During the summertime, I love all the fresh fruit that’s available, especially berries, melons, and tropical fruits like mangoes, kiwi fruit and papaya. Recently, I was sent a box of Zespri Kiwi Fruit, and had the chance to experiment with both Green Kiwi Fruit and Gold Kiwi Fruit. I have to say that I am partial to Gold Kiwi Fruit, perhaps because it’s more unusual or because I like its more tropical flavors. Now that I’ve run out of these Gold Kiwi Fruit, I’ve been on the lookout in our local supermarkets and have seen them in a few stores. Although Gold Kiwi Fruit is not as easy to spot as Green Kiwi Fruit, it’s definitely worth the effort to look for them – you won’t be disappointed.
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| Zespri Gold Kiwi Fruit |
I made Kiwi Popsicles and Frosty Kiwi Coolers with the Green Kiwi Fruit, which were very quick and easy to make. However, I wanted to make something a bit fancier with the Gold Kiwi Fruit, they’re that special.
This summer, I bought a pack of agar agar from our local Asian grocery store. It perked my interest as I remember when I was growing up, my mom made some desserts using agar agar. However, after bringing it home, I didn’t know what to do with it. The agar agar I bought came in long strands. The agar agar I remember my mom using was in “bars.”
Unlike gelatin, which is derived from the collagen inside animals’ skin and bones, agar agar comes from seaweed. I never really thought about this until I googled gelatin and found that, not only is gelatin used in “JELL-O” gelatin mixes, but also gummy bears, marshmallows, and some yogurts. After I read this, I was a little grossed out – who knew?
Whereas gelatin must be refrigerated to gel, agar agar sets up at room temperature in an hour, requiring no refrigeration. That’s one thing I like about vegan foods – since there’s no dairy or eggs, there are no worries about leaving food out at room temperature for a short period of time.
When I started researching how to use the agar agar I bought, I saw that most recipes used powdered agar agar or agar agar flakes. I also noticed that the proportion of agar agar to liquid to make it gel was roughly 2 teaspoons of agar agar powder or 2 tablespoons of agar agar flakes to 2 cups of liquid.
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| Agar Agar Flakes that I made by grinding Agar Agar Strands in a coffee grinder. |
One resource suggested grinding agar agar in a food processor, blender or coffee grinder. I first tried the food processor, which failed to break up the strands of agar agar. So, I cut the agar agar strips into smaller pieces and put them in the coffee grinder, and I ended up with nice agar agar flakes.
I came across a recipe for Vegetarian Vanilla Panna Cotta on the Enlightened Cooking and decided to use this as a reference. To highlight the tropical theme I wanted to convey with this dessert, I made a Mango Panna Cotta, topping it with some Zespri Golden Kiwi, Mango, and Strawberries.
Vegan Mango Panna Cotta with Fresh Fruit
I happened to have some So Delicious Passionate Mango Yogurt which was perfect for this tropical theme, but vanilla yogurt would work just as well.
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| Whoops! I ran out of strawberries, but these were still really good. |
Ingredients:
- 1 1/4 cup coconut milk
- 1/4 cup organic sugar
- 2 tablespoons agar agar flakes
- 1 cup So Delicious Passionate Mango Yogurt
- 1 mango (you should have about 1/2 cup)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Kiwi Fruit, Mango, or other fruits, cut up, for topping
Directions:
- In a medium saucepan, combine the coconut milk, sugar and agar agar flakes. Let stand 5 minutes. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to low and cook 6-8 minutes, until agar is dissolved. Remove from heat.
- Puree mango flesh in a food processor. Add agar agar mixture to the bowl and process until smooth.
- Add yogurt and vanilla extract to bowl and process until blended.
- Divide among ramekins or dessert glasses. Cover tops with plastic wrap. Agar agar will set in 1 hour. If you are not serving it right away, transfer panna cottas to the refrigerator.
- Just before serving, top with fresh Kiwi Fruit, Mango, and any other fruit you like.
So pretty and what a great way to use mango!
i LOVE this recipe jeanette! i have agaragar flakes that i've used before, i should bring it out again soon 😀
I have never used agar agar before. Glad you included a pic because I would not know what to look for. Looks very refreshing.
If you can believe it, I'm actually allergic to kiwis! Though I do love them so. Maybe I won't be allergic to the gold ones…never had those.
I love that this is vegan! I've worked with gelatin before and find it super gross…but agar agar I think i could handle!
Great summer dessert recipe!
What a pretty dessert. Love all of the tropical fruits that were used. Mango makes me giddy. Yummy! Agar agar is a new to me ingredient. I would love to give this recipe a try sometime.
wow! i love this! this recipe is right up my alley, from the tropical fruit theme to the dairy-free, vegan mousse. I can't wait for an excuse to make this dessert.
This was the first time I tried agar agar and I found it really easy to use (once I figured out how to get it into powder form – you can just buy agar agar powder). I love tropical fruits, especially when it's so hot out!
