Pannacotta- 360mls verjuice
- 400mls pure cream
- 1/2 cup (125mls) milk
- 1/4 cup (55g) caster sugar
- 2x2g gold strength gelatin leaves
- 90g caster sugar
- 375mls verjuice
- 375mls water
- 3/4 cup medium dry sherry
- 12 saffron threads
- 7 small pears; (6 peeled cored and halved, plus 1 extra pear roughly chopped)
- 15mls extra verjuice to drizzle over peeled pears
| Pannacotta- To make the verjuice pannacotta, place the verjuice in a small sauce pan and bring to the boil over a high heat
- Simmer for 12 to 14 minutes or until reduced to 100mls. Set aside to cool
- Place the cream, milk & sugar in a small saucepan and bring just to the boil, then remove from the heat immediately
- Soften the gelatin in a bowl of cold water for 5 minutes and squeeze dry. Add the gelatin to the hot cream mixture and stir well, then set aside to cool for 10 minutes (should register 50°C on a sugar thermometer). Add the reduced verjuice, stirring to mix well
- Divide the mixture among 6 x 100ml moulds. Transfer to a baking tray, cover well with cling flim and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or until set (overnight is best, if you have the time)
- To cook the pears, place the sugar, verjuice, sherry, saffron and water in a wide based saucepan just large enough to accommodate the pears, then bring to the boil over high heat
- Reduce the heat, add the chopped pear and peelings of the 6 pears and cover with a tight fitting lid and gently boil for 20 minutes till it becomes syrupy without reducing the volume too much
- Gently slip the whole pears into the syrup, then cover with a round of baking paper and the lid and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender when pierced with a skewer. The ripeness of the pears will have a huge impact on the time
- Leave the pears to cool for 10 minutes in the syrup, then carefully transfer to a plate. Strain the syrup through a fine meshed sieve into a saucepan and discard the solids, then bring the syrup to the boil over a high heat and simmer until it has reduced by half
- Transfer 1 cup (250mls) syrup to a small sauce pan (reserving the remaining syrup for serving), then simmer over a medium heat for 10 minutes or until reduced to a thick honey like consistency
- Pre heat a fan forced oven to 220°C
- When the pears are cool enough to handle, cut them in half lengthways. Place the pears cut side up on a baking tray
- Using a pastry brush, coat each pear with a little of the reduced syrup, then roast, brushing the pears with the reduced syrup every 10 minutes for 15 to 20 minutes or until they are a wonderfully deep golden brown color, taking care that they don't burn
- To turn out the panna cotta, use your fingertip to gently press around the edge to break the seal. Quickly invert each mould onto a serving plate and the panna cotta should drop out
- Divide the saffron roasted pears among the plates, spoon over of the reserved syrup, then serve
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