Candy Cap Panna Cotta With Cocoa Speculaas Crumble, Chocolate Meringue Mushrooms, and Orange Tuile Leaves

Heat the cream, mushroom powder, stevia, and salt over medium heat. Cool to room temperature and then refrigerate overnight.

Strain, discard solids.

Sprinkle gelatin over half n half. Let stand 5 minutes. Heat until melted and then whisk into the cream mixture. Transfer to molds or serving cups and refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours and up to overnight. Alternatively, freeze in silicon forms (just be sure to let them thaw slowly in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours after unmolding before serving).

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

In a medium bowl, beat the butter until it is light and fluffy. Add the monk fruit, molasses, and egg yolk and beat again until light and fluffy. Add in all remaining cookie ingredients and beat until the batter comes together (It should have the consistency of play dough and be very smooth – add a bit of cream or water if it breaks when you try to roll it and a bit more almond powder if it is too soft).

Press into a ball and then roll between 2 sheets of parchment paper to 1/8 inch thickness. Peel one of the parchment sheets off and transfer the dough on the other sheet to a rimmed baking sheet.

Bake at 350ºF for 8-12 minutes, or until firm to the touch and just beginning to brown around the edges (it can be hard to see on this color dough). It will crisp up more when cooled. Remove from oven and cool completely and set aside (if it is not firm when cool, return them to the oven and bake for another 5 minutes). This can be made up to a 2 days ahead of time and stored at room temperature.

Crumble into pieces for serving.

Preheat the oven to 175ºF and line a rimmed baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. Set aside.

Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until soft peaks. Slowly beat in the powdered isomalt, beating until stiff peaks and then beat in salt and extract.

Transfer mixture to a piping bag fitted with a round piping tip. Pipe vertical cones onto the prepared baking sheet to form the stems and large mounds to form the mushroom caps (the meringue does not spread so you can pipe them as close together as you are comfortable piping them). Smooth the mushroom caps using your fingers, if necessary.

Bake at 175ºF for 2-3 hours, or until dry to the touch. Prop oven door open with the handle or a rubber spatula and continue to bake with door ajar for another 30 minutes. Finally, turn off the oven and leave the meringue to cool with the door propped open until room temperature, about 2 hours. Meringues will keep in an airtight container for a week. They will turn a bit of a golden color, but this does not affect their taste and texture.

To assemble the mushrooms, rub the caps and stems with cocoa powdered, as desired. Melt the dark chocolate (I like to microwave the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl at 50% power for 1-2 minutes and then check and stir every 30 seconds after that until smooth but you can also do this in a double boiler on the stove). Using a spoon, spread the chocolate onto the flat portion of the mushroom caps. Dip the top of a stem into the chocolate and then press the cap onto the stem. Place mushroom aside to set and assemble remaining mushrooms. Assembled mushrooms will keep in an airtight container for a week.

Whisk together all tuile ingredients until smooth. Stir in food coloring, if using (I used a bit of red and yellow and kept it a bit poorly mixed to get mottled colors). Use a spoon or the back of a small offset spatula to transfer to a tuile mold and spread with a knife, bench scraper, or offset spatula, making sure excess batter is wiped away. Bake for 6-8 min at 350ºF and then carefully remove the tuiles from the mold. Cookies will keep for up to a week in an airtight container at room temperature.

Place a panna cotta onto each serving plate. Sprinkle the crumbled speculass cookies around and add 2-3 meringue mushrooms per plate. Garnish with tuile leaves and serve immediately.