Muscat grapes remind me of my first time in Japan, when I was served green muscat grape jelly. In Japanese, muscat is pronounced “masukaato”, and since I was only 16 at the time, I was not sure if that meant musket, as in the gun, since I was still too young to know what moscato wine was, which is the kind of wine muscat grapes are used to make. Moscato wine is sweet and syrupy, while a muscat grape can be either a red or green color. The grapes have a beautiful, perfume-y aroma to them, and a fairly intense grape flavor compared to a regular grape, which is why they are often used to make grape-flavored products, such as the aforementioned grape jelly. I wanted to use the green muscat grapes, as an homage to my first experience of having a muscat grape. As a direct nod to that experience, I am taking some of the muscat grapes, and turning them into a gelee. The rest, I will simply macerate them in a syrup made from moscato(which seems kind of morbid the more I think about it, since I’m basically macerating fresh grapes in the fermented juices of their crushed and juiced ancestors but moving on). To compliment these gorgeous grapes, I wanted to go with something dairy-based, since grapes/wine and cheese are a match made in heaven. That was when I thought about doing a panna cotta.

The panna cotta itself is a play on a yogurt panna cotta, but using Yakult. Yakult is a sweet and tangy cultured yogurt drink, which you may recognize from “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before”, but even before that, it was a popular beverage in Asia, more specifically, Japan, Korea, China, and my native Taiwan. I grew up drinking a small serving of Yakult after a meal, since it was supposed to help you digest your food better. I personally love Yakult, so I wanted to feature it in this panna cotta, as a fun counterpoint to the green grapes. To help the cultures in the Yakult stay alive(and in turn keep this panna cotta tasty AND somewhat nutritious), we will be melting the gelatin into heavy cream first, and then once that mixture is somewhat cooled down, stirring in the Yakult. That way, while the cream is warm but not too scalding, the cultures in the Yakult can then thrive in the cream, and give everything a more yogurt-y quality! You’re basically making a set, full-fat yogurt situation here, which I think is pretty cool. I wanted to pour the panna cotta into sake cups, as a loose homage to grapes and wine, and since the wooden boxes would really help the pale white panna cotta and the vibrant green grapes pop, while giving everything this gorgeous, earthy look, which I further accentuated with some edible leaves I foraged from a hike.

For the panna cotta:
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 tsp gelatin powder + 1 tbsp cold water
a pinch of salt
3 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 cup Yakult

In a pot, heat up the heavy cream, gelatin, salt, and sugar. Once everything is dissolved together, take off heat and allow the cream to cool down to about 95 degrees F(you want it to be roughly the same temperature as your forehead). At this point, stir in the Yakult. Divide the mixture between 4 wooden sake cups. Freeze for 1 hour.

For the moscato syrup:
1/2 cup moscato
a pinch of salt

In a pot, reduce the moscato with salt on low heat until cooked down by half. Allow it to fully cool down before using throughout the dessert.

For the grape jelly:
1/4 cup water
1/4 cup green muscat grapes
2 tbsp moscato syrup
1/2 tsp kanten jelly
a pinch of salt

In a blender, puree the water with muscat grapes. Pour into a pot, and heat up with the other ingredients. Once everything is dissolved together, pour the liquid into a shallow, lined container. Refrigerate for 30 minutes before carefully removing and dicing up the jelly into smaller cubes. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator when not using.

For the macerated grapes:
2 tbsp moscato syrup
1/4 cup green muscat grapes, halved
a pinch of salt

In a bowl, toss everything together. Keep refrigerated and covered until time to use.

To assemble:
Nasturtium leaves or oxalis leaves

Arrange your cubes of jelly and the macerated grapes around the top of the panna cotta. Optionally, you can garnish the tops with nasturtium or oxalis leaves if desired.