A beautiful, delicious, creamy, soothing, sweet and flavoursome dessert to top off a wonderful Mother’s Day supper. My mother personified in a pleasing dessert. Elegant, beautiful and who doesn’t love a creamy vanilla speckled pannacotta? Obviously with a splash of booze as it was only fitting and with the simplest quirky touch of rose for added originality. And as one of my mums favourite puddings it was always on the menu. With shortbread of course. I think I’d have been hung and gutted if I hadn’t made any if I’m honest. Even if we were having pancakes! You can totally adapt this recipe too adding different liquors and roasting different fruits. Adding different nuts and flavours to your biscuits too. Try frangelico pannacotta, hazelnut shortbread and cinnamon honey roasted figs.

Serves 6

Amaretto Pannacotta

• 500ml double cream
• 125ml milk
• 40g caster sugar
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 vanilla pod
• 2 tbsp amaretto liqueur (or another if preferred, e.g. Frangelico?)
• 3 leaves/sheets gelatine

1. Find yourself either 6 pannacotta moulds (This is if you want to turn these out onto a plate to eat. It is up to you. I prefer the less hassle and neater presentation approach to serving these in glasses) or 6 glasses of choice to serve you pannacotta in and place on tray.
2. Heat the double cream, milk, sugar and cinnamon stick in a saucepan over a medium heat to dissolve the sugar and infuse the cinnamon.
3. Scrape the vanilla seeds from the pod and whisk into the heating cream. Add the pod too and bring to just under a simmer.
4. Remove from the what and leave to infuse for 20 minutes or so.
5. Soak the gelatine leaves in a bowl of cold water meanwhile.
6. Sieve or pick out the cinnamon stick and the vanilla pod and discard. Bring the pan back onto the heat and warm through.
7. Squeeze out the gelatine leaves and then whisk into the warm cream.
8. Transfer the mixture to a good reliable pouring jug and divide the mixture between the glasses. (TIP: Measure the mixture first and then divide this by 6 so that you end up with 6 even glasses. It is also worth whisking the mixture between pouring so you don’t end up with all the tasty black and precious vanilla seeds at the bottom of the jug!)
9. Carefully place the tray in the fridge and leave to set. Ideally make these in the morning for use for dinner.
10. Bring to room temperature for about 5 minutes before serving. Turn out any that are in pannacotta moulds. Serve with the warm rhubarb compote on top.

Rose Roasted Rhubarb

• 500g pink forced Spring Rhubarb
• 1 tbsp runny honey
• ¾ tsp rosewater
• 1 tbsp rose petals
• Handful pistachio nuts, crushed

1. Preheat the oven to about 160°C.
2. Cut your rhubarb into 2inch chunks on the diagonal.
3. Place in a baking dish and drizzle with the honey. Add the rosewater and mix.
4. Cover with foil and roast for about 30 minutes until its soft. remove the foil and return to the oven for about 10 more minutes or so.
5. Serve warm on top of the chilled pannacotta, scattered with a few rose petals and some crushed pistachio nuts.

Pistachio Shortbread

• 125g cold, cubed butter
• 175g plain flour
• 60g caster sugar
• 40g pistachios

1. Preheat the oven to 180 and line a baking tray with parchment
2. In a food processor, combine the butter, flour and 50g of sugar and blend until it begins to clump and form a dough
3. Next in a pestle and mortar pound the nuts coarsely until you form small pieces.
4. Add half to the dough and pulse again briefly in the processor to diffuse.
5. Tip the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and use your hands to bring to a ball of dough.
6. Halve the dough to make it easier to work with as you can now deal with it in two batches. Roll to the thickness of a pound coin and then use a cutter of choice to make your shortbread before placing on the baking tray.
7. Combine the remaining pounded nuts with the 10g of sugar and scatter liberally over the biscuits.
8. Bake for 15-20 minutes until just beginning to turn a light golden brown.
9. Leave to cool before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

To serve: Serve the pannacotta slightly chilled (remove from the fridge for about 5 minute before serving) topped with the warm rhubarb and a side order of buttery shortbread