Strawberry Shortcake Jellies

(26)
Yield:
8

All the familiar flavors of a traditional strawberry shortcake come together in this fanciful form. Chill a thin layer of berry gelatin in the bottom of teacups, pour on a layer of creamy gelatin—panna cotta, a classic Italian dessert—and add pound cake. As the layers chill, they hold together; invert, and voila!

Ingredients

For the Strawberry Jelly

  • 1 pound plus 2 ounces strawberries, hulled, and quartered if large (about 10 ½ cups), plus more for serving

  • ½ cup sugar

  • ½ cup plus 3 tablespoons cold water

  • ¼ teaspoon coarse salt

  • 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice (from 2 lemons)

  • 1 ¾ teaspoons unflavored gelatin (from one ¼-ounce envelope)

For the Panna Cotta

  • 2 cups whole milk

  • 1 cup heavy cream

  • ¼ cup sugar

  • 1 vanilla bean, split and scraped, or 1 ½ teaspoons pure vanilla extract

  • 2 ½ teaspoons unflavored gelatin (from two ¼-ounce envelopes)

  • 3 tablespoons cold water

  • Sheet Pound Cake

Directions

Make the strawberry jelly:

  1. Puree strawberries, sugar, 1/2 cup water, and salt in a food processor. Press through a fine sieve into a bowl. Stir in lemon juice (you should have 2 cups liquid).

  2. Sprinkle gelatin over remaining 3 tablespoons water, and let stand until softened, about 5 minutes.

  3. Heat 1/2 cup strawberry puree in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Add softened gelatin, stirring to dissolve. Stir into remaining strawberry puree. Divide among 8 six-ounce rounded teacups. Refrigerate until almost set, about 1 hour.

Make the panna cotta:

  1. Prepare an ice-water bath. Stir together milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla seeds and pod if using, in a medium saucepan. Bring to a simmer. Remove from heat, and let stand for 10 minutes. Strain into a clean pan; discard pod.

  2. Sprinkle gelatin over water, and let stand until softened, about 5 minutes. Bring milk mixture to a simmer. Add softened gelatin, and stir until it dissolves. Strain through sieve set over a bowl in ice-water bath, stir in vanilla extract if using. Let cool, stirring, until just beginning to set, 10 to 15 minutes. Divide among teacups.

  3. Cut 8 rounds of pound cake to fit into the teacups, and place 1 inside each. Refrigerate until set, 8 hours or up to overnight. To serve, dip teacups in hot water for 15 to 20 seconds, until gelatin loosens, and invert quickly. Serve with fresh strawberries.

    Strawberrry Shortcake Jellies
Related Articles