Blueberry vanilla panna cotta

My family and I are in the middle of moving. My husband and I found our dream home, and it's only half a mile down the street from where we currently live. The new house has a gorgeous kitchen and plenty of room for all of my cooking-related items. Now might be the time where I can finally buy a food processor! I never had room to store one before... but I digress.

So far, the process leading up to our move has not been easy. We were supposed to close on our house on a Friday. It was originally scheduled for 11:00 am, but we ran into a few snags. The lawyers needed some paperwork from the mortgage company and the homeowners association, and the paperwork was either incorrect or incomplete. I was sitting on pins and needles anxiously awaiting the phone call that would tell me when we needed to come in to sign our names on the (million) dotted line(s).

And because I had to be available to leave in an instant, I didn't want to make or bake anything that would require a lot of time. I came across this blueberry vanilla panna cotta on the Williams-Sonoma website and thought it would be perfect. It didn't take long to put together and didn't require an oven or a mixer. Instead, I let the refrigerator do all the work for me. Plus, I wanted to feature the fresh blueberries from my biweekly CSA box.

The phone call from our realtor finally came, and our closing had been delayed until 5:00 pm. Sigh. I'm glad we were able to close on the day we wanted, even though we were the last appointment for the day. At least I had some amazing dessert waiting for me in the fridge to help celebrate the purchase of our new property!

[Note from Eva: Clearly, I have zero skills when it comes to unmolding any type of desserts from a ramekin or other round pans. If you have any tips for me, please share them with me! I tried running the ramekin under hot water to loosen it, but it obviously didn't work for me.]

Ingredients

• 2 1/2 tsp. (1 package) unflavored gelatin
• 1/4 cup milk
• 2 cups heavy cream
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 vanilla bean
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 2 cups blueberries, plus more for garnish

Directions

In a bowl, sprinkle the gelatin over the milk. Let stand for about 2 minutes.

In a saucepan over medium heat, stir together the cream and sugar. Using a small knife, split the vanilla bean in half lengthwise. Scrape the seeds into the cream and add the pod. Heat, stirring, until small bubbles appear around the edges of the pan. Let cool briefly.

Remove the vanilla bean. Slowly add the warm cream mixture to the gelatin mixture, stirring constantly until dissolved. Stir in the vanilla extract and the 2 cups blueberries. Pour the mixture into four 3/4-cup ramekins, dividing evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to overnight.

Just before serving, run a thin knife around the inside of each ramekin and invert onto a dessert plate. Garnish with blueberries and serve immediately.

Yield: 4 servings

Source: Williams-Sonoma; originally adapted from Williams-Sonoma Cooking from the Farmers’ Market, by Tasha DeSerio & Jodi Liano (Weldon Owen, 2010).