Vanilla panna cotta
An easy recipe for a simple creamy panna cotta that's perfect for making ahead of a special dinner. This recipe is served with a raspberry sauce, but you could swap in strawberries or other soft fruit.
For this recipe you will need 4 ramekins or dariole moulds.
Ingredients
For the panna cotta
- 3 gelatine leaves
- 250ml/9fl oz milk
- 250ml/9fl oz double cream
- 1 vanilla pod, split lengthways, seeds scraped out
- 25g/1oz sugar
For the sauce
- 175g/6oz sugar
- 175ml/6fl oz water
- splash cherry liqueur
- 350g/12oz raspberries
To serve (optional)
- 4 sprigs fresh mint
- icing sugar, to dust
Method
For the panna cotta, soak the gelatine leaves in a little cold water until soft.
Put the milk, cream, vanilla pod and seeds and sugar into a saucepan and bring to a simmer. Remove the vanilla pod and discard.
Squeeze the water out of the gelatine leaves, then add to the pan and take off the heat. Stir until the gelatine has dissolved.
Divide the mixture among 4 ramekins and leave to cool. Place into the fridge for at least an hour, until set.
For the sauce, place the sugar, water and cherry liqueur into a pan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the sugar has dissolved.
Take the pan off the heat and add half the raspberries. Using a hand blender, blend the sauce until smooth.
Pass the sauce through a sieve into a bowl and stir in the remaining fruit.
To serve, turn each panna cotta out onto a serving plate. If the panna cotta don't easily come out, carefully dip the ramekin in a bowl of warm water to loosen then try again.
Spoon over the sauce. Garnish with a sprig of mint and dust with icing sugar, if using.
Recipe Tips
The size and strength of gelatine leaves (aka sheets) can vary. This recipe uses the platinum grade gelatine commonly found in UK supermarkets. Whatever you use try not to add too much gelatine as it will make your panna cotta rubbery, rather than silky and melt-in-the-mouth.
If you can't get hold of gelatine leaves, you can also use powdered gelatin: where one sachet of powdered gelatin is roughly equivalent to four gelatine leaves, so you'll need to use about ¾ of a sachet. Like gelatin leaves, powdered gelatine needs to be soaked in cold water to soften before using. Add it to a small bowl, just cover with cold water and stir. Let it sit for 5 minutes and then add to the hot, not boiling, cream mixture and stir well.
Vege-gel is a vegetarian alternative to gelatine, as it results in a softer set we recommend using a whole sachet. The technique for using it varies so you will need to follow the packet instructions carefully and adjust the recipe slightly.