Cherry Blossom Milk Pudding

1. Gather all the ingredients.
2. Put 8 salt-pickled cherry blossoms in a small bowl and add water to cover the flowers. Let them soak for at least 30 minutes to remove the saltiness from the flowers.

To Make the Milk Pudding

1. Cut 2 gelatin sheets into thin strips and put in a small bowl. Pour 3 Tbsp hot water into the bowl and stir until the gelatin has dissolved completely. If it’s not completely dissolved, microwave for 30 seconds and mix.
2. In a small saucepan, heat ⅔ cup whole milk and ⅓ cup sugar over medium heat. Stir continuously until the sugar has dissolved.
3. When the milk is about to boil, turn off the heat (don’t let it boil!) and add the gelatin. Mix well and set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, combine ½ cup plain yogurt and ¾ cup heavy (whipping) cream. Mix well to combine.
5. Slowly add the milk mixture to the yogurt mixture while you stir.
6. Strain the mixture through a fine-mesh sieve to achieve silky smooth texture.
7. To speed up the process for solidifying the milk pudding, fill up half of a large bowl with iced water. Place the bowl with mixture in the ice bath. It will take at least 30 minutes until the mixture becomes thicker and syrupy.
8. Once the mixture gets thicker, pour into individual serving cups. Keep them in the refrigerator until the milk pudding sets, about 30–60 minutes.

To Make the Cherry Blossom Jelly/Jello

1. Start this process only after your milk pudding has set. Cut 1 gelatin sheet into thin strips and put in a small bowl. Pour 1½ Tbsp hot water and stir until the gelatin is dissolved completely. If it doesn’t get dissolved, microwave it for 20 seconds and mix.
2. In a small saucepan, heat ½ cup water and 2 tsp sugar over medium heat and whisk until the sugar has dissolved completely.
3. Gently squeeze out the water from the salt-pickled cherry blossoms and add them to the saucepan. Turn off the heat.
4. Add the gelatin and give a quick mix. Then, add a tiny bit of red food coloring. If you want nice light pink color, add only tiny bit. You can always add a little more if you want it to be a darker red.
5. Mix well so that the color is evenly distributed. Place the saucepan in an ice bath and let the mixture cool. This will make the mixture syrupy and thick.

To Assemble

1. Once the jelly mixture is slightly thicker, pick up the cherry blossoms by the stems and gently place them on top of the milk pudding in the cups. Pour the jelly mixture on top of the milk pudding to cover the cherry blossoms.
2. If you want the cherry blossoms to look bloomed, scoop the flower with the liquid mixture in a big spoon and pour onto the top of the milk pudding.
3. Keep in the refrigerator until the top layer is set (about an hour). Garnish the milk pudding with mint leaves and serve it chilled.