Pumpkin Panna Cotta (Splenda, almond milk)

THE MINIMALIST
THE MINIMALIST; No Time for Crust? Who Needs It, Anyway?
By Mark Bittman
Published: November 22, 2000

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. .Correction Appended
PUMPKIN pie may be a Thanksgiving classic, but the last thing most people want to do on a day already crammed with cooking is start mixing and rolling out a crust.

This leads to some less than ideal alternatives, like store-bought pies -- unless you live near a truly great bakery, almost always a mistake -- or ready-made crusts, which usually rely on margarine or shortening, among the worst fats to use in pie crusts.

The best alternative, and certainly the most efficient, is to do away with the crust altogether and make a pumpkin ''pie'' without the pie -- that is, a pumpkin custard. And to further streamline the process, it makes sense to use gelatin as a thickening agent instead of eggs. The most common form for this kind of dessert is the Italian panna cotta -- cooked cream -- and few desserts are easier and more reliable; truly, this is foolproof.

The real panna cotta contains no pumpkin, of course; it's a pudding of cream, sugar and gelatin.

Adding pumpkin changes the equation; its strong flavor makes all-cream pudding too heavy on the tongue, so I substitute some milk to lighten things up a bit. And the pumpkin's rich texture means that to get an airy result you need only half the gelatin you would ordinarily use.

None of this is a challenge. And to make matters even simpler, you can use canned pureed pumpkin without fear -- it will not make any real difference, I promise. You can also make the panna cotta with butternut squash or sweet potato, if you prefer those flavors: just steam chunks of either vegetable until they are very tender, and puree until very smooth.

But personally, I'm sticking with the canned pumpkin.

The quality is good and the convenience incredible: all you do is dissolve some gelatin in a little milk, combine the pumpkin with cream, more milk, and sugar, and then heat.

Pour the pudding into small ramekins, and after a couple of hours in the fridge, you're set. You can safely do all of that a day ahead and refrigerate the covered ramekins until dessert time.

If you still have your heart set on pie, pour the panna cotta into a crust, and chill; it will work fine.

PUMPKIN PANNA COTTA

Time: 20 minutes, plus time to chill

2 1/2 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 envelope unflavored gelatin
1 cup pureed pumpkin, squash or sweet potato
1/2 cup Splenda
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Put 1/2 cup of the milk in a 6- or 8-cup saucepan, and sprinkle the gelatin over it. Let sit for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, blend together the remaining milk, cream, pumpkin, sugar and cinnamon. The mixture should be perfectly smooth, so it is best to use a blender.

2. Turn the heat under the saucepan to low, and cook the milk, stirring occasionally, until the gelatin dissolves. Pour in the cream mixture, and turn the heat to medium. Cook, stirring occasionally, until steam rises. Turn off the heat, and ladle or pour the mixture into 6 4-ounce ramekins or other containers.

3. Chill the panna cotta until firm, and serve, with creme fraiche or whipped cream if you like

Number of Servings: 8

Recipe submitted by SparkPeople user TERZA_RIMA.