This could almost pass as a breakfast trifle. It is a truffle panna cotta set in a glass layered with poached fruit and a maple and oat granola for crunch – it would work just as well with pears or quinces as well or in place of the apples, so feel free to experiment. I always think there is something particularly elegant about dessert served in a glass, and it’s so easy to assemble and eat. Any leftover oat crunch is lovely scattered over fruit salad and yogurt for breakfast.
Ingredients:
600 ml pouring cream
80 g caster sugar
25 g finely grated black truffle
2 titanium-strength gelatine leaves, soaked in cold water
80 ml (1⁄3 cup) maple syrup
1 vanilla bean, split lengthways and seeds scraped
3 cardamom pods
2 cloves
3 apples, peeled cored and thinly sliced
oat crunch
160 g rolled oats
50 g (2⁄3 cup) flaked almonds
2 tablespoons pepitas
1 tablespoon sesame seeds
2 tablespoons plain flour
pinch of salt
70 ml maple syrup
1 tablespoon sunflower oil
1. Combine the cream, sugar and truffle in a saucepan and stir over medium heat until the sugar has dissolved. Remove the gelatin leaves from the water and squeeze to remove any excess liquid. Add to the warm cream and stir to dissolve. Pour the mixture into six 500 ml (2 cup) glasses and refrigerate until set, about 3 hours.
2. For the oat crunch, preheat the oven to 180°C and line a baking tray with baking paper. Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, then spread thinly over the prepared tray and bake until just beginning to brown. Stir with a spoon and continue to bake, stirring often, for about 15–18 minutes or until the mixture is evenly brown. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. The oat mixture will keep in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks.
3. In a wide-based saucepan combine the maple syrup, vanilla bean and seeds, cardamom and cloves with 80 ml (1⁄3 cup) of water. Bring to the boil over high heat, then reduce the heat until the mixture is simmering, add the apple slices and stir very gently so the apple doesn’t break. Cook for a further 15 minutes or until the apple is soft and the liquid has thickened to a syrup, then remove and allow to cool to room temperature. Remove the vanilla bean, cardamom pods and cloves and refrigerate until required.
4. To serve, remove the creams from the fridge and spoon over the poached apple with a little syrup. Finish with a scattering of oat crunch.