Easy Panna Cotta Recipe (2024)

FAQs

What are the ingredients for panna cotta? ›

Panna cotta literally means "cooked cream," and that's about all it is! This custard-like dessert is made with just cream, sugar, and gelatin – though I like to add sour cream and vanilla to mine for the extra flavor.

The reason for the gelatin is obvious — a perfect panna cotta should have just enough that it seems the cream is barely holding together. It quivers when you touch it. When there's too much gelatin, the custard feels stiff and cheesy. Too little and, well, you've got a puddle on the plate when you unmold it.

One potential problem is the gelatin didn't melt all the way or you boiled the gelatin mixture. When you boil gelatin, it loses its thickening power and won't set up as desired. The other issue is not giving the panna cotta enough time to set up.

Pour the panna cotta mixture into eight 4-ounce ramekins and let cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate until the panna cotta is set but still jiggly, at least 3 hours.

Panna cotta means “cooked cream” in Italy, and that's essentially what the base is: heated heavy cream (often with a little half-and-half or whole milk) set with powdered gelatin and flavored with vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste.

In addition to blooming, straining the final mixture just before you pour it into molds to set will give your panna cotta the smoothest texture. Gelatin-based desserts are best eaten soon after they're cooked, and panna cotta will begin to develop a rubbery texture if it ages beyond four days.

Panna cotta ( lit. 'cooked cream') is an Italian dessert of sweetened cream thickened with gelatin and molded.

If you like making gelatin for dessert, you might have noticed that the box recommends against adding certain kinds of fruit, such as papaya and pineapple, which are shown in Figure 1 below, as well as other fruits, like kiwi, mango, ginger root, figs, or guava.

Key Takeaways: Fruits That Ruin Gelatin

Proteases are enzymes that break chemical bonds in proteins, such as collagen in gelatin. Pineapple, kiwi, papaya, mango, and guava are examples of fruits that cause a problem. Heat inactivates proteases, so cooking fruit before adding it to gelatin prevents any issue.

Panna cotta: the quick recipe

There is a super-fast variation of the classic recipe. Simply remove the milk and dissolve the sugar and fish gelatin (softened in water) directly into the hot cream. Perfect for those who don't feel like dirtying more than one pot!

How do you keep vanilla seeds from sinking in panna cotta? ›

Pour the panna cotta into six small plastic cups or glasses. Chill until completely firm, at least 2 hours. 4. While the panna cotta is setting, toss the fruit in a bowl with the sugar and mint.

Give that a try, and if you still feel the texture can be improved upon, here's a trick I learned from a professional pastry chef: Just remelt your panna cotta in a saucepan on the stovetop.

If you find that your panna cotta separates into two layers, one that's creamy and one that's more gelatin-like — there can be two reasons. First, either your gelatin didn't bloom and dissolve properly when stirred into the cream. Second, the cream mixture boiled after the gelatin was added.

Just take care with substitutes like dark brown sugar or demerara, which can be acidic enough to curdle the panna cotta if the base is too hot.

Panna cotta can always be the right dessert — whether you're throwing a fancy party or a small one, have lots of time or no time, are gluten-free, dairy-free, allergy-prone, vegan, or simply craving a delicious and creamy sweet. It's perfect.

Gelatin consists of processed collagen extracted from the skin, bones, cartilage, and tendons of animals. The end result—gelatin, or hydrolyzed collagen—is a soluble protein, meaning it dissolves in warm water. Its chemical composition is very similar to collagen.

Panna cotta tastes like a soft, milky pudding that has a firmer texture than pudding. It holds its shape when scooped, but melts in your mouth. It has a sweet, vanilla flavor, almost like ice cream but softer. It takes on the flavors of the fruit you serve it with.