Chocolate Panna Cotta with Pomegranate Port Wine Sauce

Panna Cotta sans sauce

I was fairly surprised how well this recipe turned out to be. I only bookmarked this recipe because I had some port wine left that I needed to use up, and I had put off making it for a couple of weeks because it wasn’t really a recipe I was excited about. However, the result turned out to be a deeply chocolate-y and luscious panna cotta with a nice tangy sauce to go with it. Not bad at all.

The original recipe can be found at Baker’s Royale.

Yield: Makes a total of 20 oz. about 5 servings

Ingredients:

Chocolate Panna Cotta

• 2 cups plus 1/4 cup of half & half or heavy cream
• 1 envelope plain gelatin (about 2 teaspoons)
• 1/4 cup  sugar
• 2 tablespoon Cocoa Powder
• 3 oz. dark chocolate
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

Port Wine Pomegranate Sauce

• 1 cup port wine
• 1/2 cup pomegranate juice
• 2 tablespoons honey

Procedure:

To make chocolate panna cotta

1. In a wide bowl, pour 1/4 cup dairy and the packet of gelatin on top. This is to allow for blooming, so that it melts and gelatinizes evenly.
2. In a small pot, combine the rest of the dairy with the cocoa powder. Allow to sit for 5 minutes before heating it on the stove. Add the sugar and bring it to a simmer.
3. Place the chocolate in a bowl, and pour the hot mixture over it. Allow it to sit for another 5 minutes and stir to combine. Add the vanilla extract and pour the solution through a sieve.
4. Pour the hot chocolate dairy mix onto the gelatin, and stir until dissolved. Pour into 4 or 5 ramekins. Chill in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight covered loosely.

To make port wine pomegranate sauce

1. Add port wine, pomegranate juice and honey into a pan and cook, only letting it simmer. Stir until the liquid is reduced to your liking.
2. Drizzle on top of set chocolate panna cotta at time of serving.