On a whim, I made this for a Halloween party and it turned out to be a huge hit! No one wanted to take the first bite because it looked to so real. But everyone eventually gave into their inner cannibal!
Combine the milk and gelatin and stir, then let bloom for 5-10 minutes.
Berry Jam
In a medium-sized sauce pot, combine strawberries and sugar then place on the stove top on low.
Stir occasionally as the sugar melts and the juices are rendered from the berries.
Once the mixture is becoming more liquid, turn up the burner to medium high.
Stirring often, cook until the berries have burst and cooked down to a thick jam. (This will happen faster if you give the berries a little help by mashing them with your spoon as your stir).
Turn off the heat then carefully strain the jam through a fine mesh sieve. You should have one cup of jam.
Panna Cotta
Clean your pan and add the strained jam back to the pot.
Heat slowly on medium low heat.
Add the bloomed gelatin/milk mixture a little at a time, whisking thoroughly.
Once all the gelatin has melted, pour the mixture into a large bowl and whisk in the remaining cream and milk.
Pour panna cotta into brain mold, cover and refrigerate until set.
Strawberry Sauce
Place strawberries, sugar, water and lemon juice in a medium sauce pot and cook over low heat until the sugar melts.
Turn up the heat and cook until the strawberries are cooked and the sauce is thick, but not as thick as a jam.
Chill in the refrigerator until ready to serve.
Serving
When ready to serve the panna cotta, find a bowl that fits the brain mold. Fill it with warm water and place the mold in the water, being careful to not get water inside the mold.
Let the gelatin sit in the water for 4-5 minutes, then dry off and try to unmold the brain onto a platter. If it doesn't come out, soak longer, adding more warm water to the bowl as necessary.
Pour strawberry sauce over and around the brain and serve immediately.
Notes
You can chill the brain up to 48 hours before serving. But the longer it chills the more firm the texture will be.
It's best to unmold and add the strawberry sauce right before serving.
The lemon juice in the strawberry sauce prevents browning.
The panna cotta itself is very creamy and not sweet while the strawberry sauce is very sweet. Together they make a nice balance.
Why make homemade berry jam? I wanted to control the color and the moisture content. It's a bit labor intensive to make and strain a homemade jam, but it is more predictable that using a store bought jam. Nothing is more sad than having a gelatin that will not set!
If you've never made jam before, doing a spoon test might be helpful.
If you make your strawberry sauce too thick, you can add more water to thin it out. Just make sure it's cold when you pour it on so it does not melt the panna cotta.