Jackfruit Panna Cotta Topped with Jackfruit in Muscovado Syrup

I bought several cans of jackfruit and a bottle of jackfruit essence from the Filipino market last week so I decided to make some jackfruit panna cotta today. Jackfruit is very common in the Philippines. The ripened fruit is sweet and can be etean raw or stewed in sugar syrup which can be served as a snack or sandwich filling. The unripe fruit are used in savory dishes such as stew and soup as well as appetizer or salad. For as long as I have been here in the States, I have yet to find a fresh jackfruit. Most of it is sold canned (ripe and unripe) or frozen. While they do taste okay, I think that nothing compares to the fresh fruits. The huge seeds can be boiled with the skin still on. It is slightly starchy and taste somewhat similar to chestnut.

In the Philippines, jackfruit are often sold at the wet market and large grocery chains. I remember though that we had a huge jackfruit tree in our backyard along with other trees like guava, santol (wild mangosteen) and banana trees as well a variety of tropical plants. Having a huge backyard is one of the things that I miss in the Philippines :(

Anyways, jackfruit panna cotta is made using a basic panna cotta recipe but instead of using vanilla, I used jackfruit essence and then topped it with jackfruit in muscovado syrup. The result is a nice constrast of black and white color which tasted really great. This version of my panna cotta is a little richer than my previous panna cotta recipes because I used a combination of heavy cream and half &half instead of the usual heavy cream/milk misture that I usually use.

Ingredients:

Panna Cotta:

Panna Cottta:
2 tsp unflavored gelatin
1 Tbsp water
1/2 cup half and half
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp jackfruit essence or extract

1. Sprinkle gelatin over 1 Tbsp water and let it soften for about 10 minutes
2. Heat a pan over medium low heat. Add cream, half & half, and sugar. Simmer (do not boil) until sugar is dissolved, stirring occassionally.
3. Remove from heat and stir in jackfruit essence/extract and gelatin mixture. Mix until gelatin is dissolved completely.
4. Strain the panna cotta mixture and pour into ramekins or individual serving container. Let it cool before covering ramekins with plastic wrap.
5. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
6. Top with jackfruit slices in muscovado syrup.

Jackfruit in muscovado syrup

Ingredients:

1 cup sliced jackfruit
1 cup muscovado or brown sugar (if you prefer)
1/2 cup water

1. Heat saucepan over medium heat.
2. Combine muscovado or brown sugar and water. Stir to dissolve mucovado or brown sugar.
3. Let it simmer until it forms a syrup.
4. Add sliced of jackfruit and cook for 10 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and let it cool.