Honey Panna Cotta with Cherries & Sponge Toffee

Panna Cotta is one of those desserts you hardly ever see made at home. Come to think of it, you hardly even see it on many restaurant menus these days! Why I'm not so sure. If you've never had Panna Cotta, it's a deliciously creamy milk based dessert very similar in texture to Creme Brulee. Originating in Italy, Panna Cotta is meant to be a light and velvety dessert with subtle flavors.

One of the main differences between a Creme Brulee and Panna Cotta is that instead of using eggs to thicken the milk you use gelatin. The Panna Cotta mix is then poured into a mold and chilled while the gelatin sets. Either sheet gelatin or powdered gelatin may be used as long as the correct ratio of gelatin to liquid is used.  Panna Cotta is a wonderfully versatile dessert that can be garnished or flavored with whatever fruit, liqueurs or spices you desire. This Honey Panna Cotta is the perfect (and easy to make!) dessert to impress with on any special occasion.

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Panna Cotta  - The Base Recipe

I'll start with just a basic vanilla recipe. Scroll down for the Wild Honey & Cherry version! This basic vanilla Panna Cotta recipe can be adapted to suit any flavour you like. Just steep the cream or milk with a variety of fruit, spices or other flavours. Add the gelatin and garnish appropriately once chilled.

• You'll need:
  
  500ml milk or cream (cream will result in a creamier and richer dessert)
• 1 packet (15ml)  Knox Powdered Gelatin (or 4 leaves of sheet gelatin)
• ¼ vanilla bean scraped

Method

1. Dissolve the packet of gelatin in ¼ cup of cold milk or cream.
2. Steep the scraped out vanilla bean with the sugar in 1 ¾ cup milk or cream, making sure not to boil the liquid.
3. Remove the vanilla bean from the milk or cream, then whisk in the ¼ cup of liquid with dissolved gelatin.
4. Whisk the gelatin well to completely dissolve it.
5. Pour the Panna Cotta mix into any size or shape mold and chill for at least 3 hours until completely set.
6. Once set, un-mold the Panna Cotta onto a serving dish and garnish appropriately.

As you can see making a basic Panna Cotta is very straightforward and surprisingly easy.

Honey Panna Cotta with Cherries and Sponge Toffee

Using this basic Panna Cotta recipe from above I will show you how to create a truly stunning dessert with only a handful of ingredients and some bubble wrap!

For this variation you will need:

• 560ml Milk
• 3 tablespoon Wildflower Honey
• 1 packet (15ml) Knox Powdered Gelatin
• 1 Jar Sour Cherries
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ vanilla bean scraped
• 3 pieces Sponge Toffee as a garnish, (you can find the recipe at Mdivadomestica!)

Prepare your sponge toffee in advance and set aside to cool. Use caution when making your own sponge toffee. As soon as the baking soda is added the hot sugar will start to expand very rapidly. Use a very deep pot while preparing the toffee and a deep dish to cool the toffee and avoid spilling the sugar. Hot sugar burns are nasty and no fun. If you do burn yourself, resist the urge to put the burn in your mouth, which is a natural reflex. The sugar sticking to your finger or hand will still be hot and you will burn your mouth badly. Instead immediately run the burn under cold water. This disclaimer comes because I have seen many people burn themselves with sugar.

Dissolve the gelatin and in ¼ cup(60ml) of cold milk, and split and scrape the vanilla bean. Heat 2 cups(500ml) milk, 3 tablespoon honey, and the ¼ scraped pod section of vanilla bean. The scraped out vanilla paste will be added to the cherry juice in the next step.

Strain the jar of sour cherries, and pour the juice into a separate sauce pot with the fresh vanilla paste and bring to a simmer with ¼ cup of sugar. Reduce this liquid by at least half until it starts to turn syrupy. Set aside the syrup and save for garnishing along with the cherries themselves.

Whisk the dissolved gelatin into the hot milk mixture. Fish out the vanilla pod and pour the Panna Cotta mixture into any shape or size mould. You can use special silicone molds meant for cooking and baking or if you don't have any special molds you can use any shape dish or ramekin. Even small rounded wine glasses will work!

Pour the Panna Cotta Mix into the molds and chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours. Overnight is best as it really ensures the Panna Cotta is set. Once ready to serve the dessert, un-mold the Honey Panna Cotta by running a paring knife along the edge of the mold. Quickly dip the mold into a bowl of hot water to ensure no sides or bottom are sticking and then invert the mold onto a plate. If you are using a silicone mold you can just pop it out by pressing on the underside of the mold. Garnish the Panna Cotta with the sour cherries, cherry syrup, sponge toffee, and some flower petals for a colourful, and  surprisingly simple yet stunning dessert, this Honey Panna Cotta, garnished with cherries and sponge toffee is sure to impress any guest or date!

Let me know if you made this Honey Panna Cotta. I'd love to know how it turned out! You can find me on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and Instagram.

Recipe

Honey Panna Cotta with Cherries

Chef Markus Mueller

A surprisingly simple yet stunning dessert, this Honey Panna Cotta, garnished with cherries & sponge toffee is sure to impress any guest or date!

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Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 3 hours hrs 20 minutes mins

Course Dessert

Cuisine French

Servings 6 portions

Calories 171.3 kcal

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 ¼ cup Milk
• 3 tablespoon Wildflower Honey
• 1 packet Knox Powdered Gelatin 15ml
• 1 jar Sour Cherries
• ¼ cup sugar
• ¼ whole vanilla bean scraped
• 3 pieces Sponge Toffee

Instructions

 

• Dissolve the packet of gelatin in ¼ cup of cold milk or cream.
• Steep the scraped out vanilla bean with the honey in 2 cups of milk, making sure not to boil the liquid. Remove the vanilla bean from the milk, then whisk in the ¼ cup of liquid with dissolved gelatin. Whisk the gelatin well to completely dissolve it.
• Pour the Panna Cotta mix into any size or shape mold and chill for at least 3 hours until completely set.
• In a seperate pot, reduce the cherry juice with ¼ cup sugar and some vanilla bean paste until syrupy.
• Once set, un-mold the Panna Cotta onto a serving dish and garnish appropriately with the cherry syrup, whole sour cherries,and sponge toffee.

Nutrition

Calories: 171.3kcal

Nutrition info is auto-generated. This information is an estimate; if you are on a special diet, please use your own calculations.

Keyword How do you make panna cotta?

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Some of the links in this post lead to affiliate sites through which Earth, Food, and Fire may earn a small commission (at no increased cost to you) should you make a purchase. This allows us to stay online and keep creating awesome content! For more info check the Affiliate Disclaimer.  All recipes, and opinions are 100% my own.