Panna cotta means “cooked cream”. It is a delicate and creamy(originally Italian) dessert, whereby cream is cooked and then set with gelatin. It is so creamy and delicious; one of my favourite go-to, no-bake desserts with a silky smooth and firm texture that melts in your mouth. The best vanilla panna cotta is jiggly like, creamy, and sweet.
Classic panna cotta is basically made from heavy cream, gelatin, milk, and sugar, then flavoured with Vanilla.
To make panna cotta, mix milk with heavy cream then, add sugar and flavouring.
Let the mixture simmer over medium heat for a few minutes. Remove from heat and add bloomed gelatin and stir until dissolved. Afterwards, pour into glasses or cups then refrigerate.
Because Panna cotta is so versatile and easy to make, the classic Italian dessert can be customized into different flavours like; Lemon, coconut, mocha, coffee, chai, and chocolate flavours.
The fun part of panna cotta is you get to play around and mould it into different shapes depending on what you have at home. Dessert cups, shot glasses, wine glasses, chocolate moulds e.t.c. So go right ahead and experiment with different shapes as you incorporate different flavours.
INGREDIENTS.
Panna cotta
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
- 2 cups Heavy cream
- ¾ cup Milk
- 2 Teaspoons Vanilla Extract
- 2 1/2 Teaspoon gelatin.
Mango Compote
- I cup mango puree.
- ¼ cup finely diced mango
- ¼ cup sugar
- 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
METHOD.
Panna cotta.
- Soak the gelatin in cold water and set aside. This is called blooming, which simply means allowing dry powdered gelatin to absorb liquid.
- Mix the cream, milk and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer/ slow boil.
- Remove from heat add drained gelatin and stir until the gelatin has completely dissolved.
- Add in the vanilla extract and continue to stir until it’s completely incorporated in the mixture.
- Let the Panna Cotta cool to room temperature and pour in the desired glasses.
- Refrigerate for up to 4 hrs.
Mango compote.
In a small size, pot mix the mango puree, lemon juice and sugar.
- Cook for a few minutes over medium heat for about 3-5minutes.
- Add the diced mango, stir and remove from heat. Let it cool to room temperature then, pour spoonfuls on top of each panna cotta serving.
- Return to fridge and let it set.
- Remove from fridge and garnish with sugar cookie crumbs and fresh mint leaves. Serve and enjoy.
TIPS FOR MAKING THE BEST VANILLA PANNA COTTA .
- Always ensure the gelatin is fully bloomed(absorbed enough water usually 6 minutes) for the panna cotta to be silky and smooth. Don’t add the gelatin too late after the cream mixture has already cooled it will form lumps.
- You can always customize the panna cotta to desired taste i.e. sugar can be reduced or increased the choice is yours.
- Simmer the panna cotta at a low temperature to avoid boiling. Too much heat might lead to separation of the cream base.
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