Last week, I bought two ginormous mangos but I wasn’t sure what to do with them. I searched around for some inspiration and found this recipe for mango panna cotta. The mangos were so sweet that I didn’t even need to add sugar to the puree. I also added kiwi slices and toasted coconut because I though it needed something extra to pull it all together. I think this Tropical Panna Cotta may have just become my go to recipe for summer. This is what I love about summer desserts. It’s all about the fruit and celebrating its freshness.

My favorite part of this dessert has to be the toasted coconut. I love baking with coconut. It’s my all-time favorite ingredient and it’s great for livening up any dull looking dessert. Not that this dessert needed any livening up. The mango, being so bright, really made this dessert visually stand out. I hope you make this tasty dessert. The name may sound intimidating but it really is an easy summer dessert. Enjoy!

Tropical Panna Cotta (adapted from Tarteletteblog.com):

Peel and dice 1 large ripe mango. Place the mango in a food processor and puree. Divide the mango puree evenly among 4 glasses. Freeze to harden the fruit. Place 1 tbsp. water in a small dish or a ramekin and sprinkle 1 3/4 tsp. powdered gelatin over it. Set aside.

Cut 1 vanilla bean in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Heat 1 cup heavy cream, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, the vanilla bean and the seeds, in a medium saucepan. Stir occasionally to make sure the sugar dissolves completely. Remove from the heat and stir in the gelatin until it is melted. Let cool for about 10 minutes and add 1 cup cold buttermilk. Let cool to room temperature. Once the cream is cooled, slowly pour it over the frozen mango puree and let set in the refrigerator, at least 2 hours. Serve with toasted coconut and slices of kiwi.