Last Saturday we took advantage of the great weather to have dinner with our friends in our patio – the food was great! We had:

• Mini caprese salad bites
• Tapenade wheels (made with puff pastry)
• Lasagna, and even the pasta was homemade
• Black and white panna cotta for dessert
• Tequila sunrise as a cocktail

Everything turned out great! I can’t wait to share the rest of the recipes with you. Truthfully, I’m not a big fan of panna cotta – I would’ve preferred to make Tiramisu, but almost none of our friends like coffee, so it was out – but it’s easy to make, and, judging by how fast the dessert went down, I’m a minority. Everyone loved it. So if you’d like to whip up an impressive looking dessert that’s very easy to make, look no further!

Black and White Panna Cotta

For the white chocolate layer

• 3 cups (0.75L) heavy whipping cream
• 3.5oz (100g) good quality white chocolate, chopped (I used Valrhona)
• 2-3 sheets of gelatin

1. Soak the gelatin in cold water for 5 minutes.
2. In a saucepan, heat the cream until it almost simmers.
3. Add the white chocolate and stir until it melts.
4. Add the soaked gelatin sheets and stir until they dissolve.
5. Divide into tall ramekins or glasses and wait for the first layer to solidify before making the next one.

For the dark chocolate layer

• 3 cups (0.75L) heavy whipping cream
• 3.5oz (100g) good quality dark chocolate, chopped (I used Valrhona)
• 2-3 sheets of gelatin
• 1 Tbsp cocoa powder

1. Soak the gelatin in cold water for 5 minutes.
2. In a saucepan, heat the cream until it almost simmers.
3. Add the dark chocolate and cocoa and stir until it melts.
4. Add the soaked gelatin sheets and stir until they dissolve.
5. Let the mixture cool for a bit, then divide and pour into the ramekins/glasses you are using, and you’ve got your second layer.
6. Decorate with chocolate shards (optional).

What do you think? Share your opinion in the comments.