What started out as a tart ended up being just a panna cotta. The tart was yummy, but I didn’t care so much that lifting the tart out of the pan it started to crumble apart. Wet crust! The panna cotta itself was made from a base of coconut milk, unlike ones made from cream. This experiment turned out to be surprisingly delicious and very pretty.
The texture and flavor was that of flan and a nice change from the heavier dairy based dessert. I think that serving this just as it reaches room temperature to be great and really shows how creamy the texture can be.
I shied away from adding any coconut flavor; however, you can add some coconut liqueur to the coconut base for a grand dinner party dessert. Would your dinner guests know that it is dairy-free? When they discover that there were no cows milked for this one, they might be surprised.
Coconut Panna Cotta Recipe
1-15 ounce can coconut milk
¼ cup granular sugar
2 inch piece of vanilla bean, scraped
1 ¾ teaspoons powdered gelatin
2 Tablespoons cold water
Vanilla Fig Syrup [see recipe below]
Fresh Ripe Figs [adorable garnish]
1. In a small bowl sprinkle gelatin over the water and stir. Set aside to bloom.
2. In a small sauce pan heat the coconut milk, sugar and vanilla bean to a boil.
3. Strain coconut milk into a mixing bowl.
4. Whisk in as much as a quarter cup of the coconut milk into the gelatin to melt.
5. Pour gelatin mixture into the remaining coconut milk.
6. Fill desired jars, compotes or bowls and place in refrigerator for 4 hours.
7. Serve with vanilla-fig syrup spooned over the top and adorn with fresh ripe figs.
Fig Syrup Recipe
¼ cup granular sugar
4 large ripe figs, halved
2 Tablespoons Grand Marnier liqueur [-or- water]
1 Tablespoon water
1 inch piece vanilla bean, chopped
1. Place all ingredients in a small sauce pan and bring to a gentle simmer.
2. Continue to simmer until figs have released their flavor and color.
3. Strain and cool.
*note: If you prefer, you can keep the poached figs and include them as part of the desert.
44 comments
Comments feed for this article
September 16, 2011 at 9:29 am
Danielle
New to your site, and enjoying every bit of it. Your photography and styling are gorgeous, as is your garden. Welcome to the wonderful world of food blogging!
September 16, 2011 at 9:43 am
michael
Thank you so much. I think I have the food photographing bug everybody talks about and I like it! Thanks again.
September 16, 2011 at 3:10 pm
myFudo
I love coconuts,they always make the food tasty,the photos are marvelous!
September 16, 2011 at 7:24 pm
mariecinqmars
Just beautiful, I’m a new reader as well, I just did a photo shoot with some lovely models (figs) they are just glorious. Photos are beautiful.
September 17, 2011 at 6:01 am
michael
Thanks Marie!
September 16, 2011 at 7:25 pm
Orange Thyme (@OrangeThymeBlog)
Amazing photos make this dessert even more elegant and desirable. I adore pannacotta in all versions, your light version is great! Figs are one of my fave fuit but never tried them together with a pannacotta, I think I should do it now!
September 18, 2011 at 5:56 am
andrealein
Wow, I love coconut and I love panna cotta, but I never thought of combining them! Great idea. Really lovely photos too!
September 18, 2011 at 9:25 am
Sneh | Cook Republic
Beautiful pictures and delightfully light and sweet looking dessert! Love it!
October 22, 2011 at 10:34 pm
.delicious treats. « Molto Piccolo
[…] recipe and more images can be found on Inspiring the Everyday …I saw it via Oh The Lovely Things (via Teal and […]
January 10, 2012 at 8:20 am
Coconut Milk Passion Fruit Panna Cotta « Pretty Yummie
[…] (which makes it less ‘heavy’ compared to the taste of cream). I got the recipe from here, and after trying it myself, I say it’s definitely a […]
January 24, 2012 at 9:51 am
Nathaly
I just recently found your site, it’s beautiful btw. My question though is if you don’t have vanilla bean can you use extract?
January 24, 2012 at 10:28 am
michael
Thank you Nathaly. You can certainly use vanilla extract in this recipe. I would start with a half teaspoon. If you can find some vanilla paste, this would also work. Have a great day and thanks for stopping by.
February 14, 2012 at 2:27 am
Monday Inspiration (2) » Blog | Farmgirl Writes
[…] 5. Food Inspiration. Because food is inspiring to me. This exceedingly simple chocolate mousse recipe from Food52. (link) Cauliflower, Brussels Sprouts and Red Beans with Lemon and Mustard from NY Times. Yes, I like Brussels Sprouts. (link) This lovely Coconut Panna Cotta from Inspiring the Everyday. (link) […]
March 29, 2012 at 12:57 am
Alison W (@aliandfamily8)
YUM! Can not wait to try.
March 30, 2012 at 7:25 am
Lemanie
That almost looks too beautiful to eat!!! I want to try this…I adore anything w/ figs. =)
Lemanie’s Randomness Blog
March 31, 2012 at 3:23 am
Friday Faves, March 30th | Meet Miss Jones
[…] Flan in general) can certainly be a hit-or-miss, but I’m willing to take a chance on this Coconut Panna Cotta from Inspring the Everyday (especially with the beautiful fresh figs as a […]
April 3, 2012 at 10:12 am
avenues of artistry
ah! i can’t wait to make this. one more recipe to add to my coconut obsessed collection. and my sweetie loves panna cotta.
