
3/4 tsp powdered gelatin
1 tbsp water

In a medium saucepan, bring the heavy cream, milk and sugar to a simmer. Take it of the heat and stir in the honey and dried lavender. Let the mixture steep for about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, sprinkle the gelatin powder over the water and let it stand until softened. Strain the lavender out of the milk mixture and bring to a simmer again. Stir in the softened gelatin. Let the mixture cool before pouring into glasses or molds. Once the mixture has been poured in, let it chill for at least 4 hours before preparing the lemon gelee.

For the lemon gelee:
4g powdered gelatin
1 tbsp water
1/2 cup lemon juice
4 to 6 tbsp sugar, depending on your preference

Sprinkle the powdered gelatin over the water and let stand until the gelatin has softened. Bring the lemon juice and sugar to a simmer in a small saucepan, and stir until the sugar has dissolved. When the gelatin has softened, stir it into the lemon juice. Let the mixture cool before layering on top of the panna cotta. After pouring into the glasses or molds, chill overnight.

For the whipped coconut cream:
1/4 cup chilled coconut cream
1 tsp icing sugar

Whip the coconut cream and icing sugar until the cream reaches firm peaks. It acts the same as normal cream. Use immediately.