This year has been a blur. A dream. I blinked and found myself here: third day of summer, nearly July. Did I really write a book? I must have. Did I really go to New York and get chatty about it with strangers? Signs point to yes. And there's yet another great thing happening for the book - which I will reveal very soon. Right now life seems very surreal and it's moving so quickly!
These little dessert shooters are part panna cotta, part fruity cocktail. The bottom layer is a sweet red grenadine syrup. The next layer is a tropical-tasting coconut panna cotta and then a little blue curaçao (orange liqueur) gets poured on top. And my favorite part? You guessed it. Those little edible confetti stars. You can usually find them where Wilton products are sold, but here's a link if you're looking to purchase online.
Patriotic Panna Cotta Shooters
Yield: about six 3oz. servings
[click for printable version]
Technically the 3 oz. size I made is a little large for a
"shooter" so I served mine with a small dessert spoon. But feel free
to adjust the quantities to suit your purpose. If you're serving these to
kiddos, blue kool-aid or fruit-flavored blue gelatin would be a nice
stand-in for the curaçao.
6 oz. grenadine syrup
1/2 tsp. powdered gelatin
1 tbsp. cold water
1 cup lite coconut milk
1/2 cup half and half
3 tbsp. sugar
1 tsp. coconut extract
3 oz. blue curaçao
Wilton gold star edible glitter, or other star-shaped sprinkles
- Pour 1 oz. of grenadine into six 3 oz. clear glasses. Freeze grenadine solid, and keep glasses stored in freezer until panna cotta portion is ready.
- In a small condiment cup, sprinkle the powdered gelatin over the cold water and let stand until absorbed. Set aside.
- Combine the coconut milk, half and half and sugar in a saucepan. Heat the mixture until just boiling.
- Microwave the gelatin mixture for 7-10 seconds, until melted and liquid. Remove the milk mixture from heat source and whisk in melted gelatin. Add coconut extract. Allow mixture to cool significantly.
- Remove glasses of frozen grenadine from freezer and very slowly pour in 2 oz. of cooled coconut panna cotta into each glass. A little red from the grenadine may bleed into the white panna cotta, but as it stands the red should settle back down to the bottom. Refrigerate glasses until panna cotta is set and grenadine layer has completely thawed. Just before serving pour over 1/2 oz. blue curaçao and sprinkle with edible star glitter.
Note: These can be made 1 day ahead, but the stars should be
sprinkled on just before serving. They will completely dissolve after
about 30 minutes of floating in the blue curaçao.
I love these! So beautiful.
ReplyDeleteThose little star sprinkles are the cutest!!
ReplyDeleteI've never had panna cotta... I kinda think I would love it!
This makes me happy! I still haven't tried panna cotta. What is wrong with me?! I need to get on this train asap!
ReplyDeleteEdible stars, where have you been my whole life? :)
ReplyDeleteGorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous :)
ReplyDeleteOK the stars are adorable, and i LOVE how everything is so crisp and clean!
ReplyDeleteThese are so fun and so perfectly beautiful! Love them!
ReplyDeleteThese are beyond beautiful. LOVE the contrast!!
ReplyDeleteSo pretty! A wonderful 4th of July dessert.
ReplyDeleteCheers,
Rosa
So cute and festive!!
ReplyDeleteStunning! These look so fun and festive!
ReplyDeleteI love that you topped these off with patriotic stars! So fun!
ReplyDeleteCome check out a fun giveaway I'm having.
http://www.becauseofmadalene.com/2012/06/perfect-giveaway.html
Christina
These are so fun!
ReplyDeleteThese are adorable!!!
ReplyDeleteI'm ready for the Holiday after looking at these!
ReplyDeleteAnother completely adorable post - those tiny stars are the perfect finishing touch!
ReplyDeleteThese are stunning! Love those little stars.
ReplyDeleteI adore the sprinkles! These are perfect Heather.
ReplyDeleteLove these! I can't wait to bring them to our annual 4th of July get together!!!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful - and so patriotic!
