Fresh Pea and Basil Panna Cotta
yields 6 – 2 ounce portions
1 cup fresh or frozen peas
1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp shallots
¼ cup chicken stock
¾ cup milk
¼ cup whipping cream
1 T fresh basil, chopped
2 sheets gelatin
salt and pepper to taste
2 Tbsps extra virgin olive oil
fresh basil leaves
Soak gelatine in mixture of milk and cream. In a small skillet, over medium heat, sauté shallots in butter and add peas. Add chicken stock and simmer for 3 minutes or until peas are just cooked. Puree in blender with fresh basil. Pour into a medium mixing bowl.
Remove gelatine from cream mixture and pour into a small saucepan. Squeeze out excess liquid from the gelatin into the saucepan and set the gelatin aside. Heat the cream over medium heat until warmed through. Do not boil.
Remove the cream mixture from the heat and whisk in the gelatin until dissolved. Whisk into the pea puree and season to taste with salt and pepper. Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve. Pour into tall shot glasses, cover each one with plastic wrap and chill overnight.
Serve topped with extra virgin olive oil and fresh basil leaves.
Dana began her career in the hospitality industry at the age of 12, spinning cotton candy and selling corn dogs at the PNE. Her father was in the wine importing business for many years and instilled a love of wine, food and travel.
Dana’s culinary fate was sealed when, after managing several flagship Vancouver restaurants in her early twenties, she followed her passion into the kitchen, completing her formal chef’s education at Dubrulle Culinary School and launching her extremely successful inaugural venture, Cellar Door Restaurant at Sumac Ridge Winery in the Okanagan. To deepen her craft further, she completed an apprenticeship at the storied River Cafe in London, England, an experience that continues to fuel her creatively to this day. Inspired and emboldened by what she learned there, she returned to Vancouver and launched one of the most innovative and awarded small plates restaurants in Vancouver’s culinary history, CRU.
Dana is now the principal at SOL Kitchen, a food and hospitality consulting company, where she can take full advantage of her experience on both sides of the pass for a diverse range of clients, from fast-casual restaurants like Noodlebox to being the representative in Canada for New Zealand, for whom she served as Chef Ambassador to local food producers like Windset Farms.
After many trips to Italy, Dana is realizing a life long dream of hosting cooking classes and culinary adventures at Casa Caponetti in Tuscania, Italy. Dana will bring her love of Italian food and wine, her extensive professional cooking expertise and her exuberant, fun-loving style of teaching to Casa Caponetti in September of 2016.
For more information on the Cook Italy culinary cooking tour click here
Dana Reinhardt
romanculinaryadventure@nullgmail.com
Social Media
Instagram: @cookitaly
Twitter: @cook_italy
To inquire about the experience, email Chef Dana directly at: romanculinaryadventure@nullgmail.com or reinhardtdana19@nullgmail.com, or contact her directly at 604-219-6550. Or visit our travel partner Travel Best Bets or Sol Kitchen for more information.
