Blood Orange Panna Cotta Recipe

Here in the northeast the months of July and August are typically our hottest months of the year. For the past few weeks we have had mainly temperatures 85 to 95 degrees with high humidity. Boy, it has been a super hot summer already!!!

Today I am sharing with all of you a guest post recipe that will help to keep you cool on those hot summer days. Not only that, it's easy to prepare and delicious too! The recipe is courtesy of: Paulding & Company— a full catering kitchen based in San Francisco, founded by mother-daughter duo Tracy and Terry Paulding. This recipe will yield 8 servings.

Blood Orange Panna Cotta Recipe

8 blood oranges
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 small fresh lemon
2 Tbs. sweet Vermouth
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. unflavored gelatin powder (most likely not quite a packet!)
1 ½ cup whipping cream
2 1/4 cups buttermilk, chilled
1 tsp. vanilla extract
Neutral vegetable oil for the cups (if unmolding)

Prepare the oranges:

Pare the zest from one orange with a vegetable peeler. Blanch the zest strips in boiling water for two minutes. Drain, cool and cut into fine julienne. Set aside. Peel the zested orange and one more, paring away the pith, and cut supremes (sections). Juice the remaining six oranges. Juice the lemon as well, adding its juice to the bowl.

Make the sauce:

Combine zest, supremes, ¼ cup of the juice, ½ cup brown sugar, and ¼ cup water in a small pot. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until slightly thickened and sauce-like, 10-15 minutes. Remove from the heat, add the Vermouth, and set aside.

Make the panna cotta:

Put ¼ cup water in a small bowl, and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Place the remaining orange juice (you should have around ¾-1 cup) in a small pan, and cook over medium-high heat until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add ½ cup sugar, stirring to dissolve it. Add the cream, and bring to a simmer. Add the gelatin mixture, stirring it in off the heat until dissolved completely. Stir in the buttermilk and vanilla. Let cool, stirring occasionally.

Lightly oil 8 panna cotta molds, custard cups, or, if you don’t want to unmold the dessert, use un-oiled wine or fancy dessert glasses. Divide the cooled panna cotta mix between the prepared molds, and refrigerate until firm, at least one hour, or overnight.

To unmold, run a knife around the edge, then dip bottom of each mold in hot water for a second or two. Turn onto a plate. Garnish with the sauce.