Panna Cotta may actually be my favorite dessert ever.  It’s the perfect little treat after a rich meal.  Light, creamy and not too sweet.  I know that many people are under the impression that it’s difficult to make (like risotto) but it’s actually quite simple and quick to make.  The hardest part is unmolding it but that comes with a little practice OR you just serve it up, like I have done here, in a pretty little dish and don’t worry about it!

I like to top my  Panna Cotta with fresh (or nearly fresh) fruit.  It’s the perfect combination.  So, after a berry picking outing recently I couldn’t resist whipping up some Panna Cotta with a nice Saskatoon Berry sauce.

It just doesn’t get any better than this. And another wonderful thing about Panna Cotta is you can easily substitute the sugar for Splenda! I also have adjusted my recipe to use less fat (heavy cream).

Panna Cotta with Saskatoon Berry Sauce

Makes about 8 servings depending on the size of dish

Ingredients:

Panna Cotta

• 2 cups of half and half (you can use heavy cream if you really want to)
• 2 cups of 2% OR 1% milk
• 1/2 cup of white sugar OR Splenda
• 1 tsp of vanilla (or your favorite liquor)
• 2 packets of gelatin
• 1/2 cup of cold water

Saskatoon Berry Sauce

• 2 cups of fresh or frozen Saskatoon Berries
• 2 cups of ginger ale (regular or diet)*
• 1 tablespoon of corn starch

*You can use 7-up or similar but the ginger ale really gives this sauce a nice subtle punch of flavour

Directions:

Panna Cotta

Place the water in a small bowl and sprinkle the gelatin on top. Let stand until you need it in the next step.

In a large saucepan, over medium heat, heat the cream, milk and sugar until it just starts to boil.  Add the gelatin mixture and the vanilla.  Stir well until the gelatin is completely dissolved.  Remove from heat.

Spoon the mixture into individual serving dishes.  Wine glasses make a pretty vessel for this dessert.  As you can see in my picture above I used miniature stemless wine glasses.  Put the dishes in the fridge to set for at least 4 hours.

Saskatoon Berry Sauce

Pour the gingerale into a medium sized sauce pan.  Add the cornstarch and mix until it is completely dissolved.  Add the Saskatoons.  Cook over medium heat until the berries are slightly cooked and the sauce has thickened – about 15-20 minutes. Remove from heat.  If you are serving this dish right away let the sauce cool until it is around room temperature so it doesn’t melt the panna cotta.  Otherwise put it in a jar or other container and put it in the fridge until you need it.

When you are ready to serve just spoon the sauce over the panna cotta (as much or as little as you like) and enjoy! If you have leftover sauce it goes great on pancakes or ice cream!

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