These are the prettest desserts I've seen in a long time! They look so refreshing and delicious
Mary
What a beautiful presentation! Thank you so much for sharing such a delectable recipe! I cannot wait to try this!
WOw, this sounds amazing! Great recipe!
This looks so good, I can't wait to try it. Thank you for posting animal-free, cruelty-free recipes.
My goodness those are so pretty.
Lisa~~
Cook Lisa Cook
Your panna cota are just beautiful. I have never worked with agar agar but I may be on the lookout for it now!
Thanks for the positive feedback everyone – these little desserts were really quite easy to make and didn't take long at all.
Is the coconut milk So Delicious Coconut milk or actually a can oc coconut milk?
It looks great! My daughter eats low protein and this will work!
When do you add the yogurt?
Thanks for your questions. Typically, panna cotta is made with heavy cream, so I used canned coconut milk (lite or regular), not So Delicious Coconut Milk. You can probably substitute So Delicious Coconut Milk, but I'm guessing it might turn out less creamy and more gelatin-like, which is fine depending on your preference.
Thanks for catching the missing step – the yogurt should be added to the mixture once the agar agar mixture is processed with the mango.
This looks great! My friend owns an ice cream shop and does sorbet in her soft serve machine and uses agar agar in her coconut sorbet. It's amazing how it works. I also love those golden kiwis. I have not seen them around here.
I've never heard of agar agar. What a great solution for vegetarian and vegans a like. I am a meat eater but I'm not a big fan or gelatin. It just seems wrong. I'll have to be on the look out for it.
So interesting to use agar agar in sorbet – I've seen a few recipes using gelatin in sorbet, so that makes perfect sense. Will have to give it a try.
Agar agar is a wonderful vegan substitute as gelatin, and is more widely available in natural food stores now.
omg.. i just love love this panna cotta.. no gelatin and mango! what more can anyone ask for!
Richa @ http://hobbyandmore.blogspot.com/
Oh, Jeanette, your panna cotta looks exquisite! Award winning even. 🙂 I'd love to have this for breakfast!
xo,
Shirley
Looks so light and refreshing; a perfect summer dessert. I've always wanted to try making panna cotta.
looks wonderful, gold kiwi is my favorite 🙂 wish I had an easier time finding it.
Great recipe–can't wait to try it. I have issues with gelatin myself and I'm not even a vegetarian. I do have to point out, though, that adding a dairy product (yogurt) disqualifies this as a vegan recipe.
Hope you all enjoy this recipe.
Elizabeth – the yogurt I used is non-dairy, made with coconut milk, a nice alternative for vegans. I use So Delicious coconut yogurt in place of dairy yogurt in smoothies, baking and this recipe.
This looks incredible! I've never made pana cotta at home. I'm so tempted to try now!
Hi Jeanette,
We just purchased a packet of Agar-Agar crystals and are all eager to give your dish a go! I am glad to see vegetarian friendly options that challenge traditional Western dishes.
Cheers!
Hi,
I made panna cotta with cream and followed the steps as mentioned above. Now, since the cream is hot and mango pulp and yogurt is just out of the fridge, when i let the cream cool down a little bit, i added it to mango pulp and yogurt, it just curdled a little bit and plus, i thought agar agar has dissolved completely, after refrigeration, i could make out that i am chewy on to agar agar!! what could have gone wrong, how can i stop this curdling.
Hi Ritu, so sorry to hear this didn’t work for you. Did you use dairy cream or coconut milk? Dairy will tend to curdle. From what I remember when I made this, the agar agar mixture was room temperature when I mixed everything together. It almost sounds like your mixture might have separated so the agar agar ended up in one layer? Agar agar is firmer than gelatin, but the consistency should have been even throughout the panna cotta.
How many of the individual desserts does this recipe make? I want to make them for mother’s day but am wondering if I need to double (or triple) the recipe.
Thanks!
Hi Jennifer, it’s been a while since I made this, but I think it made just two individual desserts.
Thanks!
I doubled the recipe and actually got 8 individual servings (about 3/4 of a cup).
Can’t wait to try them!
Hi Jeanette,
I’m planning on making this tomorrow and hope you could help answer some questions:
You mentioned that you coconut agar agar mixture was at room temperature when you added the pureed mango. I was wondering if the mixture hardens if you leave at room temp?
also, when you say blend all ingredients, can I put it in a Blender?
What about the yogurt, should it be room temp too?
do you double boil the coconut milk and agar agar mixture?
Thanks so much in advance.
Ratna
Hi Ratna, I would let the agar agar mixture come to room temperature following dissolving it on the stove, and mix it in with the other ingredients soon after. It takes the agar agar a little bit before it hardens up. I don’t think the yogurt has to be at room temperature before using it. You should be able to use a blender no problem. I did not use a double boiler, although that would work well. Hope that helps. Let me know how it turns out for you.