Recipe by Alessandro Panichi: Memories of Istanbul
Ingredients for 4 people
For the panna cotta with flowers
- 650 ml milk
- 350 ml fresh cream
- 230 g sugar
- 6 sheets of gelatin
- Dried edible rose, geranium, jasmine, and chamomile flowers
For the raw tahini biscuits
- 300 g tahini paste
- 150 g softened butter
- 200 g toasted black sesame seeds
- 150 g icing sugar
- Salt to taste
Other ingredients
- 4 dried dates, julienned
- 4 dried apricots, diced, mixed with 50 g apricot jam
- 10 g Bronte pistachio paste
- 8 g ivy pollen
- 12 fresh edible flowers
Procedure
Boil the cream, milk and sugar, remove from the heat and add all the dried flowers, cover and leave to rest for 20 minutes.
Strain the mixture and add the gelatin; divide into portions on plates and chill thoroughly.
In a large bowl, prepare the tahini biscuit by combining all the ingredients; shape into a sausage and place in the freezer.
When ready to serve, arrange all the ingredients in a random order on the plate to create a grand bazaar.
My personal memory of the grand bazaar in Istanbul: colors, smells, and flavors...
The photographs are by Lido Vannucchi.
