Simply Non-Dairy Peach Panna Cotta

I've been looking for a new dessert, something light, yet tasty. My typical day in the kitchen involves the food channel in the background, my little dog curled up on a rug, my coffee, and I usually have at least a couple of cooking projects going on at the same time. I like to experiment in the kitchen but for some reason, I'm drawn to Italian food and some of my favorite chefs have been making panna cotta. So of course, I wanted to make it too! Most recipes use heavy cream for panna cotta but I wanted to use coconut milk instead of heavy cream. I love the flavor of coconut milk and it also happens to be dairy free and gluten free for all of you that avoid dairy products or need gluten-free. And the end result? I'm telling you, this is the perfect dessert! So try something different today, make your own panna cotta!
Ingredients:
1-13.5 oz can of unsweetened coconut milk
1/4 c sugar
1/2 vanilla bean, inside scraped
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 T cold water
1 3/4 tsp powdered gelatin
Pour coconut milk, sugar, vanilla bean and extract into a small pan. I used a whisk to stir it all together. In a small cup, pour 2 T cold water, add the gelatin, and stir. This can sit until the milk mixture is done. Bring the milk mixture to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and pour about 1/3 cup of the hot mixture to the gelatin and water. This will melt the gelatin. Add this back to the hot milk mixture and stir gently. I measured 2/3 cup of liquid and poured into 4 ramekins. Cover and place in refrigerator for at least 4 hours. You can use any topping, such as caramel sauce, berries, or no topping at all. I made a peach topping.
Peach Syrup Ingredients:
2 sliced peaches, I thawed my frozen peaches because I wanted a soft texture
1/4 c sugar
1/4 c water
Heat syrup ingredients over a low-medium heat until boiling. Reduce heat and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the peaches from the syrup, I used a small strainer to keep them separate. Use the peaches later to garnish your panna cotta prior to serving. Let syrup cool for an hour or two in the refrigerator.
Remove ramekins from the refrigerator about an hour before serving, I prefer to serve the panna cotta at room temperature.
You can serve it in a ramekin or invert it on a plate for a pretty presentation. If you want to serve it on a place, pour some hot water in a larger bowl and place your ramekin in the water for a couple of minutes. You want your panna cotta to loosen from the ramekin. Remove the ramekin from the bowl of water, place a plate over the top and tip it right side up. My panna cotta came out of the ramekin perfectly. Spoon some of the syrup over the top and place a couple of peach slices on top. I sprinkled a small amount of cinnamon and sugar over the peach slices. This is a wonderful light dessert!

 

Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi

 

Apple Cider Jelly

 

Recently I have gotten back into canning. I don't really know exactly why I took a hiatus, but lately I have gotten really tired of walking through the grocery store aisles thinking "gosh, that's so expensive, I could make that!" Maybe as I've gotten older I have just become "cheap" but in the back of my mind I think I feel better just knowing what exactly is in the foods my family eats.  So here is my recipe for Apple Jelly. I know it's not the healthiest thing but I had to start with something simple to get back into it again. I used a combination of recipes. The jelly on the left is adapted from the Better Home's New Cook Book, Recipe for Fruit-Juice Jelly.

Here's what you need: 

• 4 cups unsweetened apple, grape, or orange juice ( I used unsweetened Apple Cider)
• 1/4 c lemon juice (not from a real lemon) has to be in the bottle
• 1- 1 3/4 ounce package powdered fruit pectin, if you use the little container of pectic (I use Ball brand) use 3 1/2 T
• 4 1/2 c sugar (I used a little less)
• Cinnamon sticks or red hot candies (optional)
• half pint jars, lids, rings 

**For the jelly on the right, I used a little bottle of the red hot cinnamon candies and dissolved them in the juice before I added the sugar.
Pour fruit juice and lemon juice into an 8-10 qt kettle . Sprinkle with pectin. Let stand 1-2 minutes, stir to dissolve (I added a cinnamon stick). Bring to a full rolling boil over med-high heat. Stir frequently. (Remove cinnamon stick). Stir in  sugar. Return to full rolling boil, stir often. Boil hard one minute, (this is where I have a discrepancy...juice turns to jelly at 220 degrees F. It took me A LOT longer than 1 minute, so my first batch was a little runnier..but still jelly.) Skim off foam. Ladle into hot, sterilized half-pint jars, leaving 1/4 inch headspace. Adjust lids. Process in boiling-water canner 5 minutes. Makes about 6 half pints.

~Simply Angie

Homemade Brownie Mix

Never buy box brownies again!  I was so excited to find this recipe on Pinterest. I don't know who the original pinner was because the recipe took me to a spam site. ( I did make a batch of the brownies to be sure it was actually a real recipe).  They turned out delicious, in fact my 8x8 pan was nearly gone the same day!  They are a little chewy around the edge and moist in the middle..YUM!!  The dry ingredients can be layered or mixed together in a pint jar or baggie.  I put mine in a wide mouth pint jar.
Here's what you need to make the mix for one batch of brownies:

• 1c sugar
• 1/2 c flour
• 1/3 c cocoa
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp baking powder

To make the brownies:

• add 2 eggs
• 1/2 c oil
• 1 tsp vanilla

Mix dry ingredients with wet ingredients and pour into a greased 8x8 pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.  Check after 25 minutes, mine took 35 minutes.

You could put the dry ingredients into the jar and make a cute little tag with the directions to give as a gift, or you could mix up a batch or two and store in jars or baggies to make when you're having "one of those days" and you need something chocolatey and delicious!

~Simply Angie

Make Your Own Instant Oatmeal Packets

For years I have been eating instant oatmeal in the packets. I have wanted to make my own packets but haven't gotten around to it. My last trip to the grocery store (forgot my list at home) ended with many forgotten items. Instant oatmeal, my breakfast every morning was missing. Then it happened that I saw the idea on Pinterest and decided to finally make my own. You really don't need a recipe because it only requires measuring and adding to baggies.
I used my favorite items, quick-cooking organic oats, demerara sugar, and cinnamon. I measured 1/3 cup of oats, 1 T sugar, and a little more than a pinch of cinnamon per bag. I measured each of the ingredients and poured them into snack size baggies. I added sliced almonds to a separate bag because I want to add them after the oatmeal has cooked.
When you are ready to make your oatmeal, add 2/3-3/4 cups water or milk (I like coconut milk), and microwave for 1-2 minutes. For me, oatmeal is one of those strange textured foods, so cook yours to your favorite texture preference.
Add your favorite garnishes after cooking. I'm using sliced almonds but my daughter suggested raisins or dried blueberries. Total cost $2.54 for 20 baggies of breakfast!

Love and peace,
~ Simply Tammi