Panna Cotta is a timeless spoon dessert, which can be said to have always existed: our grandparents ate it, we eat it, and our children do too.
A typical Italian dessert from Piedmont, soft and delicate, simple to make, based on cream, milk, and sugar that thicken thanks to gelatin and take on the consistency of a pudding always much appreciated for its versatility. Just add an ingredient or be creative in presentation to always bring a different dessert to the table.
Panna Cotta should be served cold. It is velvety, fresh, and has a delightful taste of cream and vanilla: an irresistible treat, excellent on its own, but even better if accompanied by fruit coulis, chocolate, or caramel.
The Panna Cotta Recipe we will prepare today is the one my grandmother always made during the Christmas holidays: Panna Cotta with Pomegranate Coulis.
It is an easy and quick preparation that will allow you to bring to the table a homemade Panna Cotta, perfect like the one from the bakery or restaurant.
The process is very easy: once all the ingredients are mixed, just heat them on the stove, and then you can choose whether to create individual servings or pour it into a single mold to slice later.
After cooling in the fridge, the Panna Cotta will be ready to be unmolded and decorated as you like, creating a thousand delicious variations.
Try today’s version of Pomegranate Panna Cotta, ideal for the Christmas or New Year’s menu due to this seasonal fruit, which adds a touch of originality and color to this recipe.
It can be prepared in advance and served cold: a practical, economical dessert that you can also flavor with Tonka Bean, a new flavor to savor.
So without hesitation, let’s prepare this soft, velvety, delicious, and beautiful dessert
If you liked this recipe, also check out these other spoon desserts
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Economical
- Rest time: 5 Hours
- Preparation time: 15 Minutes
- Portions: 4/6 people
- Cooking methods: Stovetop
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: Fall, Winter
- Energy 334.52 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 24.29 (g) of which sugars 21.30 (g)
- Proteins 2.85 (g)
- Fat 25.57 (g) of which saturated 0.02 (g)of which unsaturated 0.03 (g)
- Fibers 0.80 (g)
- Sodium 0.76 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 80 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients
- 2 cups liquid fresh cream
- 1 vanilla pod
- 1/3 cup sugar
- 8 sheets gelatin sheets
- 2/3 cup pomegranate (juice)
- 3 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
Tools
- Bowl
- Small pot
- Mold
- Sieve
- Potato masher
Steps
Soak the gelatin sheets in cold water for 10 minutes. Pour the cream into a small pot and add the sugar, flavor with the seeds from the vanilla pod, and stir. Heat over low heat, and as soon as it almost reaches a boil, turn off the heat.
Drain the gelatin and squeeze it, then put it in the pot with the hot cream and stir until completely dissolved and smooth. Fill 4 molds of 5 oz each with a ladle, let slightly cool, then place them in the refrigerator for at least 5 hours.
Meanwhile, prepare the Pomegranate Coulis. Clean the pomegranate and extract the seeds (How to easily seed a pomegranate), then place them in a potato masher and press well to extract 2/3 cup of juice. Strain it through a sieve.
Put 1/3 cup of pomegranate juice in a small pot, and in the remaining 1/3 cup, dissolve the cornstarch, being careful to avoid lumps. Place the pot on the stove over low heat, add the sugar, and the juice and cornstarch mixture, stir well, and bring to a boil.
Cook for about 2 minutes until it starts to thicken and a coating forms when a spoon is inserted. Turn off the heat, pour the pomegranate coulis into a bowl, and let it cool to room temperature.
Take the Panna Cotta glasses from the refrigerator and distribute the coulis on top, forming a layer a couple of inches thick. Garnish with fresh pomegranate seeds. Alternatively, if you have used pudding molds to solidify the Panna Cotta, once ready, unmold them by turning them onto a plate. Then pour the pomegranate coulis on top and decorate the top with some fruit seeds or even sliced almonds.
PANNA COTTA WITHOUT GELATIN
Ingredients: Liquid fresh cream 1 ⅓ cups, Whole milk ½ cup, Egg whites ⅓ cup, Sugar ⅓ cup, Vanilla bean ½, Fine salt a pinch.
Procedure. Pour whole milk and cream into a small pot, add the vanilla bean seeds, and stir. Add the sugar and a pinch of salt, stir again, and bring the mixture to a near-boil. Turn off the heat and let it cool until it reaches room temperature. At this point, add the egg whites directly into the pot and mix with a hand whisk. Transfer the panna cotta into 4 molds of 6 oz each, place them on a high-sided baking sheet, and pour boiling water up to ¾ of the height of the molds. Bake in a static oven at 320°F for about 65 minutes. The panna cotta should be firm and with a golden crust on the surface. Finally, remove from the oven and let cool in the bain-marie water, then put them in the fridge for 2 hours.
BIMBY PANNA COTTA
Ingredients: 2 cups liquid fresh cream, 1 cup whole milk, ⅓ cup sugar, ½ oz gelatin sheets, 1 packet vanillin
Procedure. Soak the gelatin in cold water. Pour the cream, milk, sugar, and vanillin into the bowl, then cook at 176°F for 7 min. at speed 3. Drain the gelatin sheets and squeeze them well, then add them to the mixture in the bowl, mix everything for 15 sec. at speed 3. At this point, transfer the panna cotta into individual molds and let it cool to room temperature, then put it in the fridge for at least 4 hours.
TIP
To flavor the panna cotta, you can use vanillin instead of vanilla bean seeds or use orange or lemon zest for a citrus note.
For the panna cotta garnish, I made a Pomegranate Coulis, but you can also prepare a raspberry or strawberry coulis by cooking 3.5 oz of fresh raspberries (or strawberries) with ⅓ cup of sugar and ⅓ cup of water until boiling. Then blend everything with ½ oz of lemon juice, strain, and it’s ready to use.
STORAGE
Panna cotta can be stored in the fridge, well covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container, for up to 3 days. It is possible to freeze panna cotta once set and without coulis; to consume, just leave it in the fridge the day before.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
What to do with 2 cups – 1 cup of Fresh Cream?
You can make a lovely Panna Cotta as a dessert following the recipe described above.
How to prevent panna cotta from sticking to the mold? How to detach panna cotta from the mold?
The method to prevent panna cotta from sticking to the mold or to detach it without breaking is to immerse the mold in boiling water for a second (be careful not to let water enter) and then use the blade of a sharp knife to run along the edges of the mold to completely detach the panna cotta and then turn it onto a plate.
How to defrost panna cotta?
If you have frozen panna cotta and want to eat it, move it to the refrigerator and leave it for at least 12 hours, preferably a whole day: the consistency should be like pudding.
How long does panna cotta last in the freezer?
You can store panna cotta in the freezer for up to one month.
