Piña colada panna cotta with coconut milk - dairy free, Paleo, real food

Piña colada panna cotta with coconut milk - dairy free, Paleo, real food

• 5.19.2016

I love panna cotta. So simple, so light and tasty, so special-feeling!, and I make it with coconut milk and natural sweeteners so it's not even unhealthy. (You can see my berry lemon panna cotta here and basic panna cotta with candied ginger here.) So when our friends had us over for a Mexican-themed grill night and asked me to bring dessert, my mind went to panna cotta and I wanted to give it a special, tropical spin!

This recipe works so perfectly with coconut milk because of the piña colada inspiration/flavor. It's a great dairy-free, naturally sweetened dessert option and is so pretty and festive!

Read the recipe after the jump!

I actually tried this recipe multiple times with fresh-squeezed pineapple juice in the panna cotta mixture, with no success--something about the acidity in the pineapple juice, maybe? The flavor was amaaaazing, but I couldn't get the texture right/get it to set up enough. So I settled for just adding a lot of fresh pineapple on top! And the unsweetened shredded coconut mixed in the panna cotta makes it extra tropical-feeling enough.

Piña colada panna cottas with coconut milk

Ingredients:

• 1.25 cans (13.5 oz each) full fat coconut milk
• 1.5 tsp unflavored gelatin from grassfed cows (this brand is great, or this one which has higher protein content)
• 1/4 c. maple syrup, honey, or other sweetener (3 tbsp. xylitol also works)
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• 2 tbsp. unsweetened shredded coconut, plus more for garnish
• Chopped fresh pineapple for garnish

Makes 4 servings.

Instructions:

1. Heat coconut milk into a small saucepan on low heat. Sprinkle the powdered gelatin on top and allow it to "bloom" for about 5 minutes. 
2. Whisk together saucepan mixture with sweetener, vanilla, and coconut flakes until everything is completely blended. Do not boil.
3. Pour evenly into four dessert dishes or jars.
4. Cool in refrigerator about 4 hours or until completely set. Once set, top with pineapple slices and more shredded coconut. 

Serve cold on a hot day!