Vegan Coconut Panna Cotta with Pomegranate Gelée
Total Time: 30 minutes active, 5 hours inactive
Servings: 8
Your holiday guests will love this modern twist on this classic Italian dessert. The recipe is set with agar agar instead gelatin, making it vegan and gluten free. This dessert looks and tastes fancy but is truly easy to make! The distinct layer of pomegranate gelée set on top adds a nice refreshing tang to the creamy coconut base. This simple and unpretentious dessert will bring elegance to any holiday party.
Ingredients
Coconut layer
6 teaspoons of agar agar flakes (3 teaspoons if using powdered)
½ cup of water
3 cups of full fat coconut milk
1 cup of coconut cream
½ cup of sugar
1 teaspoon of sea salt
2 teaspoons of vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
Pomegranate Gelée Layer
½ cup of water
3 teaspoons of agar agar flakes (1½ teaspoons if using powdered)
2-3 tablespoons of sugar, more or less sugar depending on the sweetness of pomegranate juice.
Juice from ½ a lemon
2 cups of pomegranate seeds (about 3-4 medium pomegranates)
½ of pomegranate seeds (for garnish)
Preparation
Coconut layer
Shake cans of coconut milk and coconut cream to mix the coconut fat and water together.
Measure out 3 cups of coconut milk and 1 cup of coconut water and mix together.
In a medium size saucepan, bring water to a boil.
Lower the temperature to medium-low and stir in the agar agar and let simmer for a couple minutes until the flakes dissolves.
Slowly add the coconut milk mixture half a cup at a time while continuing to stir. (Do not add all of the coconut mixture at once, if agar agar cools down too quickly, you may get lumps).
Once all of the coconut milk is incorporated, add sugar, vanilla bean paste, and salt.
Let simmer for a few minutes until the sugar is dissolved while stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan with a rubber spatula making sure the coconut mixture does not burn.
Divide evenly between 8 clear glass vessels (8 oz wide mouth mason jars works best).
Place in fridge uncovered for at least 1 hour until top of the dessert set.
Pomegranate Gelée Layer
While coconut layer is chilling in the fridge, in a medium size sauce pan, bring water to a boil.
Add pomegranate seeds, and lower the temperature to medium-low let simmer for a couple minutes.
Pour mixture through a strainer above another sauce pan, pushing the seeds against the mesh of the strainer. Try to extracting as much juice as you can from the seeds (Do this over the sink, it may get messy).
Return the pomegranate juice mix to the stove on medium-low and bring it to a slow simmer.
Stir in agar agar and let simmer for a couple minutes until the flakes dissolves.
Incorporate the lemon juice and sugar, and let it dissolve completely while stirring and scraping the bottom of the pan with a rubber spatula making sure the mixture doesn’t burn.
Remove from heat and transfer gelée into a container that is easy to pour out of (glass measuring cups for liquids). Leave it on counter to cool until mixture is slightly warmer than body temperature (about 20-30 minutes).
Remove the coconut layer from the fridge, and touch the tops delicately to make sure the coconut panna cotta has slightly set to ensure the distinctive layers between the coconut layer and the pomegranate layer.
Evenly distribute the pomegranate gelée over top each of the coconut panna cotta by gently pouring it over the back of a spoon to prevent splattering.
Seal the jars with lids and return the panna cotta to the fridge and let chill for at least 4 hours or overnight.
Before serving the chilled dessert, scatter a spoonful of pomegranate seeds over each panna cotta.
To learn more about pomegranates, click here!