Thai Pandan Coconut Jelly Dessert

FOR PANDAN LAYER

1. Start by thoroughly mixing the agar-agar powder with 0.5 cup water in a small bowl. Now let it rest for 15 minutes.
2. Cut the pandan leaves into 1-inch sized pieces.
3. Toss the sliced pandan leaves into a blender, add the remaining 3 cups water, and roughly blend.
4. Next, pour the fresh pandan juice into a bowl and use a cheese cloth to catch the blended leaves. The finer your filter, the smoother your pandan layer will be.
5. Simmer the filtered pandan juice in a wok, skillet, or cooking pot over low to medium heat for 1 minute. Then, add the agar-agar mix from step 1, but first give it another good stir.
6. Cook and stir until the agar-agar powder is completely dissolved, no longer than 5 minutes. The agar has to be fully dissolved before moving on. Dip a spoon and check the back to see if there’s still traces of agar.
7. Once the agar-agar has dissolved, it’s time to add the sugar. Keep cooking and stirring until the sugar has also dissolved.
8. Gently pour or scoop the pandan layer into a baking mold, cup, or any bowl you like. Let it rest at room temperature to become firm for about 30 minutes until it firms up.

FOR COCONUT LAYER

1. Next, we can make the coconut layer. Just like in step 1, combine the agar-agar with 0.5 cup water in a bowl and stir. Let it rest for 15 minutes.
2. Wait 15 minutes and then pour the coconut milk into a pan or skillet and simmer it gently over a low to medium heat. Once the edges start to bubble, add in the agar mix. Let it cook until the agar-agar powder is completely dissolved, no longer than 5 minutes.
3. Add sugar and salt, cook until the sugar is fully dissolved (2 min) and remove from heat.
4. Use your finger to check if layer 1 has firmed up. When firm, use a large spoon to gently layer on the creamy coconut mixture.
5. Let the jelly dessert rest at room temperature for 30 minutes. After that, you can dig in straight away, or pop it into the fridge to enjoy chilled. I like to slice the dessert into equally sized pieces right before serving.