Panna Cotta - literally "cooked cream" - is a delicious Italian dessert. Made from sweetened cream thickened using gelatin, it's a fancy-looking dessert that serves well with fresh fruit, a coulis, or other sweet sauces!
Course Dessert
Cuisine Italian
Prep Time 10 minutesminutes
Total Time 10 minutesminutes
Servings 4
Author Recipes From Europe
Ingredients
2cupswhipping cream, approximately 35% fat
1/3cupmilk
1/3cupgranulated sugar
2teaspoonsvanilla extract
1pouch powdered gelatine, equals 1 tablespoon
8ouncesstrawberries or raspberries for topping
Instructions
Add the cream, milk, sugar, and vanilla extract to a medium-sized pot. Heat the ingredients on the stove while whisking regularly.
When the contents in the pot are just boiling, remove the pot from the heat.
Prepare the gelatin according to packaging directions (if the gelatin needs to be soaked or boiled first, prepare the gelatin before boiling the cream). We use powdered gelatin that needs to be dissolved in water while stirring.
Add the gelatin to the hot cream mixture while whisking constantly.
Now the mixture has to cool down to room temperature. This step is very important otherwise the panna cotta might separate after pouring it into serving bowls. To cool the mixture, you can transfer it to a bowl and let it sit on the counter for 30-45 minutes while regularly giving it a stir. To speed up the process, transfer the mixture to a metal bowl that you then place into a larger bowl (or the sink) filled with ice-cold water. Stir constantly until the mixture is at room temperature. Then transfer the panna cotta to serving bowls or into molds (if you plan on turning it over to serve later).
Cover the serving bowls with cling film and place them in the fridge for at least 4 hours, ideally overnight if you plan on flipping the panna cotta onto a plate or bowl to serve.
Before serving, prepare the strawberry or raspberry sauce (coulis) by blending the berries in a blender. If the blender has trouble, add a little bit of water. You can also add a little bit of sugar but we don't usually do this. After blending the berries, pour them through a sifter to capture any large pieces or seeds (this is especially important when using raspberries). Then spread the fruit puree on top of the panna cotta and garnish with more fruit. You can also flip the panna cotta out of its mold onto a plate and pour the puree on top with a side of fresh berries.
Notes
If you plan on flipping the panna cotta out of its mold upside down to serve, let it set overnight since it will need to be completely set.
This nutritional information has been estimated by an online nutrition calculator. It should only be seen as a rough calculation and not a replacement for professional dietary advice.