April 3, 2012 at 11:26 pm
unagattaincucina
Beautiful photos and wonderful recipe!! :Q___
April 4, 2012 at 1:23 am
Tater Tot
I love panna cotta and coconut! Question for you. The can of coconut milk, did you use just the liquid or did you include the “fat” as well?
April 4, 2012 at 7:04 am
michael
I used the whole can for this recipe. If the coconut milk has separated, I just mix it up. Thanks!
April 18, 2012 at 7:42 am
ksdomingo
I’m so anxious to try this recipe, but i don’t have any figs on hand. Do you have any suggestions on what other types of fruits/simple syrups I could make that would pair well with this recipe? I thought of berries, but I’m in the Tropics and they aren’t as affordable. Citrus? Papaya?
April 18, 2012 at 8:26 am
michael
Citrus would be perfect for this recipe and with the vanilla seeds, yum!
April 24, 2012 at 6:22 am
Mary
Just wondering how many it makes
April 24, 2012 at 7:54 am
michael
Hi Mary. Depending on the size of the dish you place it in, you could have up to four servings. The little glass cream dishes made three niced sized desserts.
May 16, 2012 at 7:19 am
Isabella Vesparina
Wow, spectacular photos! You photos of your maybe crab apple, apple or cherry blossoms-I thought you took those from my front yard. I posted mine on FB. Your recipes of gluten free pastries and such, are looking pretty delicious. My daughter is Celiac. Now if you say you have your chickens for your eggs, I’d say you might be a long lost twin…lol Thanks for your passion of the beauty in your everyday life, it truly shines through.
July 25, 2012 at 8:21 pm
Biki
I made this last night, and omg its soo delicious! I used chopped fresh pineapple instead of figs. I’ve never seen a fresh fig locally before, maybe they dont travel well?
Thank you ever so much for posting this. Im allergic to milk and have been wanting pudding in the worst way, and this is better than i ever thought it could be.
July 26, 2012 at 6:03 am
michael
Your welcome. I too cannot have milk. Pineapple sounds like an amazing fruit to use in place of the figs!
September 2, 2012 at 7:43 pm
Alessandra Zecchini
Pinned this one too, I love your photos!!
September 3, 2012 at 5:48 am
michael
Thank you Alessandra!
February 13, 2013 at 7:41 am
510049
any idea of how to make this chocolatey?
February 13, 2013 at 8:37 am
michael
I would do one of two things. Try adding some melted chocolate into the finished recipe or whisking in some quality cocoa powder while the coconut milk is cold. Just strain before moving forward on the recipe!
April 14, 2013 at 1:43 am
Amy
I was thinking about using mango instead of fig. Do you think that would be good?
April 14, 2013 at 7:59 am
michael
Certainly! Geletin has bloomed when it gels up, this takes about 5 minutes.
April 14, 2013 at 8:01 am
michael
I think this would be a great choice as long as the mangoes where in season and ripe.
April 14, 2013 at 7:01 am
Essy
Sorry i’m such a newbie to cooking/baking – how do you tell if the gelatin is bloomed? how long does that take? this looks so delicious.
April 15, 2013 at 3:45 am
vally
Could you please tell me how many grams = 1-15 ounce? thx a lot!
April 15, 2013 at 5:04 am
michael
Approximately 444 grams.
February 27, 2015 at 12:52 am
mel
Hey there, I was so excited to make this recipe the other night, I followed it to a tee but unfortunately when I checked on these coco babies in the fridge 5 hours later, there was this pale brownish sediment sitting at the bottom of the jar. I think the gelatin had separated from the coconut :( do you know why this might have happened? I’ve read that it may have been becauseI dint wait for the mixture to cool down before pouring it into jars and putting in the fridge. What might your thoughts be? Very keen to try this again! :)) Mel
February 28, 2015 at 10:27 am
michael
Hi Mel,
Well shoot! Sorry this happened. My guess would be that the gelatin is too old. This has happened to me before with gelatin being past its prime. Another thing to see happen is when the gelatin blooms, it should be thick or gels up before adding hot liquid to it. I hope this helps you! Let me know if you need anything else! Michael
March 2, 2015 at 4:57 am
mel
Thanks for your reply michael! That’s so strange as i’d just bought the gelatin. Hmm I don’t think the gelatin ever bloomed either, i’ll give it another go :)
March 3, 2015 at 4:03 am
michael
Your welcome! The gelatin may have been old on the store shelves. This happened to me a few weeks ago while making the Russian Creams. Let’s hope this time you have success!
March 6, 2016 at 4:27 am
Mari J
Yeah, it’s very pretty, but what do the pinto beans have to do with anything? Are they in the recipe… somewhere?
March 14, 2016 at 12:32 am
michael
Thank you! The original recipe was to be a tart but ended up as panna cotta. The beans were for blind baking the tart shell.
March 24, 2016 at 12:45 pm
Yvette
This was an amazing recipe. Very easy to follow and everyone loved it. Goes well after eating Sri Lankan curry for dinner. Pity figs are not around all year here. Thank you for sharing!!