Honey Panna Cotta & Florentines

Making panna cotta and florentines was this month's Daring Bakers challenge which was hosted by Mallory from A Sofa in the Kitchen.

Ivan did a good job with the panna cotta part – it was very creamy and smooth on the palate. And he played a bit with the orange jelly to make a hole in it where to pour some sour cherry jam.

It was up to me to make the florentines and I had a nice idea for plating the dessert, therefore I wanted to bake the florentines in the form of big crescents. But it didn't work out the way I thought it would, so I had some extra large florentines (with no trace of crescent look).

Honey Panna Cotta with Orange Jelly Recipe:
Makes 6 panna cotta rings 5,5cm in diameter and 4 cm tall

For the Orange Jelly:

• 140 ml freshly squeezed orange juice;
• 30 gr sugar;
• ¾ tsp agar agar powder.

Combine all and bring to a boil. Pour in 6 rings 3cm in diameter and 2,5cm tall. Let cool and remove the rings.
To make a hole in the middle – cut 0,5cm tall circle from the orange jelly ring. Using a smaller ring make a hole in the center of the bigger part of the jelly. Discard (eat) the piece from the hole. Paste the 0,5cm tall jelly circle on top of the hollow jelly ring. Place in the middle of a 5,5 cm metal ring.

For the Honey Panna Cotta:

• 120 ml whole milk;
• 360 ml whipping cream;
• 70 gr honey;
• 2 level teaspoons agar agar powder.

Mix all the ingredients and bring to a boil. Pour in the prepared rings over the orange jelly. Let cool. Turn upside down and remove the rings.
Fill the hole in the middle with home made jam (we used sour cherry jam).

Florentines Recipe:

• 50 gr butter;
• 50 gr granulated sugar;
• 30 gr confectioners' sugar;
• 30 gr dry cranberries, chopped;
• 15 gr walnuts, chopped;
• 15 gr rolled oats;
• 30 gr candied orange and lemon peel, chopped;
• 25 gr hazelnuts chopped;
• 15 gr all purpose flour.

Melt butter and sugar, then add the rest of the ingredients and mix till combined.
Preheat the oven to 180º C. Line baking pan with silpat. Drop the mixture by teaspoons leaving enough space since the florentines spread out a lot.
It could be spread some tempered chocolate from the bottom side, but I prefer them this way.