Panna Cotta with Roasted Strawberries

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I sound like a broken record but really, I am sorry that I have not been updating this space regularly. Most of Jan and the better half of Feb, I had been busy traveling and then when I finally touched base at my parents place and thought I would get back to blogging, the flu bug bit me. The meds have left me physically and mentally drained out and thus the absence. While I am still recuperating, I had thought I would share details of my travels in my next post but this dessert just could not wait.

This is the easiest dessert one can make. I actually made it in my half dazed sick state. So be assured, when I say it comes together in a jiffy, I mean just that!

Only woes one might face is getting the gelatin setting part right. I have had my issues with gelatin but I think I am slowly getting over my fear of gelatin based desserts. Or maybe it worked so perfectly this time because David Lebovitz calls this a fail proof recipe? Either way, it worked. In case you too have fears of the collagen derived food substance, you should read David’s post on how to use gelatin.

If you are looking for a completely vegetarian version, since some vegetarian have issues with gelatin being made from animal by products, then one can use agar-agar. I haven’t personally tried it but I read people have tried agar-agar in this recipe and it has worked for them.

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IT’S SPREADABLE FRUIT TIME WITH CHUNKY APPLE PRESERVE!!

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Only a few days back I was wondering to myself- its been ages since I caught a cold. And, well, what would you know, the age ends! I’m sick and with a bad cold! If insomnia wasn’t enough, the cold surely is. Hardly slept last night thanks to it. Had soupy Maggi for dinner (my all time favorite comfort food :)), and have been drinking ginger-spiced tea but to no avail. The cold still prevails and so does the feverish feeling accompanying it :(!

Even though I was pretty much drained from the cold last night, I had planned to make this chunky apple preserve from Sarabeth’s Bakery. I could have delayed it, but I’m starting this new thing- Office Thursdays! (I thought and thought of a better name, but the brain cells have been killed by the cold- so Office Thursdays it is!) The whole concept behind Office Thursday’s came up after V and I had a fight over how I bake things and I end up eating them (lucky thing- he doesn’t have a sweet tooth, so doesn’t get tempted to eat things I bake..I, on the other hand, love all things baked and hence my constant struggle with weight gain..sigh!) We had to come up with a solution since baking is the only solace I get and to do without it will surely bring me to sheer madness! Now, every Thursday V has a meeting in his office that he conducts. Sometime he takes some donuts, or someone else gets something sweet to eat. Aha! That’s it, we thought. I bake for his office people. That ways, I get to bake, but don’t end up putting any calories. Of course, I will put aside two pieces- one for V and one for me, but the rest goes in the tummies of his colleagues. Brilliant!

Today I decided to make Apple Turnovers for his office. For that, the puff pastry was already ready, I just needed to make the filling- the chunky apple preserve. So that’s why I had to suck up my cold and make the preserve, else I would have had to wait till next Thursday- a thing that an impatient me can’t do! (Here’s the recipe for the Apple Turnovers) I am glad I did because the joy of making homemade preserves is a pretty good mood lifter. And with an outcome so delectable, I was on top of the world!

Now, I did not have any canning pot or canning tongs. So I used whatever was available. I did take a risk, though, because the jars are pretty hot and without the proper tools, either you could end up breaking the jars, or worse, scalding yourself pretty bad. Fortunately, nothing happened to me. But, to be on the safer side I would suggest, if you plan to make preserves and jams more often, get the right tools!

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