ReplyDeleteThese are the coolest things I've ever seen! Definitely the most sophisticated "shooters" ever. Can't believe it's nearly July 4th!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great idea! THANK YOU for not doing jello! Can't wait to hear the upcoming news! Good things happen to good people ;-)
ReplyDeleteWish I'd seen this before the Jubilee - LOVE the red, white and blue ... not sure what I'd exchange for the pretty stars though for UK!
ReplyDeleteI can't get over those adorable stars. I have to get some. I'm a sucker for fourth of july desserts and panna cotta, these would be for me. I have to go see Marla about your book. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.
ReplyDelete-Gina-
Wow, these are absolutely beautiful! Maybe literally too pretty to eat haha. This is such a creative and festive idea!
ReplyDeleteThese are so pretty! I can't wait to make these for the 4th.
ReplyDeleteADORABLE!! These look seriously wonderful!
ReplyDeleteThe shiny stars are amaziing! You always know how to make everything special:)
ReplyDeleteso cute and festive!
ReplyDeleteThis looks delicious and your pictures are amazing. Would love for you to share your photos with us at foodepix.com.
ReplyDeleteYes, time flies just that fast...in a blink of an eye.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations to you with all the great things happening to you.
Velva
oh my gosh those are so cute!!!!!! perfect for the 4th! love it
ReplyDeleteI LOVE everything about this dessert, including your photos, which are just stunning!!
ReplyDeleteLOved it...loved the snaps too.....
ReplyDeleteThis is so beautiful, loooks really perfect. And I love Panna Cotta!!
ReplyDeleteThese are perfection. Love it. I want one right now.
ReplyDeleteWOW! These are so vibrant and beautiful! I love how festive they are and my whole family would just eat them right up!
ReplyDeleteHow festive. I love the blue curacao on top.
ReplyDeleteThis looks incredible! I just got your book in the mail as an early birthday gift and spent the last two nights cuddled up with it - truly amazing. I can't wait to see what you've got coming next!
ReplyDeleteSo perfect for the 4th! And fabulous photography, too!
ReplyDeleteI agree about this year! Wasn't it just New Year's Day??
ReplyDeleteThese are beautiful and so perfectly patriotic! I'm not a big fan of Blue Curucao, but when it comes to getting that vibrant blue color, it's the best!
looks good. i'm more curious as to how they would taste? anybody else try to make these yet? would really like to know if it taste as good as it looks...
ReplyDeleteWondrous little cups of celebration! Adore the sparkly stars on the shiny blue background. A smashing idea for our nations holiday!
ReplyDeleteI see your posts and think, Oh, GAWSH she's amazing!
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful and exquisite creations for the 4th!!! xo ~Lili
ReplyDeleteI am trying to make these right now, and the grenadine is NOT FREEZING! It's been in the freezer since this morning! Can anyone help me? Heather?
ReplyDeleteOh no! Okay. If the grenadine won't freeze, then you can try pouring the panna cotta into the glasses - very slowly - over the back of a spoon. You can expect the panna cotta to mix a little with the grenadine, but it should settle into layers. Bartenders call this technique "floating" and you can read more about it here. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Float_(bartending_technique)
ReplyDeleteAnd here's someone who made an shot similar but with bailey's irish cream instead of panna cotta
http://www.savoryreviews.com/2010/06/30/red-white-and-blue-shooter/
It might be good if you could wait until morning to see if the grenadine freezer. Sorry you're having a spot of trouble!!
xo
H
*freezes, I mean.
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting this recipe. I just made 24 of these for a family picnic tomorrow. I also had issues with my grenadine freezing but your spoon trick worked like a charm. I can't wait to present these tomorrow at the picnic!
ReplyDeleteOh so elegant!! Can't wait to set this out on my 4th of July party!
ReplyDeleteIf you make these a day ahead, do you still need to wait to top with blue curacao? Can it freeze as well, and then just add stars later?
Also, do you serve this with a spoon or a straw?
I saw this on a 4th of July roundup and just had to pin it. I hope you’ll share it on my Friday Flash Blog Linky Party going on ALL weekend at The Jenny Evolution.
ReplyDeleteJennifer
thejennyevolution.com
I thought the panna cotta layer was going to set like a custard. It didn't, it was a thick liquid.
ReplyDelete