Ice wine Panna Cotta

Isn’t it so very annoying when people just don’t have any gym etiquette? I for one find it extremely irritating when people behave like it’s their personal property. Our condo has a pretty decent gym which I’m very grateful for as I don’t need to go anywhere but everyone who comes to the gym isn’t quite as decent. For starters there’s the old turtle, he is probably in his late fifties, retired and in all these years I have never seen him smile, which is ok since I’m not exactly smiley myself but anyway the old turtle walks into the gym around 9 every morning (hence the retirement guess) and the first thing he does is to switch off the air conditioning in a room with no windows and hot and humid weather; then he gets on the treadmill, puts on the local Indonesian language news channel at an ear piercing volume and proceeds to walk at the speed of 4; meanwhile on the treadmill next to his I’m running my usual 5-10k, made so much more difficult by the lack of air circulation and the television blaring in a language I don’t understand, I mean I’m willing to compromise, I can deal with the loud tv as long as there’s air conditioning but to do that I’d have to actually talk to the old turtle.

Then there’s the weird skinny guy who gets on to the treadmill then puts his legs on the display and everywhere else in an attempt to stretch, then he will run and sweat all over the treadmill, I mean literally all over and not even wipe it afterwards. What irks me the most though is that almost everyone who comes to the gym thinks it’s absolutely ok to leave mats, dumbbells and other equipment just lying around; you’re in the gym to work out and burn some calories so why would you not just do a little bit more work and roll up your mats, place the bench properly and put the dumbbells back on the rack. I could go on and on about all the people I encounter I in the gym, the lady who comes in her pyjamas, another one in flip flops, water bottles containing water mixed with raw okra…oh and I forgot about the herculean Indochinese and his trainer, well I could go on and on ranting but I think it’s time to talk food.

This wine panna cotta is made with just four ingredients and contains no gelatin, it takes five minutes to whip up and can easily be made way in advance and stored and is my new favourite. This panna cotta is soft and creamy and has just enough alcohol to make it dreamy. I first tasted ice wine when we visited Canada a couple of years ago; we went to the Niagara region which is filled with beautiful sprawling wine estates and did a tour of the peller wine estate; it was here I tasted and learnt all about ice wine. I’m not a wine drinker, at all but I absolutely fell in love with this wine; ice wine is made from grapes that have been frozen while still on the vine, they need to be picked at exactly the right time and in freezing temperatures, it’s a risky and complicated process and that’s the reason ice wine is quite expensive so if you don’t want to use your precious ice wine, you can use any other sweet dessert wine instead.

So please make this simple dessert from Anna Olson, a  4 ingredient- 5 minute panna cotta after which you will probably need a trip to the gym and then I promise I will patiently listen to you rant. I used red currants and a hazelnut brittle to top the panna cotta, the berries provided freshness and tartness while the brittle added a crunchy texture to the creaminess, the husband though preferred to have his with crushed digestive biscuits.

Ingredients

• Whipping cream- 2 ½ cups
• Sugar- ¾ cup
• Lemon juice- 2 tbsp
• Ice wine- ½ cup (or any other sweet dessert wine)
• Berries/ fruits- for garnish, optional

Instructions

1. Pour cream and sugar into a saucepan and heat on low heat just until the sugar dissolves; stir occasionally.
2. Once the sugar has dissolved, take the cream off the heat and stir in the lemon juice and wine. Wait for 10 minutes, pour into serving glasses and chill overnight.
3. Top with fresh fruit and nuts, if you like, just before serving.

Notes

• Use any dessert wine instead of ice wine.
• Make sure the wine is at room temperature.
• Chill the panna cotta overnight or at least 6-8 hours.
• Serve with fresh berries, fruits, chopped nuts or brittle.